EEG correlates of suicidal intentions in depressive patients who survived and have not been ill with COVID-19

Abstract

To search for EEG correlates of suicidal intentions in young depressive patients who survived and have not been ill with COVID-19. We studied 46 female patients, aged 16-25 years, with depressive disorders who had previously had a mild or asymptomatic coronavirus infection («COVID» group) and 40 female patients with depressive disorders matched in age, syndromic structure of disorders and the initial severity of depression to patients of the «COVID» group but who are known not to have COVID-19 («non-COVID» group). The severity of suicidal intentions was assessed by the number of points of item 3 of HDRS-17. In all patients, pre-treatment multichannel background EEG was recorded with spectral power analysis in narrow frequency sub-bands. In patients of the «COVID» group, the mean number of points of item 3 of HDRS-17 was slightly higher (at the trend level) than in the «non-COVID» group (2.1±1.5 and 1.8±1.6 points, respectively), and positively correlated (p<0.05) with the spectral power values of theta2 (6-8 Hz) and delta (2-4 Hz) EEG sub-bands. In the «non-COVID» group, the severity of suicidal intentions positively correlated (p<0.05) with the values of the spectral power of alpha2 (9-11 Hz) EEG sub-band. Suicidal intentions increased in depressive patients survived from COVID-19, and their severity is associated with EEG signs of a reduced functional state of the cerebral cortex.