THE ESSENTIAL
- A total of 579,092,623 people have contracted Covid-19 worldwide.
- As of August 8, 6,407,556 patients have died from this infection worldwide, including 2,054,636 in Europe.
The loss of a loved one, especially a companion, is a devastating experience for anyone. But according to a study, published in the journal Journals of Gerontology – Series Bthe death of a spouse caused by Covid-19 is even more painful and can be worse for mental health than deaths from other causes.
102.062 participants
To reach this conclusion, researchers from Pennsylvania State University (USA) analyzed data from 27 countries during two different periods: before the pandemic, i.e. from October 2019 to March 2020, and at the start of the pandemic, i.e. from June to August 2020. In total, 102,062 adults were included in this work.
The information reviewed included data on mental health, including symptoms of depression, loneliness and sleep disturbances. Information was also collected on whether the volunteers had recently lost their spouse, when the death occurred, and whether it was caused by coronavirus infection.
A higher risk of depression
According to the results, the death of a spouse is associated with poor mental health. However, scientists found that people whose spouse died from Covid-19 had a higher risk of suffering from depression and loneliness than adults whose spouse died just before the outbreak began.
“Millions of widowers face extreme mental health risks,” can we read in the study. According to the authors, this reinforces concerns about the lasting impacts of the pandemic even on the health of people who have not been infected with the virus.
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