Impact of NPIs for COVID-19 on Other Infectious Diseases and Mental Illnesses in South Korea

Abstract

Due to COVID-19, high-intensity nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) are implemented and these regulations may trigger changes in the incidence of other infectious diseases. The goal is to determine the impact of NPIs on other infectious diseases and mental illnesses in South Korea. Data were collected from an open-source dataset concerning NPIs covering the period of January 2018 to July 2020. The data comprised average daily mask production volume and number of companies newly authorized to offer disinfection and sterilization services, and numbers of patients with sentinel surveillance infectious disease and mental illness. This study compared changes in NPIs and incidence of infectious diseases and mental illnesses before and after the COVID-19 outbreak in South Korea. 

In 2020, the average daily mask production volume and the number of companies newly authorized to offer disinfection and sterilization services markedly increased following the virus outbreak (380% and > 94.8–99.5%, respectively). Meanwhile, the incidence of respiratory and intestinal infectious diseases declined, including those of influenza (49–55%), acute respiratory infection (78–79%), hand-foot-and-mouth disease (84–94%), enterovirus (94–97%), and intestinal infectious disease (36–40%). The weekly incidence of sexually transmitted diseases in 2020 remained constant regardless of the COVID-19 outbreak. Meanwhile, the number of outpatients increased by 7–16% for depressive episodes, 5–12% for other anxiety disorders, and 10–28% for sleep disorders. NPIs significantly reduced the incidence of respiratory and intestinal infectious diseases and negatively affected mental health. Therefore, while NPIs should be continued to prevent the spread of infections, systematic policies must be enacted to support mental health.