The COVID-19 pandemic constitutes a global emergency, with a high impact on public health, including mental health. This situation currently represents a challenge for health professionals in all fields.) In the absence of a definitive cure, the most effective measures to reduce the number of infected cases are those that involve social isolation and specifically the establishment of quarantines, with a higher incidence in those places where local transmission is reported.Social isolation and quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic are effective measures with the aim of safeguarding lives. However, these measures come with a significant cost to mental health. The monitoring of psychological reactions derived from mandatory movement restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic must be a priority for health systems.A bibliographic and documentary review was carried out on the subject in digital data sources. For the search, the following keywords were used in English and Spanish: quarantine, social isolation, psychological impact, psychological reaction. The queries were made in Scopus, EBSCO Health, PubMed (search engine), SciELO and PsycINFO, with emphasis on original articles and systematic reviews. An instruction sheet was prepared for data collection and direct content analysis was applied for its treatment.In conclusion, it is important to have actions such as keeping the population informed, facilitating feedback channels, guaranteeing basic supplies and facilitating stress coping strategies to minimize the negative effects of a quarantine period. The difficulties associated with COVID-19 will not end 28 days after the last diagnosed case. When that time comes, you can take a short break, but there is still much to be done.