Prevalence of Depression Symptoms in US Adults Before and During the COVID 19 Pandemic
Key Points Question What is the burden of depression symptoms among US adults during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID 19) pandemic compared with before COVID 19, and what are the risk factors associated with depression symptoms? Findings In this survey study that included 1441 respondents from during the COVID 19 pandemic and 5065 respondents from before the pandemic, depression symptom prevalence was more than 3 fold higher during the COVID 19 pandemic than before. Lower income, having less than $5000 in savings, and having exposure to more stressors were associated with greater risk of depression symptoms during COVID 19. Meaning These findings suggest that there is a high burden of depression symptoms in the US associated with the COVID 19 pandemic and that this burden falls disproportionately on individuals who are already at increased risk.
JAMA network open