Self-Injurious Behavior Rate in the Short-Term Period of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Korea

• Published in: Journal of Korean medical science Vol. 37; no. 6; p. e45
• Main Authors: Park, Se Jin, Rim, Soo Jung, Jo, Minkyung, Lee, Min Geu, Kim, Gyurin, Park, Subin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Korea (South) The Korean Academy of Medical Sciences 14-02-2022; 대한의학회
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Cohort Studies; COVID-19 - epidemiology; COVID-19 - psychology; Female; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Original; SARS-CoV-2; Self-Injurious Behavior - epidemiology; Young Adult; 의학일반; COVID-19; South Korea; Self-Injurious Behavior (SIB); COVID-19 Positive; Mental Disorders; Non-Suicidal Self-Injury (NSSI); Suicide Attempt
• ISSN: 1011-8934; 1598-6357
• DOI: 10.3346/jkms.2022.37.e45

The objective of this study was to investigate the trend of self-injurious behavior (SIB) among persons who were directly impacted by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), especially those with pre-existing mental disorders.
Using the National Health Insurance Service-COVID-19 database cohort, the monthly SIB rate was calculated by COVID-19 subgroups (i.e., positive for COVID-19 test, negative for COVID-19 test, and non-COVID-19 test [control]). In addition, moderated regression analysis was utilized to examine the statistical difference of SIB (suicide attempt and non-suicidal self-injury using ICD-10 code) trend between COVID-19 subgroups and with and without pre-existing mental disorder.
A total of 328,373 persons were included in the cohort study. Of these, 212,678 had been tested for COVID-19, and 7,713 of them were confirmed positive. During the pandemic peak, the "negative for COVID-19" group showed a large increase (
= 0.003) in SIB rates compared to the control group, the "positive for COVID-19" group showed a decreasing trend, but not significant (
= 0.314). Among those who were tested for COVID-19, those with pre-existing mental disorders showed an increasing trend of SIB compared to those without pre-existing mental disorders, however statistically insignificant (
= 0.137).
Our results suggest that people who are tested for COVID-19 are at a high risk of SIB during the peak COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, screening for suicide risk and psychological interventions is needed for these high-risk groups.