Trauma Shaping the Psychopathological Correlates of Patients with Long-COVID: A 6-Months Longitudinal Study with Repeated Measures Mixed Models
Anna Panzeri, Maria Devita, Elisa Di Rosa, Gioia Bottesi, Virginia Brundisini, Claudia Guarrera, Adele Ravelli, Isabella Ponza, Anna Maria Cattelan, Biancarosa Volpe, Pamela Iannizzi, Marta Ghisi, Rossana Schiavo, Daniela Mapelli
Abstract
This research aimed at investigating how the experience of trauma can influence the psychological correlates of long-COVID over time in a clinical sample of patients hospitalized because of COVID-19. Through a longitudinal research design, 70 post-acute patients with COVID-19 were followed-up after hospital discharge in 3-time points up to 6 months and completed the Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5) and the Symptoms Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90 R). Repeated measures mixed models with random intercept were used to evaluate the effect of trauma (yes/no) over time (T1, T2, T3) on the SCL-90-R scales. Results showed that patients with trauma display significantly worse psychological outcomes in all the SCL-90-R dimensions [all padj < .05 for the principal effects of trauma(y)], especially in symptoms of depression [time 2 vs time 1*trauma(y): b = -3.86, CI = -7.18 – -0.53, padj = .035; time 3 vs time 1*trauma(y): b = -4.77, CI = -8.10 – -1.45, padj = .011], anxiety [time 3 vs time 1*trauma(y): b = -4.54, CI = -7.72 – -1.37, padj = .011], and obsessive-compulsive difficulties [time 3 vs time 1*trauma(y): b = -4.03, CI = -7.20 – -0.86, padj = .027]. These findings shed light on the long-term psychological consequences of COVID-19 among hospitalized patients and highlight the key role of trauma, suggesting its assessment to tailor psychological interventions.