Smith · BMJ case reports 2020 · case report · n=1

COVID-19-associated brief psychotic disorder.

Cited 114 times in the scientific literature.

Level 4 - case-series / case-control

Individual case report

PubMed 32784244 · doi:10.1136/bcr-2020-236940 · record verified 2026-08-30

What was done

Clinical case report of a previously healthy 36-year-old woman with no personal or family history of mental illness who developed new-onset psychosis following a diagnosis of symptomatic COVID-19.

What was found

No quantitative data were reported in the abstract. The patient presented with acute psychosis after symptomatic COVID-19. Her psychiatric symptoms improved initially with antipsychotics and benzodiazepines and showed further improvement following the resolution of her COVID-19 symptoms.

Why it matters

This report describes acute psychosis emerging in the context of symptomatic COVID-19 in an individual without prior psychiatric history, underscoring the need for clinical vigilance for acute neuropsychiatric presentations during infection.

Limits

This is an uncontrolled single-patient case report (n = 1), which cannot establish causality, incidence, or generalizability. The abstract does not report specific laboratory or neuroimaging findings, medication dosing, or duration of follow-up.

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