We are facing a crisis caused by an extremely infectious disease, Covid-19. The mechanisms of infection and transmission of this coronavirus are largely unknown but some of the clearer recommendations are washing hands and surfaces. Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder has a lifetime prevalence of 2-3%, among the multiple symptoms, fear of dirt or being contaminated, and excessive washing are the most common affecting about 50% of patients.

We reviewed the available information to understand if there are changes in OCD symptoms during the pandemic.

Non-systematic review of the literature with selection of scientific articles published in the past 6 months; by searching Pubmed and Medscape databases using the combination of MeSH descriptors. The following MeSH terms were used: Covid-19; SARS-Cov2; pandemic; obsessive compulsive disorder; OCD.

From a theoretical point of view, the increased frequency of hand washing and the importance of following hand-washing steps can add to a ritualistic pattern, also cleaning hands every time a person comes from outside or contacts with others can be justified as a preventive action rather than considered a problem and it can be “normalized” by others as a pandemic response.

In conclusion, there is evidence that during quarantine an overall increase in obsession and compulsion severity emerged with contamination symptoms associated with worse outcomes. There is data on an increase in relapses with patients not asking for help in a timely manner. The current situation is unpredictable and rapidly changing. It is likely that more information about this topic will arise in the next months.

Since stress and anxiety are significant manifestations of psychological distress during the COVID-19 pandemic, we studied their role in making a decision about vaccination.

To study the relationship between the intention to be vaccinated against COVID-19 with health anxiety and stress levels.

The methodological complex includes the author’s socio-demographic questionnaire (Pervichko, 2020, 2021, 2022); the questionnaire “Scale of perceived stress-10” (Ababkov, 2016); the questionnaire “Perceptions of the COVID-19 pandemic” (Pervichko et al., 2020), developed on the basis of the Russian-language version of the E. Broadbent’s short questionnaire about the perception of disease (Broadbent, 2006); the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) (Spielberger, 2002) and the “Short Health Anxiety Inventory” (Pervichko et al., 2020).

The study involved 232 respondents who did not have COVID-19 (average age – 29.1 ± 13.7 years). Among the respondents, 68.5% have already been vaccinated, 23.3% do not plan to be vaccinated and 8.2% plan to perform the procedure.

The methodological complex includes the author’s socio-demographic questionnaire (Pervichko, 2020, 2021, 2022); the questionnaire “Scale of perceived stress-10” (Ababkov, 2016); the questionnaire “Perceptions of the COVID-19 pandemic” (Pervichko et al., 2020), developed on the basis of the Russian-language version of the E. Broadbent’s short questionnaire about the perception of disease (Broadbent, 2006); the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) (Spielberger, 2002) and the “Short Health Anxiety Inventory” (Pervichko et al., 2020).

The study involved 232 respondents who did not have COVID-19 (average age – 29.1 ± 13.7 years). Among the respondents, 68.5% have already been vaccinated, 23.3% do not plan to be vaccinated and 8.2% plan to perform the procedure.

Higher health anxiety, situational anxiety, perceived stress, and greater perceived life threat due to coronavirus contribute to COVID-19 immunization procedures, which is accompanied by perceptions of greater control of the pandemic.

None Declared

‘Health‐related stigma’ is typically known as social rejection or exclusion of individuals and populations suffering from specific health problems. Results on previous infectious diseases showed that stigma can be experienced by survivors but also by health‐care workers (HCW). Several factors contribute to stigma associated with infectious diseases, such as people’s knowledge, myths and stories transmitted by the mass and social media and psychosocial variables, such as risk perception and fear of being infected. COVID‐19 is a new disease with many unknown aspects and, naturally, people are afraid of the unknown.

To reflect on infectious diseases and social stigma during covid-19 pandemics.

Pubmed and Google Scholar search.

Stigmatization can considerably increase psychosomatic distress and disturbance and can negatively affect people with infection and those at risk of infection in seeking medical care. HCWs and volunteers working in the field may also become stigmatized, leading to higher rates of distress, stress, and burnout When people avoid groups or geographic areas related to infectious diseases, this can pose significant economic losses. Thus, stigma is more than a mere negative outcome of infectious diseases; it is both a factor that contributes to the epidemics and pandemics and a disease in itself.

Anticipating disease‐related stigma during the COVID‐19 pandemic enables policy‐makers to address it, restricting its adverse effects. The hidden burden caused by this stigma can cause severe consequences for patients, HCW, and public health measures, so, coordinated psychological interventions to overcome this crisis seems essential.

This study, which aims to reveal the metaphorical perceptions of social media users regarding the term, COVID-19, is in accordance with the phenomenological method.

The phenomenological method was used in this study. In July 2020, a total of 125 social media users voluntarily participated in this research study and were asked to derive metaphors regarding the concept of COVID-19.

With the participation of social media users, metaphors about COVID-19 were determined. These metaphors, which were provided completely voluntarily in response to social media posts, reveals that the participants approached the COVID-19 phenomenon with a variety of meanings.

When the metaphors derived by the participants are examined through different categories, it can be seen that a variety of metaphors are produced and almost all of them attribute negative meanings to COVID-19. A significant part of the metaphors evoke disasters and unexpected events. The absence of more hopeful metaphors regarding the end of the pandemic, may stem from the fact that this study took place during the middle of the pandemic, when discussions of the “new normal” were being made just after the first wave.

The pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been associated with widespread myriad chemosensory dysfunction with smell loss as high as 99% and taste loss in 89% of those studied (Kim 2021, Paderno 2020, Renaud 2020). Other chemosensory problems, occur often in combination, including dysgeusia and hyposmia (3.2%), dysgeusia and anosmia (3.4%), ageusia and hyposmia (3.4%) and, ageusia and anosmia (8.5%) (Giacomelli, 2020). Hyperosmia has also been reported to be precipitated by COVID-19 infection (Di Stadio 2022, Kamali 2021). COVID-19 induced persistent hyposmia with resolution of smell and taste dysfunction with COVID-19 reinfection has not heretofore been described. Such a case is presented.

Two years prior to the presentation, a 26-year-old right-handed single male developed COVID-19 at which time his sense of smell and taste were totally eliminated. His smell gradually returned to 40-50% of normal whereby he was able to smell everything, but less intensively than he normally did. Furthermore, some odors he experienced in a hyperosmic fashion, such as smoke which was 200% more intense than normal. Prior to COVID-19 exposure, he experienced frequent flavorful eructations which were eliminated after COVID-19 exposure. His taste was initially absent after the COVID-19 exposure, but gradually returned to 60-70% of normal whereby he would taste everything but less intensively. Two years and one month after the initial COVID-19 infection despite being fully vaccinated, he contracted a recurrent COVID-19 infection. Prior to the infection, his smell and taste were 60% of normal. Acutely with the reinfection, his smell and taste ability abruptly dropped to 0% for 16 hours, after which his smell returned to 90% of normal and his taste returned to 100% of normal. During this time period, his other chemosensory problems including dysosmia, dysgeusia, cacogeusia, hyperosmia, and phantosmia all resolved, and his flavorful eructations returned. His sense of smell has remained normal for five months, but his sense of taste has gradually dropped down to 50% of normal.

Abnormalities in Physical Examination: General: Scalloped tongue. Neurological Examination: Cranial Nerve (CN) Examination: CN II: Visual acuity 20/25 OU. CN III, IV, VI: left ptosis. CN V: decreased light touch left V₁ and V₂ . CN IX and X: Uvula deviates to the right. Reflexes: Absent bilateral triceps. Neuropsychiatric Testing: Clock Drawing Test: 10/10 (normal). Animal Fluency Test: 26 (normal). Go-No-Go Test: 6/6 (normal). Center for Neurologic Study Lability Scale: 8/10 (normal). Chemosensory Testing: Olfaction: After the first infection prior to the second infection: Alcohol Sniff Test: 3 (Anosmia). Chemosensory Testing: 1 month after the recurrent COVID-19: Alcohol Sniff Test: 9 (hyposmia). Brief Smell Identification Test: 9 (normosmia). Retronasal Olfaction Test: Retronasal Index: 8 (normosmia). Gustation: Phenylthiocarbamide Taste Test: 9 (normogeusia). Waterless Empirical Taste Test: sweet: 6 (normogeusia) sour: 8 (normogeusia) salty: 6 (normogeusia) bitter: 4 (hypogeusia) brothy: 0 (ageusia) total: 37 (normogeusia).

COVID-19 induced smell loss has been observed to worsen after reinfection, improvement has not been described (Jain, Ear, Nose & Throat Journal, 2021, Lechien, Journal of Internal Medicine, 2021). Possibly the recurrent infection induced hyperosmia which superimposed upon the underlying COVID-19 induced anosmia caused an additive effect, combining together to induce normosmia as opposed to COVID-19 induced hyposmia. This may be due to persistent inflammation of the olfactory bulbs and frontal lobes, inducing excessive neuronal sprouting and associated hyperosmia (Di Stadio, European Review for Medical and Pharmacological Sciences, 2022). Alternatively, COVID-19 may have acted on not only the olfactory nerves but rather on a central basis, enhancing neuronal firings in the anterior insula and hippocampus, areas involved with the olfactory integration and which have enhanced gray matter volume in states of hyperosmia (Wabnegger, 2019). Even though COVID-19 vaccination has been noted to worsen the chemosensory function (Konstantinidis, International Forum of Allergy & Rhinology, 2021), COVID-19 immunization induced improvement in smell has also been reported (Plaza, Annals of Neurology, 2021). It is possible that such an improvement is through infection induced activation of inflammatory immune responses which then acts on the infected olfactory bulbs to reduce pathology. The current case of COVID-19 infection enhancing smell and taste strengthens such an autoimmune explanation. In those with recurrent COVID-19 infection, query and investigation as to presence of improvement of chemosensory dysfunction is warranted.

No Funding

Owing to daily exposure to high job stress, nurses need to use coping techniques. One of the coping strategies helping a person to cope with stressful situations effectively is resiliency skills. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to examine the factors related to nurses’ resiliency during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic.

The resiliency of 288 nurses, 145 nurses from the COVID-19 wards , and 143 nurses from other wards were compared using 25-item Connor & Davidson Resilience Questionnaire. This study was conducted in 2021 in four referral hospitals at Shiraz.

The mean age of participants was 32 y. The average resilience score in the in the participants worked in COVID-19 wards was 95.30 for men and 87.72 for women, and in the non-COVID-19 wards was 85.82 for men and 88.48 for women. The mean resiliency scores of nurses working in COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 wards did not show a statistically significant difference. Factors affecting resilience included age, employment status, gender, and job expectancy.

In this study, the resiliency of nurses working in COVID-19 wards did not differed from that of working in non-COVID-19 ones. This result should be further investigated and elaborated. Health policymakers should consider job expectation, gender, age, and employment status of nurses when making plans for future pandemics.

The viral theory of the development of psychoses was formulated in the 19th century, but the role of viral agents in the pathogenesis of psychoses remains a matter of debate. In the context of the 2020 pandemic, the results of several papers on the characteristics of psychotic disorders in COVID-19 have been published. Coronaviruses are neuroinvasive, capable of affecting mental and body functions.

The aim of the study was to identify patients with acute psychosis without a history of mental disorders in order to test the hypothesis about the possibility of manifestation of schizophreniform psychosis due to a viral attack.

Within a year and a half, 50 patients with mental disorders associated with COVID-19 were identified. The reason for hospitalization in a psychiatric hospital is the development of acute schizophreniform psychosis against the background of a new coronavirus infection. The diagnosis was verified according to traditional clinical criteria and modern psychometric tools. Inclusion criteria: no previous visits to a psychiatrist; verified acute polymorphic psychotic disorder and coronavirus infection COVID-19 (ICD-10); manifestation of psychosis against the background of infection with COVID-19; age 18-60 years; consent to participate in the study. Exclusion criteria: signs of organic brain damage; indications of substance abuse; delirium of any etiology; somatic pathology in the stage of decompensation.

27 women (54%) and 23 men (46%), aged 20 to 57 years (average age 34.5±7.6), of which 18 people (36%) worked, 2 (4%) studied , 29 (58%) people are unemployed. 27 people (54%) are single, 16 (32%) are married, 7 (14%) are divorced; 18 people (36%) were raising children, which indirectly indicated a relatively favorable premorbid functioning. At the time of the examination, the condition was determined by polymorphic psychotic symptoms with a predominance of dissociative-delusional, paraphrenic and oneiric phenomena with plots containing plots of infection and the spread of coronavirus. At the same time, the sum of PANSS is from 53 to 130 (85) points, including PANSS P - from 15 to 37 (27), PANSS N - from 7 to 44 (18), PANSS G - from 23 to 57 (39.9 ); P1 - 5.7; P3 - 5.1. When comparing the obtained data with the world experience, we found some differences. Delusional symptoms were diagnosed twice as rarely, cases with tactile hallucinations were not detected, but catatonic symptoms were observed twice as often, and manic arousal was twice as rare. In general, the studied data are comparable with the results published in the world practice.

The unique experience of the coronavirus pandemic will allow us to assess the influence of environmental factors, namely the role of infections, in the manifestation or predisposition to schizophrenia spectrum disorders. It is planned to evaluate the dynamics of the course of the disorder after the relief of the acute period.

None Declared

The covid-19 pandemic is a difficult global phenomenon that causes a lot of anxiety and uncertainty. This situation has involved reactions of fear. Healthcare professionals are necessarily in contact with patients, but may find themselves torn between the duty to care and the duty to protect themselves and their relatives.

To assess perceived stress among medical residents in Tunisia

We conducted a descriptive study among a representative sample of residents working at a teaching hospital in Tunis during the first half of 2021 in different departments. We prepared a questionnaire for the study divided in two parts: socio-demographic data; professional data (function, practice setting); data related to contact with covid-19 patients ; questions on fear of covid-19 contamination and the Perceived stress scale (10items)

Our sample consists of 100 residents in 10 different specialties, including 70 in services with direct contact with Covid-19 patients. Stress management is rated good for 30 residents, average for 40 residents and poor for 30 residents. This management depends on the number of guards, the number of patients examined, the technical platform available and especially the period of the pandemic.

Medical residents are in the front line in university hospitals in tunisia. The stress to which they are subjected depends on the working conditions and coping skills of each of them.

No significant relationships.