Mental Health and Cognitive Outcomes in Patients Six Months After Testing Positive Compared with Matched Patients Testing Negative for COVID-19 in a Non-Hospitalized Sample: A Matched Retrospective Cohort Study

Brooklyn Ward, Nicole E. Edgar, Chloe Ahluwalia, Eileen Huang, Daniel Corsi, D. William Cameron, Ian Colman, Mark Kaluzienski, Heather Orpana, Sarah E. MacLean and Simon Hatcher ()
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Brooklyn Ward: Neuroscience Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, 406-1919 Riverside Drive, Ottawa, ON K1H 1A2, Canada
Nicole E. Edgar: Neuroscience Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, 406-1919 Riverside Drive, Ottawa, ON K1H 1A2, Canada
Chloe Ahluwalia: Neuroscience Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, 406-1919 Riverside Drive, Ottawa, ON K1H 1A2, Canada
Eileen Huang: Neuroscience Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, 406-1919 Riverside Drive, Ottawa, ON K1H 1A2, Canada
Daniel Corsi: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Ottawa, 501 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
D. William Cameron: Inflammation & Chronic Disease, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, 501 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
Ian Colman: School of Epidemiology & Public Health, University of Ottawa, 600 Peter Morand Crescent, Ottawa, ON K1G 5Z3, Canada
Mark Kaluzienski: Department of Mental Health, The Ottawa Hospital, 501 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
Heather Orpana: Centre for Surveillance and Applied Research, Public Health Agency of Canada, 130 Colonnade Road South, Nepean, ON K2E 1B6, Canada
Sarah E. MacLean: Neuroscience Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, 406-1919 Riverside Drive, Ottawa, ON K1H 1A2, Canada
Simon Hatcher: Neuroscience Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, 406-1919 Riverside Drive, Ottawa, ON K1H 1A2, Canada

IJERPH, 2025, vol. 22, issue 8, 1-18

Abstract: We aimed to determine the mental health and cognitive outcomes at six months in people who had not been hospitalized with COVID-19 and who had tested positive or negative for COVID-19 in Eastern Ontario, Canada. Participants were matched 1:1 six months following their COVID-19 polymerase chain reaction test. X2, t -test, and Mann–Whitney U tests were conducted to compare self-report and observer-rated mental health and cognitive outcomes between the two groups. We also conducted an age and gender-adjusted logistic regression analysis to explore risk factors associated with depression, anxiety, and cognitive impairment among those who had tested positive for COVID-19. A total of 324 participants were enrolled ( n = 162 per arm). Overall, 40.7% of those in the COVID-positive group were men, with an average age of 37.9 (SD 13.2) years. In the COVID-negative group, 41.4% were men, with an average age of 36.7 (SD 12.8). There were no statistically significant differences in mental health outcomes between the groups. On cognitive testing, while 21% of the COVID-positive participants and 14% of the COVID-negative participants had scores indicating significant cognitive impairment, the difference between groups was not significant, though this warrants further investigation in future research. In non-hospitalized patients who have tested positive for COVID-19, there is no evidence of an increase in mental health disorders compared to people who tested negative. Any increases in mental health disorders during the pandemic may be the effect of social changes rather than an effect of the virus itself. The exception may be the cognitive changes in those who tested positive.

Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; coronavirus; mental health; cognitive symptoms; cohort study (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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