Psychiatric symptoms before and after COVID-19 vaccination: A cohort study of hospitalized schizophrenia patients.

Abstract

This study aimed to examine the impact of COVID-19 vaccination on the psychiatric symptoms of hospitalized schizophrenia patients and to evaluate the association between the severity of psychiatric symptoms and the COVID-19 vaccination decision. We assessed the psychiatric symptoms of 330 hospitalized schizophrenia patients who accepted the vaccine and 114 patients who declined the vaccine option with PANSS before and after vaccination. We showed that the unwillingness to receive the vaccine is correlated with a higher level of psychiatric symptoms. COVID-19 vaccination is associated with slight deterioration of the schizophrenia symptoms of elderly hospitalized patients.