The effects of mandatory home quarantine on mental health in a community sample during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

Objective: Major public and scientific interest exists on, whether quarantine as a containment measure, could have adverse effects on individual’s mental health. We investigated psychic well-being and distress, symptoms of depression and anxiety among individuals imposed to home quarantine. Methods: By total population sampling in a Finnish suburban city, a total of 57 quarantined cases (participation rate 97%) were identified and followed up for two weeks until expiration of the quarantine. A randomized control group (n = 53) was formed of people seeking laboratory testing for suspected Sars-CoV-2 infection. Primary outcome was the psychic well-being and distress experienced during quarantine measured by the Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation–Outcome Measure (CORE-OM). The cases were followed up by the Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation-10 (CORE-10), Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), and by the Overall Anxiety Severity and Impairment Scale (OASIS). Results: The median CORE-OM score for the cases was 3.53 (95% CI: 2.23–4.66), and for the controls 3.24 (1.76–3.82), being mostly in the nonclinical to mild range. The difference between the groups was statistically nonsignificant (p =.19). Higher levels of psychic distress were explained by previous psychiatric disorders and living alone, but not having been quarantined. In comparison to controls, the quarantined participants experienced significantly, but slightly lower level of life functioning. At the follow-up, the quarantined participants rated further low on the CORE-10 (median 2.00; 95% CI: 1.00–3.00), the PHQ-9 (1.50; 0.00–3.00), and the OASIS (0.00; 0.00–0.00). Conclusions: The distress associated with short-term home quarantine may not be to the degree of a mental disorder.