preprints.org > medicine and pharmacology > epidemiology and infectious diseases > doi: 10.20944/preprints202307.0938.v1

Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Version 1 : Received: 13 July 2023 / Approved: 13 July 2023 / Online: 13 July 2023 (12:23:28 CEST)

Mood disorders are among the commonest mental disorders worldwide. Epidemiological and clinical evidence suggests that there are close links between infectious diseases and mood disorders, but the strength and direction of these association remain largely unknown. Theoretical models have attempted to explain this link based on evolutionary or immune-related factors, but these have not been empirically verified. The current study examined cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between the incidence of infectious diseases and mood disorders, while correcting for climate and economic factors, based on data from the Global Burden of Disease Studies, 1990-2019. It was found that major depressive disorder was positively associated with lower respiratory infections, while bipolar disorder was positively associated with upper respiratory infections and negatively associated with enteric and tropical infections, both cross-sectionally and over a period of thirty years. These results suggest that a complex, bidirectional relationship exists between these disorders. This relationship may be mediated through the immune system as well as through the gut-brain and lung-brain axes. Understanding the mechanisms that link these groups of disorders could lead to advances in the prevention and treatment of both.

major depressive disorder; bipolar disorder; infectious diseases; upper respiratory infections; lower respiratory infections; lung-brain axis; gut-brain axis

Medicine and Pharmacology, Epidemiology and Infectious Diseases

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