New research from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience (IoPPN) at King’s College London has found that people with severe mental illness (SMI) are more than three times more likely to die from non-COVID respiratory infections compared with the general population.
The research, published in eClinicalMedicine, suggests that people with SMI should be prioritized for preventative strategies, including flu and pneumococcus vaccines.
While there has been extensive research establishing that COVID-19 posed a significantly increased risk of death for people with SMI, comparatively little has focused on other specific types of infection.
The researchers in this study conducted a systematic review of 29 studies to establish the risk. A meta-analysis found that compared to the general population, people with SMI were more than twice as likely to die from infectious diseases and more than three times as likely to die from non-COVID respiratory infections. The risk of dying from pneumonia specifically was more than four times higher.
Professor Ioannis Bakolis, Professor of Public Mental Health and Statistics at King’s IoPPN and lead author of the study, said: “While society has made great progress over the past two decades and has become much more tolerant of mental illness, it still “We still have a way to go.” recognize the wider risks faced by those living with serious mental illness.
“Our study highlights the significantly increased risk of mortality associated with infectious diseases that people with SMI still face. The important thing now is that, once the risk is identified, public health policy recognizes it and adapts to provide better protections to those who need it.”
Researchers continue to highlight several potential reasons why people with SMI face increased risk.
Amy Ronaldson, MQ researcher at King’s IoPPN and first author of the study, said: “The nature of SMI means it is difficult to identify a single reason why this group is at increased risk. Most likely it is a series of combined factors.
“People with SMI already experience significant health inequalities, such as reduced access to healthcare and stigma within the care system, which can deter people from going to their doctor for help in the first place. This, combined with physical health factors and the possible changes in the immune system that have been shown to be a characteristic of mental illness, creates a potent situation in which the effects of infectious diseases are felt much more strongly by someone who treats them. an EMG.”
This study was made possible by support from the MQ Mental Health Research Grant and funding from the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Center (BRC).
