CME Objective

After studying this article, you should be able to:

• Understand which SUDs and other psychiatric patient subgroups may be more susceptible to severe COVID-19 infections and outcomes and better direct needed medical attention to these patients.

Statement of Need and Purpose

Given the still-recent advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, information about the impact of the disease is still evolving. Factors that make some individuals more susceptible to severe illness and hospitalization have begun to emerge, including medical conditions (eg, asthma, heart disease, diabetes) and markers of poor overall health (eg, obesity and hypertension) as well as the presence of psychiatric disorders. Among mental illnesses, substance use disorders (SUDs) are highly prevalent. Although the presence of SUDs has been shown to lead to poorer treatment outcomes for medical illnesses, the specific impact of SUDs on COVID-19 outcomes has not been systematically studied. Given the high prevalence of both COVID-19 and SUDs and the need to direct medical attention to especially vulnerable patient populations, mental health practitioners need information about the difference in COVID-19 outcomes between individuals with SUDs and those without SUDs, specific SUDs that are more likely than others to affect COVID-19 outcomes, whether different SUDs affect different outcomes specifically, and whether the presence of other psychiatric disorders mediate the effect of SUDs on COVID-19 outcomes. Clarifying the effects of individual SUDs on COVID-19 outcomes, as well as ways in which other psychiatric disorders may mediate these effects, would allow appropriate medical attention and targeting of vaccination efforts to be directed to these especially susceptible patient groups.

Release, Expiration, and Review Dates

This educational activity was published in August 2022 and is eligible for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ through October 31, 2023. 

Unlabeled and Investigational Usage

The faculty of this educational activity may include discussions of products or devices that are not currently labeled for use by the FDA. Faculty members have been advised to disclose to the audience any reference to an unlabeled or investigational use.

No endorsement of unapproved products or uses is made or implied by coverage of these products or uses.

Please refer to the official prescribing information for each product for discussion of approved indicators, contraindications and warnings.

Funding/support

There was no specific funding for this study. 

Disclaimer

The contents of this publication are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official view of NIH or any federal agency.

Previous presentation

Poster presented at the American Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology (ASCP) Annual Meeting; October 27–29, 2021.