{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,12]],"date-time":"2026-09-12T13:50:10Z","timestamp":1789221010846,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":24,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"11","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2024,5,27]],"date-time":"2024-05-27T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1716768000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["JCM"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background: The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic led to several needed containment measures that conditioned the onset of depressive, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress symptoms in the population. These symptoms, especially if not diagnosed and treated, can also occur in patients undergoing medical care or surgery, with a high impact on people\u2019s lives and causing low adherence to treatment. The study evaluates whether the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) worsened the onset of post-surgical distress and symptoms of anxiety and depression in a population undergoing hysterectomy for benign disease during the pandemic era, comparing it with a population with the same characteristics but recruited before COVID-19. Methods: The sample was evaluated before surgery (T1), post-operatively (T2), and 3 months after surgery (T3) through a sociodemographic questionnaire and through the HADS (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale) to evaluate anxious-depressive symptoms and the PCL-5 (Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for DSM-5) to assess the onset of post-surgical distress. Results: Patients treated after the COVID-19 pandemic showed a higher depressive symptoms rate compared with those treated before (p-value = 0.02); conversely, pre-COVID-19 patients were more prone to develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (p-value = 0.04). A significant association between the occurrence of PTSD and anxiety-depressive symptoms registered at T2 (p-value = 0.007) and T3 (p-value &lt; 0.0001) emerged. In the end, the COVID-19 pandemic has exerted a detrimental influence on the mental well-being of the patients under investigation, with a notable exacerbation of their mood disturbances. Conclusions: The findings advocate for the implementation of psychometric and psychodiagnostic assessments to promptly detect high-risk scenarios that could lead to PTSD, compromising treatment compliance and exacerbating the overall outcome, resulting in substantial direct and indirect burdens.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/jcm13113148","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2024,5,28]],"date-time":"2024-05-28T03:48:49Z","timestamp":1716868129000},"page":"3148","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Pre-Pandemic Predictivity of Anxious-Depressive Symptoms in Post-Surgical Traumatic Distress in Hysterectomy for Benign Disease and COVID-19 Outbreak: A Case-Control Study"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"13","author":[{"given":"Marta","family":"Ielmini","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Medicine and Surgery, Division of Psychiatry, University of Insubria, 21100 Varese, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jvan","family":"Casarin","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Obstetrics and Gynecology Department, University of Insubria, 21100 Varese, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0624-9988","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Camilla","family":"Callegari","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Medicine and Surgery, Division of Psychiatry, University of Insubria, 21100 Varese, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Alessandro","family":"Bellini","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Applied and Psychobehavioral Sciences, Division of Psychiatry, University of Pavia, 27100 Pavia, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0002-3501-5336","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Manuela Giada","family":"Favata","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Medicine and Surgery, Division of Psychiatry, University of Insubria, 21100 Varese, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Anna","family":"Giudici","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Obstetrics and Gynecology Department, University of Insubria, 21100 Varese, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-3949-5410","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Fabio","family":"Ghezzi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Obstetrics and Gynecology Department, University of Insubria, 21100 Varese, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Antonella","family":"Cromi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Obstetrics and Gynecology Department, University of Insubria, 21100 Varese, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2163-8025","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ivano","family":"Caselli","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Medicine and Surgery, Division of Psychiatry, University of Insubria, 21100 Varese, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2024,5,27]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1385","DOI":"10.1007\/s12630-019-01418-4","article-title":"Post-Traumatic Stress in the Postoperative Period: Current Status and Future Directions","volume":"66","author":"Sommer","year":"2019","journal-title":"Can. 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