Last update:

   19-Sep-2022
 

Arch Hellen Med, 39(5),September-October 2022, 654-661

ORGINIAL PAPER

Anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms among partners during COVID-19 lockdown

P. Κaramouzi, A. Blekas, E. Parlapani, V.A. Nikopoulou, V. Holeva, V. Tsipropoulou,
N.A. Arnaoutoglou, M.D. Kerasidou, P. Voitsidis, M. Pampouchidou, M. Asaridou, C.A. Tsiridis, I. Diakogiannis

First Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece

OBJECTIVE Τo investigate the psychological impact of the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) quarantine measures on people who were experiencing conflict in their relationships with their co-habiting partners in Greece.

METHOD A total of 2,998 participants completed four questionnaires: the Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7), the Brief Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), the Peritraumatic Distress Inventory (PDI), and the Post-Τraumatic Stress Disorder-8 items (PTSD-8). The quality of the bond between partners before and during the lockdown was assessed with two items exploring relationship quality.

RESULTS A subsample of 145 respondents (4.8%) reported that the quality of their intimate relationship worsened during the lockdown. Roughly 5% of the subsample reported being in true danger, and 85% reported moderate to severe anxiety symptoms, and 50% moderate to severe depressive symptoms, while 17.6% met the criteria for probable post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

CONCLUSIONS In addition to the psychological burden attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic and the related restriction measures, this study underscores the importance of investigating additional psychosocial factors affecting individuals, and couples, during lockdown.

Key words: Anxiety, Couples, COVID-19, Depression, PTSD.


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