ASSOCIATION BETWEEN MENTAL DISORDERS AND MORTALITY AMONG PATIENTS WITH COVID-19 IN SOUTH KOREA

Abstract Background This study investigated the association between mental disorder and mortality risk of those with COVID-19 patients. Specifically, the mortality risk of patients who were first diagnosed with mental disorders during the COVID-19 pandmic was considered. Methods The population-based cohort data from the National Health Insurance Service-COVID-19 database from Oct 2020 to Dec 2021 was utilized. The total patients were divided into three groups: 1) without mental disorder, 2) pre-existing mental disorder (i.e., History), and 3) first diagnosed with mental disorder during the COVID-19 pandmic (i.e., Pandemic onset). The primary outcome was all cause of mortality. Multivariable linear regression analysis was used to adjust for possible confounders. Results We included confirmed COVID-19 patients in the analysis (n=433,822). There were 352,473 patients (81.25%) without mental disorder group, 54,854 patients (12.64%) in the History group, and 26,495 patients (6.11%) in the Pandemic onset group. Overall, the all cuase of mortality rate was 0.71% (n=3,085). Compared to without mental disorder group, the History group was (AOR=1.42, 95% CI=1.30- 1.55) and Pandemic onset group (AOR=1.82, 95% CI=1.63-2.04) had a higher risk of mortality. Discussion and Conclusion We found that patients with mental disorders had a higher risk of mortality compared to those without mental disorders among patients with COVID-19. In particular, mortality is higher for patients who were first diagnosed with mental disorders during the COVID-19 pandemic.