People with pre-pandemic health conditions are more vulnerable and more likely to suffer greater psychosocial impact due to the current COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdown measures. Thus, the objective of this work was to systematically review the impact of the early stages COVID-19 pandemic on people with pre-existing psychiatric disorders. The search was performed between 23 January and 2 September 2021 in PubMed, PsycINFO, and EMBASE. A total of 4167 published results were identified; however, only 49 were included in this review. Results show that there was considerable heterogeneity among studies, which resulted in a low consensus. However, it seems that the impact of the first stage of the COVID-19 pandemic on psychiatric disorders was two-fold: (1) an overall effect, in which people suffering from psychiatric disorders in general experienced more psychological distress and anxiety when compared to people who had no psychiatric diagnosis, and (2) a condition-specific effect, namely in people suffering from eating disorders and obsessive compulsive disorders. Moreover, the current work highlights that there were also some external factors that were related to worsening symptoms. For instance, unemployment or experiencing work and financial difficulties can be a trigger for greater distress during the pandemic for people with mood disorders, and being alone and in social isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic may actually increase substance use and relapse rates. Further studies are needed to prospectively investigate the long-term effects of the current COVID-19 pandemic on people with (pre)-existing psychiatric conditions and on the onset or deterioration of psychiatric-related symptoms in a larger number of participants, as well as exploring the long-term effects of the current pandemic on mental health.

Theory of mind concerns the sociocognitive ability to infer others' thoughts. It has been theorized to be impaired in substance use and abuse, as its alterations might explain negative social and interpersonal outcomes noted in the course of disorders. In addition, the brain structures involved in Theory of Mind (ToM) have been found to be disrupted in drug use conditions. We undertook a systematic review of ToM functioning in drug use conditions. Four electronic databases (MEDLINE, Web of Science, PsycINFO, and Embase) were searched to find studies that have addressed ToM and conditions related to actual or previous drug use. The search found 147 papers, of which 14 fulfilled our review eligibility criteria. Different methods were used, but overall, results indicated that drugs are related to ToM deficits, particularly related to alcohol and amphetamines use. These impairments correlate with other clinical and cognitive functions. Despite the lack of studies and the methodological limitations of the existing ones Theory of Mind seems to play a role in drug use conditions, which requires further investigation.