Symptoms of depression and anxiety in patients with thalassemia: prevalence and correlates in the thalassemia longitudinal cohort.
Thalassemia is an inherited blood disorder that requires lifelong adherence to a complicated and burdensome medical regimen which could potentially impact emotional functioning of patients. The importance of understanding and promoting healthy emotional functioning is crucial not only to psychological well-being, but also to physical health as it has been shown to impact adherence to medical regimens [1-4]. The current study aimed to [1] determine the prevalence of depressive and anxiety symptoms in adolescent and adult patients with thalassemia; and [2] explore possible demographic, medical, and psychosocial correlates of these symptoms in 276 patients (14-58 years old, M age = 27.83; 52% female). Overall, most patients did not report experiencing significant symptoms of anxiety and depression (33% of participants indicated experiencing symptoms of anxiety and 11% symptoms of depression). Females and older patients were more likely to experience these symptoms than males and younger patients. Symptoms of anxiety and depression were positively associated with self-report of difficulty with adherence and negatively associated with quality of life. Given these findings, regular screening for anxiety and depression symptoms could help to identify at-risk individuals to provide them with appropriate psychological support with the goal of improving both emotional and physical health.
Mednick
Lauren
L
Yu
Shuli
S
Trachtenberg
Felicia
F
Xu
Yan
Y
Kleinert
Dorothy A
DA
Giardina
Patricia J
PJ
Kwiatkowski
Janet L
JL
Foote
Dru
D
Thayalasuthan
Vivekanandan
V
Porter
John B
JB
Thompson
Alexis A
AA
Schilling
Leann
L
Quinn
Charles T
CT
Neufeld
Ellis J
EJ
Yamashita
Robert
R
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001007:Anxiety / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000208:ethnology / Q000209:etiology; D044466:Asian People / Q000523:psychology; D001803:Blood Transfusion / Q000523:psychology; D002170:Canada / Q000453:epidemiology; D015913:Chelation Therapy / Q000523:psychology; D003863:Depression / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000208:ethnology / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010349:Patient Compliance; D011788:Quality of Life; D012306:Risk; D012737:Sex Factors; D013789:Thalassemia / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D006113:United Kingdom / Q000453:epidemiology; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D044465:White People / Q000523:psychology; D055815:Young Adult
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