Anxiety and depression in allergic rhinitis patients during COVID-19 pandemic in Wuhan, China

Abstract

Background: During COVID-19 pandemic, many allergic rhinitis (AR) patients stopped their treatment including pharmacotherapy and allergen immunotherapy. Objective: This study aimed to investigate the anxiety and depression and general effect of COVID-19 pandemic on AR patients’ psychological status in Wuhan, China. Methods: In October 2019, 222 outpatients suffering from AR in our department and 133 healthy controls were enrolled. All participants were asked to finish the Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) questionnaire. The demographic characteristics and the severity of AR symptoms were recorded. In April 2020, the AR patients and healthy controls were re-contacted to finish the questionnaires by telephone or online. The SAS and SDS scores in AR patients and healthy controls and the correlation with other variables were analyzed. Results: For AR patients, the SAS and SDS scores were significantly higher than healthy controls. Meanwhile, the rates of anxiety and depression were 24.8% and 19.4% respectively. The education level and symptoms severity were correlated with SAS and SDS scores. Ninety-eight AR patients and 56 healthy controls finished the questionnaires after COVID-19 pandemic. The AR patients’ SAS and SDS scores were lower than before COVID-19 pandemic and were correlated with AR symptom scores. The scores of healthy controls were not different with before COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusions: The occurrence of anxiety and depression is common in AR patients. Severity of symptoms and low education level are the risk factors causing anxiety and depression. COVID-19 pandemic has no significant negative impact on the AR patients’ psychological status.