IMPACT OF SOCIAL STRESS ASSOCIATED WITH COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON EEG OF DEPRESSIVE PATIENTS

Abstract

Abstract. Background. The COVID-19 pandemic has provoked the emergence of an extensive complex of social-psychological stress factors that negatively affect the psychological state of people, even in uninfected persons. Patients with mental disorders, in particular those with depression, are especially susceptible to social stress. The aim of the study was to assess the impact of a complex of social stress factors associated with the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental state and brain functional state in depressive patients. Material and methods. A comparative analysis of EEG parameters in two groups of 16-25-year-old female patients with depression was carried out. The main group included 42 patients hospitalized during the COVID-19 pandemic, but were not infected with coronavirus, that is, were exposed only to the social stress factors of the pandemic (the "COVID" group). The comparison group included 40 patients who were treated before the onset of the pandemic and matched by sex, age and diagnosis to patients of the main group (group "pre-COVID"). The groups did not statistically differ in baseline depression severity. A multichannel EEG was recorded in all patients before the start of the course of therapy, with the measurement of EEG spectral power and coherence values. Results. The features of the spatial-frequency organization of the EEG were noted, which indicate a reduced functional state of the frontal regions of the left hemisphere, which are responsible for executive functions and positive emotions, as well as a greater activation of the anterior regions of the right hemisphere, which are responsible for negative emotions and the pathogenesis of depression, in patients of the "COVID" group compared to patients of the "pre-COVID" group. Conclusion. The EEG data obtained are consistent with the assumptions about the possibility of aggravating the condition of mental patients under the influence of social-psychological stress associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, the severity of this negative influence, at least in relation to the studied group of adolescent patients with depressive disorders, turned out to be significantly weaker than previously assumed at the beginning of the pandemic. Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic, social stress, depression, quantitative EEG, EEG spectral power, EEG coherence Declaration of Conflicting Interests The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. Funding The study supported by Russian Scientific Foundation (Grant No. 21-18-00129).