Does having COVID-19 lead to a different clinical presentation and treatment response in patients with major depression?

Aim: This study aimed to investigate whether having experienced a COVID-19 infection has an impact on the severity of depression, symptomatology and treatment response in patients with major depressive disorder. Method: The study was conducted with 174 patients diagnosed with "major depressive disorder" who applied to the Psychiatry Outpatient Clinic of Ankara City Hospital and agreed to participate in the study and signed the informed consent form. In the study, 76 patients with COVID-19 infection and 98 patients without COVID-19 infection were diagnosed with first episode depressive disorder. At the 1st month follow-up, 32 patients with first-episode depression who had COVID-19 infection and 36 patients who did not have COVID-19 infection were evaluated. Participants were evaluated with scales at initial presentation and at follow-up. Results: In the study, there was no significant difference between first-episode depression patients with and without COVID-19 infection in terms of sociodemographic data such as gender, educational status, employment, income, smoking, family history of the disease; however, there was a significant difference between the two groups when age, marital status, and alcohol use were compared. Leukocyte and lymphocyte values were significantly higher in patients with depression who had COVID-19 infection. Hamilton Depression Rating Scale atypia scores were significantly higher in first-episode depression patients with COVID-19. Although the response was better in those who had COVID-19 infection in the two group comparisons in treatment responses, the difference was not significant. In the post-treatment comparison of the physical subscale of quality of life, the improvement in depression patients with COVID-19 infection was significantly better. Conclusion: Although there were similarities in the severity of depression in patients with first-episode depression who had COVID-19 compared to those who did not, it was found that atypical symptoms of depression were more prominent in these patients, and treatment responses and improvement in their quality of life after treatment were better. Key words: COVID-19, major depressive disorder, atypical depression, response to treatment