Table 1.
Characterization of pED presentations
| Control period (2019) | First-wave | Difference | p-value | Control period (2019/2020) | Second-wave | Difference | p-value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N total number of pED presentations | 922 | 797 | – 13.6% | – | 1941 | 1974 | + 1.7% | – |
| Mean pED presentations per week (SD) | 76.8 (6.85) | 66.4 (11.37) | – 13.5% | 0.013 | 80.9 (6.86) | 82.3 (9.57) | + 1.7% | 0.570 |
| Median age | 39 years | 39 years | ± 0 years | 0.159 | 39 years | 39 years | ± 0 years | 0.988 |
| Female gender (%) | 388 (42.1%) | 305 (38.%) | –21.4% | 0.108 | 772 (39.8%) | 780 (39.5%) | + 1.0% | 0.878 |
| Covid-19 positive | – | 0 (0.0%) | – | – | – | 13 (0.7%) | – | – |
| Suicidality | ||||||||
| Suicidal ideation (SI) | 204 (22.1%) | 220 (27.6%) | + 7.8% | 0.009 | 510 (26.3%) | 483 (24.5%) | – 5.3% | 0.191 |
| Suicide plans (SP) | 60 (6.5%) | 83 (10.5%) | + 38.2% | 0.003 | 215 (11.1%) | 213 (10.8%) | – 0.9% | 0.752 |
| Suicide attempt (SA) | 19 (2.1%) | 36 (4.5%) | + 89.5% | 0.004 | 79 (4.1%) | 80 (4.1%) | + 1.3% | 0.970 |
Comparison of demographic and clinical characteristics of pED presentations (event level) in corresponding time periods of the first-wave (on the left) and the second-wave (on the right). Difference is the change of case numbers in the Covid-19 period compared to the corresponding control period in percentages. P values (bold = significant to a level of p ≤ 0.05) are derived from chi2-tests, except for "median age", which were tested using the Mann–Whitney-U-test. "Covid-19 positive" includes all patients tested positive for Covid-19 at admission or during hospital treatment. Abbreviations used: pED = psychiatric emergency department; N = patient numbers; Covid-19 = coronavirus disease 2019; SD = standard deviation