Introduction:

the COVID-19 pandemic is generating an unprecedented crisis which can make people feel out of control.

Objective:

to describe in a general way the impact of COVID-19 on people's mental health.

Method:

a review of relevant literature on the subject was carried out in March 2020. Pubmed, Google and Google Scholar were used as search engines for scientific information. The search strategy included the following terms as keywords: COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, 2019-nCoV, mental health, anxiety and depression. Review articles, research articles and web pages published in English, Portuguese and Spanish languages were selected. Articles that did not meet these criteria were excluded. Forty-six bibliographic references were studied; 25 of them were cited in the current article.

Conclusions:

COVID-19 has a negative impact on people's mental health in general, and in particular, on the most vulnerable population groups. The uncertainty associated with this disease, as well as the effect of social distancing, isolation, and quarantine can worse people's mental health; a situation that health staff do not escape either.