Anxiety, Insomnia and Body Mass Index Scores in Italian Nurses Engaged in the Care of COVID-19 Patients

Abstract

Background: A new Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) (COVID-19) infection was reported in Wuhan, China, becoming a global health emergency. Literature shows how nursing work is particularly stressful and how this condition is closely connected to the development of anxiety disorders, sleep quality and can also influence eating behavior with consequent variations in BMI values. Objective: The study aims to investigate and correlate the levels of anxiety, insomnia and Body Mass Index among nurses directly involved in the care of patients in the intensive care units with the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Method: An observatory study was conducted assessing and correlating the anxiety and insomnia levels and BMI values of each nurse before (until December 2019) and during (until May 2020) the pandemic. Results: In total, 291 Italian nurses joined the study. There are no statistically significant differences between female nurses and male nurses for both groups of participants with or without anxiety (p=0.655). Female nurses with mild, moderate and severe insomnia levels were statistically more than male nurses (p=0.025). For the same BMI differences, the levels of anxiety and insomnia were statistically significant between them (p<0.001). Conclusion: Nurses engaged in the treatment of the most serious patients with Covid-19 are subjected to very high levels of stress due to the nature of the nursing job, shifting, poor rest, anxiety due to health emergency period and weight gain.