Somatic symptoms associated with mental distress during the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review 2023 Theocharis et al

Abstract

Objective
The primary objective of this article was to systematically review the prevalence of somatic symptoms in patients, healthcare workers and general population during the COVID-19 pandemic. The secondary objectives were to record the association between somatic symptoms and indices of mental distress and to record the qualitative characteristics of such somatic complaints.

Methods
Following the PRISMA methodology we systematically searched PubMed, Scopus and Google Scholar for primary research reporting on somatic symptoms in association with mental distress. We specifically sought papers reporting on bodily distress disorder, somatic symptoms disorder or medically unexplained symptoms.

Results
1569 papers were retrieved, which yielded 36 relevant studies after screening. 15 studies referred to healthcare workers, 13 to general population, 5 to COVID-19 patients, 2 compared medical with non-medical professionals and 1 was studying COVID-19 patients some of which were also healthcare workers. The reported prevalence of somatic symptoms ranged from 7.4% to 67.8%. Commonly seen symptoms were shortness of breath, dyspnea, palpitations and pain in arms, legs and joints.

Conclusions
Our systematic review suggests that somatic symptoms are very frequent during the pandemic and are often linked to mental distress. All three population groups are affected.

Paywall, https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/10398562231156380

 

Is it just my imagination or is that conclusion written in such a way as to nudge people into assuming that somatic symptoms arising during a pandemic that has killed nearly 7 million people are caused by mental distress rather than by being physically ill?

Dyspnea is the medical term for "shortness of breath" so they've mentioned the same symptom twice.

Covid is/was a very new virus that the global population was unlikely to have much immunity to, and doctors wouldn't have known what to expect in terms of mid-infection and post-infection symptoms, so they (doctors) may have decided Covid symptoms were "medically unexplained" just because they couldn't explain them due to Covid being so new. But to try and insinuate that a pandemic and/or Covid causes "bodily distress disorder, somatic symptoms disorder or medically unexplained symptoms" rather than "real" physical symptoms is just jaw-dropping.

Notes on the authors - the first two have only published this paper and no others, the third author has published four articles. The Sage journal that this was published in was "Australasian Psychiatry" and when investigating the authors I came to the conclusion that the third author is probably a psychiatrist and the first two might be his research students.

Source : https://journals.sagepub.com/home/APY

My Conclusion

My main conclusion having read the abstract is to say what a waste of time and effort it was, and it adds nothing to the sum of medical knowledge.

 

Repeat after me, class: correlation is not causation.

It's just not. It never is. Causality is a different standard, much, much higher than mere correlation.

 

So looks like they view themselves as artists first and foremost rather than as scientists