Unravelling the link between sleep and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic

The emergence of COVID-19 brought unparalleled changes in people's lifestyle, including sleep. We aimed to assess the bidirectional association between sleep quality and mental health and describe how sleep and mental health were affected in Sweden during the COVID-19 pandemic (between June 2020 and September 2021). Data were obtained from the Omtanke2020 study. Participants who completed the baseline survey and each of the 8 monthly follow-up surveys were included (N = 9035). We described the distribution of sleep and mental health in the different Swedish regions using maps and over the study period with longitudinal graphs adjusting for sex, age, recruitment type (self-recruitment or invitation), and COVID-19 status. The inner relationships between mental health, sleep and Covid infection were described through relative importance networks. Finally, we modelled how mental health affects sleep and vice versa using generalized estimating equations with different adjustments. Seasonal and north-south regional variations were found in sleep and mental health outcomes at baseline and attenuated over time. The seasonal variation of sleep and mental health correlated moderately with the incidence rate of COVID-19 in the sample. Networks indicate that the relationship between COVID-19 incidence and mental health varies over time. We observed a bidirectional relationship between sleep quality and quantity at baseline and mental health at follow-up and vice versa. Sleep quality and quantity at baseline was associated with adverse symptom trajectories of mental health at follow-up, and vice versa, during the COVID-19 pandemic. There was also a weak relationship between COVID-19 incidence, sleep, and mental health

Short-term improvement of mental health after a COVID-19 vaccination

Introduction The role of COVID-19 vaccination on the mental health of the general population remains poorly understood. This study aims to assess the short-term change in depressive and anxiety symptoms in relation to COVID-19 vaccination among Swedish adults. Methods A prospective study of 7,925 individuals recruited from ongoing cohort studies at the Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden, or through social media campaigns, with monthly data collections on self-reported depressive and anxiety symptoms from December 2020 to October 2021 and COVID-19 vaccination from July to October 2021. Prevalence of depressive and anxiety symptoms (defined as a self-reported total score of ≥10 in PHQ-9 and GAD-7, respectively) was calculated one month before, one month after the first dose, and, if applicable, one month after the second dose. For individuals not vaccinated or choosing not to report vaccination status (unvaccinated individuals), we selected three monthly measures of PHQ-9 and GAD-7 with 2-month intervals in-between based on data availability. Results 5,079 (64.1%) individuals received two doses of COVID-19 vaccine, 1,977 (24.9%) received one dose, 305 (3.9%) were not vaccinated, and 564 (7.1%) chose not to report vaccination status. There was a lower prevalence of depressive and anxiety symptoms among vaccinated, compared to unvaccinated individuals, especially after the second dose. Among individuals receiving two doses of vaccine, the prevalence of depressive and anxiety symptoms was lower after both first (aRR = 0.82, 95%CI 0.76–0.88 for depression; aRR = 0.81, 95%CI 0.73–0.89 for anxiety) and second (aRR = 0.79, 95%CI 0.73–0.85 for depression; aRR = 0.73, 95%CI 0.66–0.81 for anxiety) dose, compared to before vaccination. Similar results were observed among individuals receiving only one dose (aRR = 0.76, 95%CI 0.68–0.84 for depression; aRR = 0.82, 95%CI 0.72–0.94 for anxiety), comparing after first dose to before vaccination. Conclusions We observed a short-term improvement in depressive and anxiety symptoms among adults receiving COVID-19 vaccines in the current pandemic. Our findings provide new evidence to support outreach campaigns targeting hesitant groups

A shared genetic contribution to breast cancer and schizophrenia

An association between schizophrenia and subsequent breast cancer has been suggested; however the risk of schizophrenia following a breast cancer is unknown. Moreover, the driving forces of the link are largely unclear. Here, we report the phenotypic and genetic positive associations of schizophrenia with breast cancer and vice versa, based on a Swedish population-based cohort and GWAS data from international consortia. We observe a genetic correlation of 0.14 (95% CI 0.09–0.19) and identify a shared locus at 19p13 (GATAD2A) associated with risks of breast cancer and schizophrenia. The epidemiological bidirectional association between breast cancer and schizophrenia may partly be explained by the genetic overlap between the two phenotypes and, hence, shared biological mechanisms

Cohort Profile: COVIDMENT: COVID-19 cohorts on mental health across six nations

Why were the cohorts set up? With more than 218 million cases and 4.5 million deaths worldwide (Worldometers, 31 August 2021), the COVID-19 pandemic has had an unprecedented influence on the global economy and population health. As a potent global disaster, it is likely to significantly affect the incidence of adverse mental health symptoms and psychiatric disorders, particularly in vulnerable and highly affected populations. The World Health Organization and leading scientific journals have alerted concerning the potential adverse mental health impact of COVID-19 and emphasized the need for multinational research in this area, which additionally provides new insights into disease mechanisms