Factors associated with fears due to COVID-19: A Scleroderma Patient-centered Intervention Network (SPIN) COVID-19 cohort study.

J Psychosom Res

Lady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and Occupational Health, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Department of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Department of Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Biomedical Ethics Unit, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Electronic address:

Published: January 2021

AI Article Synopsis

  • No studies have previously looked into the factors influencing fear during COVID-19 among individuals with pre-existing medical conditions, particularly those with systemic sclerosis (SSc).
  • The study linked pre-COVID-19 data with COVID-19 data to assess fear related to the pandemic, revealing that participants in the UK reported higher fear scores compared to those in France, while those in Canada and the US showed higher scores that were not statistically significant.
  • The findings indicated that those with greater breathing problems and lower financial resources experienced higher levels of COVID-19 fear, highlighting the need for targeted interventions based on health and socio-economic factors specific to different populations.

Article Abstract

Introduction: No studies have examined factors associated with fear in any group of people vulnerable during COVID-19 due to pre-existing medical conditions.

Objective: To investigate factors associated with fear of consequences of COVID-19 among people living with a pre-existing medical condition, the autoimmune disease systemic sclerosis (SSc; scleroderma), including country.

Methods: Pre-COVID-19 data from the Scleroderma Patient-centered Intervention Network (SPIN) Cohort were linked to COVID-19 data collected in April 2020. Multivariable linear regression was used to assess factors associated with continuous scores of the 10-item COVID-19 Fears Questionnaire for Chronic Medical Conditions, controlling for pre-COVID-19 anxiety symptoms.

Results: Compared to France (N = 156), COVID-19 Fear scores among participants from the United Kingdom (N = 50) were 0.12 SD (95% CI 0.03 to 0.21) higher; scores for Canada (N = 97) and the United States (N = 128) were higher, but not statistically significant. Greater interference of breathing problems was associated with higher fears due to COVID-19 (Standardized regression coefficient = 0.12, 95% CI 0.01 to 0.23). Participants with higher financial resources adequacy scores had lower COVID-19 Fear scores (Standardized coefficient = -0.18, 95% CI -0.28 to -0.09).

Conclusions: Fears due to COVID-19 were associated with clinical and functional vulnerabilities in this chronically ill population. This suggests that interventions may benefit from addressing specific clinical issues that apply to specific populations. Financial resources, health policies and political influences may also be important. The needs of people living with chronic illness during a pandemic may differ depending on the social and political context in which they live.

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Source
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7685938PMC
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychores.2020.110314DOI Listing

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