Comparison of the diagnoses and demographic characteristics of patients WHO applied to the psychiatry polyclinic of a university medical faculty hospital before and during the COVİD-19 pandemic

Introduction and purpose: The coronavirus-19 disease emerged in China in December 2019 and then spread to the whole world. In our country, like other countries, various restrictions and measures have been implemented regarding this global epidemic. Studies on the effects of the COVID-19 epidemic on people's mental health have revealed that some mental illnesses have increased due to the pandemic. In our study, it was aimed to compare the demographic and diagnostic data of the patients who applied to our Mersin University Hospital Psychiatry polyclinic in the pre-pandemic period with the demographic and diagnostic data after the declaration of the pandemic in order to examine the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health. Materials and methods: In our study, the automation records of patients who applied to the psychiatry outpatient clinic of Mersin University Medical Faculty Hospital between 1 March-1 July 2020 (pre-pandemic), and 1 March-1 July 2021 (pandemic period) were evaluated retrospectively. The data that could not be accessed from the automation system was obtained by scanning the files of the patients from the archive of the psychiatry outpatient clinic of our hospital. Statistical analyzes were made with Statistica v.13.3.1 program. P<0,05 was considered statistically significant. Results: Compared to the pre-pandemic period, the number of patient admissions decreased significantly during the pandemic. In 2020, when the pandemic started, the number of applications was lower than in 2021. The number of patients has also decreased during the pandemic period compared to the pre-pandemic period. Applications for the issuance of medical documents decreased in 2020 compared to the pre-pandemic period but increased in 2021 compared to the other two years. The number of male patients is significantly lower than female patients both before and during the pandemic. There was no significant difference between the years and the gender of the patients. The mean age of the patients decreased during the pandemic period compared to the prepandemic period, and the decrease in the mean age in 2021 compared to the pre-pandemic period was significant. No significant change was observed in the diagnoses of bipolar affective disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder and related disorders. The rate of diagnosis of anxiety disorders during the pandemic period has increased significantly compared to the pre-pandemic period. Anxiety disorders have increased even more in the same months of 2021 compared to March-July 2020, the beginning of the pandemic in our country. During the pandemic period, the rate of diagnosis of depressive disorder decreased significantly compared to the pre-pandemic period. A significant increase was observed in the rate of diagnosis of neurodevelopmental disorders during the pandemic period compared to the pre-pandemic period. The rate of disorders within the scope of schizophrenia expansion and psychosis is significantly lower in 2021 than in 2020, which is the first onset of the pandemic in our country. It was observed that the rate of trauma and stressor-related disorders was higher before the pandemic than during the pandemic period. Conclusion and recommendation: The COVID-19 pandemic has reduced the number of patients and admissions to the psychiatry polyclinic. In this period, compared to the pre-pandemic period, depressive disorders, trauma, and stressors-related disorders decreased, while anxiety disorders and neurodevelopmental disorders increased. In addition, their applications and diagnoses were affected by the motivations of the patients, the changes in the living conditions brought by the pandemic, and the curfews. It is critical to provide adequate resources and take the necessary measures to reduce the negative effects of epidemics on people's psychology and well-being. Keywords: COVID-19, demographic data, pandemic, the psychological impact