IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v17y2020i14p5218-d386816.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Symptoms in Health Care Workers during the COVID-19 Epidemic. A Cross-Sectional Survey

Author

Listed:
  • Nicola Magnavita

    (Postgraduate School of Occupational Health, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Roma, Italy
    Department of Woman/Child & Public Health, Fondazione Policlinico A. Gemelli, 00168 Roma, Italy)

  • Giovanni Tripepi

    (Research Unit of Reggio Calabria, Institute of Clinical Physiology, Italian National Research Council, 89124 Calabria, Italy)

  • Reparata Rosa Di Prinzio

    (Postgraduate School of Occupational Health, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Roma, Italy)

Abstract

In March–April 2020, the Corona Virus Disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic suddenly hit Italian healthcare facilities and in some of them many staff members became infected. In this work 595 health care workers from a public company were tested for Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (82 positive) and asked to complete a questionnaire on early COVID-19 symptoms. Respiratory symptoms were present in 56.1% of cases. Anosmia and dysgeusia in COVID-19 cases were found to have an odds ratio (OR) = 100.7 (95% Confidence Interval [CI] = 26.5–382.6) and an OR = 51.8 (95%CI 16.6–161.9), respectively. About one in three of the cases (29.3%) never manifested symptoms. Anxiety was reported by 16.6% of COVID-19 cases and depression by 20.3%, with a significant increase in the estimated risk (OR = 4.3; 95%CI = 2.4–7.4 for anxiety, OR = 3.5; 95%CI = 2.0–6.0 for depression). In cases, sleep was a significant moderating factor in the relationship between occupational stress, or organizational justice, and anxiety. The early diagnosis of COVID-19 in health care workers, must consider, in addition to respiratory disorders and fever, anosmia, dysgeusia, exhaustion, myalgias and enteric disorders. The frequency of anxiety and depression disorders in the population examined was not higher than that commonly recorded in the same company during periodic checks in the years preceding the epidemic. In COVID-19 cases there was a significant risk of anxiety, especially in those who had low sleep quality. Mental health support and improvement interventions must mainly concern workers with positive tests and should also tend to improve sleep quality.

Suggested Citation

  • Nicola Magnavita & Giovanni Tripepi & Reparata Rosa Di Prinzio, 2020. "Symptoms in Health Care Workers during the COVID-19 Epidemic. A Cross-Sectional Survey," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(14), pages 1-15, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:17:y:2020:i:14:p:5218-:d:386816
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/14/5218/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/14/5218/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Huy Nguyen Van & Mai Dinh Le & Thanh Nguyen Van & Dung Nguyen Ngoc & Anh Tran Thi Ngoc & Phuong Nguyen The, 2018. "A systematic review of effort‐reward imbalance among health workers," International Journal of Health Planning and Management, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(3), pages 674-695, July.
    2. Sergio Garbarino & Nicola Magnavita, 2019. "Sleep problems are a strong predictor of stress-related metabolic changes in police officers. A prospective study," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 14(10), pages 1-19, October.
    3. Jill Maben 1,2,3,✉ & Jackie Bridges, 2020. "Covid‐19: Supporting nurses' psychological and mental health," Journal of Clinical Nursing, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(15-16), pages 2742-2750, August.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. César Fernández-de-las-Peñas & Domingo Palacios-Ceña & Víctor Gómez-Mayordomo & María L. Cuadrado & Lidiane L. Florencio, 2021. "Defining Post-COVID Symptoms (Post-Acute COVID, Long COVID, Persistent Post-COVID): An Integrative Classification," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(5), pages 1-9, March.
    2. Jianlin Ren & Shasha Duan & Leihong Guo & Hongwan Li & Xiangfei Kong, 2022. "Effects of Return Air Inlets’ Location on the Control of Fine Particle Transportation in a Simulated Hospital Ward," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(18), pages 1-21, September.
    3. Nicola Magnavita, 2022. "Headache in the Workplace: Analysis of Factors Influencing Headaches in Terms of Productivity and Health," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(6), pages 1-11, March.
    4. Nicola Magnavita & Paolo Maurizio Soave & Massimo Antonelli, 2022. "Treating Anti-Vax Patients, a New Occupational Stressor—Data from the 4th Wave of the Prospective Study of Intensivists and COVID-19 (PSIC)," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(10), pages 1-13, May.
    5. Nicola Magnavita & Paolo Maurizio Soave & Massimo Antonelli, 2021. "Prolonged Stress Causes Depression in Frontline Workers Facing the COVID-19 Pandemic—A Repeated Cross-Sectional Study in a COVID-19 Hub-Hospital in Central Italy," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(14), pages 1-13, July.
    6. Hussain Alyami & Christian U. Krägeloh & Oleg N. Medvedev & Saleh Alghamdi & Mubarak Alyami & Jamal Althagafi & Mataroria Lyndon & Andrew G. Hill, 2022. "Investigating Predictors of Psychological Distress for Healthcare Workers in a Major Saudi COVID-19 Center," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(8), pages 1-11, April.
    7. Nicola Magnavita & Francesco Chirico & Sergio Garbarino & Nicola Luigi Bragazzi & Emiliano Santacroce & Salvatore Zaffina, 2021. "SARS/MERS/SARS-CoV-2 Outbreaks and Burnout Syndrome among Healthcare Workers. An Umbrella Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(8), pages 1-13, April.
    8. Nicola Magnavita & Reparata Rosa Di Prinzio & Gabriele Arnesano & Anna Cerrina & Maddalena Gabriele & Sergio Garbarino & Martina Gasbarri & Angela Iuliano & Marcella Labella & Carmela Matera & Igor Ma, 2021. "Association of Occupational Distress and Low Sleep Quality with Syncope, Presyncope, and Falls in Workers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(23), pages 1-11, November.
    9. Sultan Ayoub Meo & Joud Mohammed Alkhalifah & Nouf Faisal Alshammari & Wejdan Saud Alnufaie, 2021. "Comparison of Generalized Anxiety and Sleep Disturbance among Frontline and Second-Line Healthcare Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(11), pages 1-11, May.
    10. Nicola Magnavita & Paolo Maurizio Soave & Massimo Antonelli, 2021. "A One-Year Prospective Study of Work-Related Mental Health in the Intensivists of a COVID-19 Hub Hospital," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(18), pages 1-12, September.
    11. Kellyann Berube Kowalski & Alex Aruldoss & Bhuvaneswari Gurumurthy & Satyanarayana Parayitam, 2022. "Work-From-Home Productivity and Job Satisfaction: A Double-Layered Moderated Mediation Model," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(18), pages 1-29, September.
    12. Nicola Magnavita & Paolo Maurizio Soave & Walter Ricciardi & Massimo Antonelli, 2020. "Occupational Stress and Mental Health among Anesthetists during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(21), pages 1-14, November.
    13. Roberto Burro & Alessandra Fermani & Ramona Bongelli & Ilaria Riccioni & Morena Muzi & Alessia Bertolazzi & Carla Canestrari, 2022. "The Robust Italian Validation of the Coping Humor Scale (RI-CHS) for Adult Health Care Workers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(5), pages 1-16, February.
    14. Cristina Civilotti & Daniela Acquadro Maran & Sergio Garbarino & Nicola Magnavita, 2022. "Hopelessness in Police Officers and Its Association with Depression and Burnout: A Pilot Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(9), pages 1-12, April.
    15. Adam Abba-Aji & Daniel Li & Marianne Hrabok & Reham Shalaby & April Gusnowski & Wesley Vuong & Shireen Surood & Nnamdi Nkire & Xin-Min Li & Andrew J. Greenshaw & Vincent I.O. Agyapong, 2020. "COVID-19 Pandemic and Mental Health: Prevalence and Correlates of New-Onset Obsessive-Compulsive Symptoms in a Canadian Province," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(19), pages 1-11, September.
    16. Nicola Magnavita & Gabriele Arnesano & Reparata Rosa Di Prinzio & Martina Gasbarri & Igor Meraglia & Marco Merella & Maria Eugenia Vacca, 2023. "Post-COVID Symptoms in Occupational Cohorts: Effects on Health and Work Ability," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(9), pages 1-13, April.
    17. Yun-Ming Tang & Tsung-Lin Wu & Hsiang-Te Liu, 2023. "Causal Model Analysis of the Effect of Formalism, Fear of Infection, COVID-19 Stress on Firefighters’ Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome and Insomnia," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(2), pages 1-15, January.
    18. Prerna Varma & Malisa Burge & Hailey Meaklim & Moira Junge & Melinda L. Jackson, 2021. "Poor Sleep Quality and Its Relationship with Individual Characteristics, Personal Experiences and Mental Health during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(11), pages 1-14, June.
    19. Ying Yang & Yanan Xiao & Yulu Liu & Qiong Li & Changshuo Shan & Shulin Chang & Philip H.-S. Jen, 2021. "Mental Health and Psychological Impact on Students with or without Hearing Loss during the Recurrence of the COVID-19 Pandemic in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(4), pages 1-28, February.
    20. Lionel Larribère & Jelizaveta Gordejeva & Lisa Kuhnhenn & Maximilian Kurscheidt & Monika Pobiruchin & Dilyana Vladimirova & Maria Martin & Markus Roser & Wendelin Schramm & Uwe M. Martens & Tatjana Ei, 2021. "Assessment of SARS-CoV-2 Infection among Healthcare Workers of a German COVID-19 Treatment Center," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(13), pages 1-11, July.
    21. Maria Rosaria Gualano & Tiziana Sinigaglia & Giuseppina Lo Moro & Stefano Rousset & Agnese Cremona & Fabrizio Bert & Roberta Siliquini, 2021. "The Burden of Burnout among Healthcare Professionals of Intensive Care Units and Emergency Departments during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(15), pages 1-17, August.
    22. Rodolfo Buselli & Martina Corsi & Sigrid Baldanzi & Martina Chiumiento & Elena Del Lupo & Valerio Dell'Oste & Carlo Antonio Bertelloni & Gabriele Massimetti & Liliana Dell’Osso & Alfonso Cristaudo & C, 2020. "Professional Quality of Life and Mental Health Outcomes among Health Care Workers Exposed to Sars-Cov-2 (Covid-19)," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(17), pages 1-12, August.
    23. Norsham Juliana & Nor Amira Syahira Mohd Azmi & Nadia Effendy & Nur Islami Mohd Fahmi Teng & Sahar Azmani & Nizam Baharom & Aza Sherin Mohamad Yusuff & Izuddin Fahmy Abu, 2022. "Exploring the Associated Factors of Depression, Anxiety, and Stress among Healthcare Shift Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(15), pages 1-14, August.
    24. Natasha Subhas & Nicholas Tze-Ping Pang & Wei-Cheng Chua & Assis Kamu & Chong-Mun Ho & Isabel Shamini David & William Wei-Liang Goh & Yogaraja Indran Gunasegaran & Kit-Aun Tan, 2021. "The Cross-Sectional Relations of COVID-19 Fear and Stress to Psychological Distress among Frontline Healthcare Workers in Selangor, Malaysia," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(19), pages 1-11, September.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Sergio Garbarino, 2020. "Sleep Disorders across the Lifespan: A Different Perspective," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(23), pages 1-5, December.
    2. Elizabeth Keller & Meghan Widestrom & Jory Gould & Runcheng Fang & Kermit G. Davis & Gordon Lee Gillespie, 2022. "Examining the Impact of Stressors during COVID-19 on Emergency Department Healthcare Workers: An International Perspective," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(6), pages 1-15, March.
    3. Nicola Magnavita & Paolo Maurizio Soave & Massimo Antonelli, 2021. "A One-Year Prospective Study of Work-Related Mental Health in the Intensivists of a COVID-19 Hub Hospital," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(18), pages 1-12, September.
    4. Dana M. Alhasan & Symielle A. Gaston & W. Braxton Jackson & Patrice C. Williams & Ichiro Kawachi & Chandra L. Jackson, 2020. "Neighborhood Social Cohesion and Sleep Health by Age, Sex/Gender, and Race/Ethnicity in the United States," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(24), pages 1-19, December.
    5. Young-Jae Kim & So-Young Lee & Jeong-Hyung Cho, 2020. "A Study on the Job Retention Intention of Nurses Based on Social Support in the COVID-19 Situation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(18), pages 1-10, September.
    6. Luigi Isaia Lecca & Igor Portoghese & Nicola Mucci & Maura Galletta & Federico Meloni & Ilaria Pilia & Gabriele Marcias & Daniele Fabbri & Jacopo Fostinelli & Roberto G. Lucchini & Pierluigi Cocco & M, 2019. "Association between Work-Related Stress and QT Prolongation in Male Workers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(23), pages 1-13, November.
    7. Judith E. Arnetz & Courtney M. Goetz & Bengt B. Arnetz & Eamonn Arble, 2020. "Nurse Reports of Stressful Situations during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Qualitative Analysis of Survey Responses," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(21), pages 1-12, November.
    8. Yuting Zhang & Yingcai Xie & Lingling Huang & Yan Zhang & Xilin Li & Qiyu Fang & Qun Wang, 2022. "Association of Sleep Duration and Self-Reported Insomnia Symptoms with Metabolic Syndrome Components among Middle-Aged and Older Adults," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(18), pages 1-11, September.
    9. Porter, Bryony & Zile, Amy & Peryer, Guy & Farquhar, Morag & Sanderson, Kristy, 2021. "The impact of providing end-of-life care during a pandemic on the mental health and wellbeing of health and social care staff: Systematic review and meta-synthesis," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 287(C).
    10. Daniela Acquadro Maran & Nicola Magnavita & Sergio Garbarino, 2022. "Identifying Organizational Stressors That Could Be a Source of Discomfort in Police Officers: A Thematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(6), pages 1-12, March.
    11. Juan Vega-Escaño & Ana María Porcel-Gálvez & Rocío de Diego-Cordero & José Manuel Romero-Sánchez & Manuel Romero-Saldaña & Sergio Barrientos-Trigo, 2020. "Insomnia Interventions in the Workplace: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(17), pages 1-18, September.
    12. Surabhi Sahay & Wan Wei, 2022. "“Everything Is Changing, but I Am Not Alone”: Nurses’ Perceptions of Social Support during COVID-19," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(6), pages 1-18, March.
    13. Henna Haravuori & Kristiina Junttila & Toni Haapa & Katinka Tuisku & Anne Kujala & Tom Rosenström & Jaana Suvisaari & Eero Pukkala & Tanja Laukkala & Pekka Jylhä, 2020. "Personnel Well-Being in the Helsinki University Hospital during the COVID-19 Pandemic—A Prospective Cohort Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(21), pages 1-9, October.
    14. Sergio Garbarino & Giovanni Tripepi & Nicola Magnavita, 2020. "Sleep Health Promotion in the Workplace," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(21), pages 1-14, October.
    15. Nicola Magnavita & Reparata Rosa Di Prinzio & Gabriele Arnesano & Anna Cerrina & Maddalena Gabriele & Sergio Garbarino & Martina Gasbarri & Angela Iuliano & Marcella Labella & Carmela Matera & Igor Ma, 2021. "Association of Occupational Distress and Low Sleep Quality with Syncope, Presyncope, and Falls in Workers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(23), pages 1-11, November.
    16. Nicola Magnavita & Paolo Maurizio Soave & Walter Ricciardi & Massimo Antonelli, 2020. "Occupational Stress and Mental Health among Anesthetists during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(21), pages 1-14, November.
    17. Jinhee Kim & Suhyun Kim, 2021. "Nurses’ Adaptations in Caring for COVID-19 Patients: A Grounded Theory Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(19), pages 1-17, September.
    18. Aline Silva-Costa & Pollyana C. S. Ferreira & Rosane H. Griep & Lucia Rotenberg, 2020. "Association between Presenteeism, Psychosocial Aspects of Work and Common Mental Disorders among Nursing Personnel," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(18), pages 1-12, September.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:17:y:2020:i:14:p:5218-:d:386816. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.