Decreases in distress and perceived risks for infection, hospitalization, and death reported by those receiving at least one dose of vaccine<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
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THURSDAY, Feb. 24, 2022 (HealthDay News) — Receipt of COVID-19 vaccination is associated with declines in psychological distress reported by U.S. adults, according to a study recently published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine<\/em>.<\/p>\n Jonathan Koltai, Ph.D., from the University of New Hampshire in Durham, and colleagues regularly interviewed a nationally representative cohort of U.S. adults (8,090 people) participating in the Understanding America Study between March 2020 and June 2021 (28 waves) to assess whether COVID-19 vaccination reduced psychological distress.<\/p>\n The researchers found that vaccination was associated with a decline in distress. Specifically, vaccination was associated with a 7.77-percentage point drop in the perceived risk for infection, a 6.91-percentage point reduction in the perceived risk for hospitalization, and a 4.68-percentage point reduction in the perceived risk for death. Vaccinated and never-vaccinated respondents followed similar Patient Health Questionnaire 4 trends before vaccination but diverged significantly after vaccination. There was variance observed in the effect of vaccination on distress by race\/ethnicity, with the largest declines observed among American Indian and Alaska Native individuals.<\/p>\n “Our study documents important psychological benefits of vaccination beyond reducing the risk of severe illness and death associated with COVID-19,” Koltai said in a statement. “To ensure these benefits are widely shared, efforts to increase vaccination and booster rates in early 2022 need to prioritize equitable distribution and access to vaccines.”<\/p>\n