TY - JOUR T1 - Isolation and mental health: challenges and experiences from China JF - General Psychiatry JO - Gen Psych DO - 10.1136/gpsych-2021-100565 VL - 34 IS - 3 SP - e100565 AU - Xing Wang AU - Jun Chen Y1 - 2021/06/01 UR - http://gpsych.bmj.com/content/34/3/e100565.abstract N2 - Isolation is a common phenomenon during the COVID-19 global pandemic, impacting people’s physical and mental health worldwide.1 2 Based on a rapid systematic review, Loades et al3 concluded that people were more likely to suffer from depression or anxiety during and after enforced isolation. Taquet et al4 followed up 62 354 patients with COVID-19 in the USA and found an increased incidence of mood and anxiety disorders in this population. However, more worrying is the long-term influence on all-cause mortality due to social isolation, loneliness or living alone.5 Even more, current evidence suggests that mental health issues may arise after the peak of the pandemic, with increased prevalence among vulnerable populations and people with risk factors.6 Vulnerable populations include children and adolescents, the elderly, unemployed and homeless persons, COVID-19 survivors, healthcare workers, people with pre-existing psychiatric disorders, community workers, pregnant women, people with disabilities and chronic diseases, migrants, refugees, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community members, as well as racial and ethnic minorities. Risk factors include death of either the parents, caregivers or loved ones, misinformation, loss of peer support due to closure of school or workplace, academic loss, medical comorbidities, uncertainties, stigma, prolonged isolation, social rejection, work stress, burnout, being in direct contact with active cases and facing economic burden.However, there may be some common misapprehension about the … ER -