The level of anxiety, depression and quality of life among patients with heart failure in Greece.
The assessment of the level of anxiety, depression and quality of life among patients with heart failure.



It was an observational study. The populations were 231 patients with heart failure who were hospitalized in cardiology departments of 2 general hospitals in Athens, from September 1, 2010 through January 31, 2012. We used the "Minnesota Living with Heart Failure Questionnaire - MLHFQ" to evaluate patients' quality of life and the " State-Trait Anxiety Inventory - STAI" and the "Maastricht Questionnaire - MQ" to evaluate the level of stress and depression, respectively.



The mean age of patients was 66.1±10.1years. The quality of life was poor, since the average score in MLHFQ was 65.4±20.6. Also, patients revealed high levels of both trait and state anxiety (mean score in STAI was 54.5±9.4 and 52.8±8.5 respectively) and depression (mean score in MQ was 34.3±8.4). Factors associated with poor quality of life and high levels of anxiety and depression were older age, low level of education, unemployment, poor economic situation, multiple hospitalizations (> 4 times) and heart failure stages III and IV in NYHA (p<0.001 in all cases).



Patients with heart failure present severe symptoms of anxiety and depression and poor quality of life. Assessing those patients for these symptoms and providing holistic health care by a multidisciplinary team, will lead to the prevention and early treatment not only of physical but also of the psychosocial manifestations of the disease.
Faculty of Nursing, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece.
Zoi
Z
Aggelopoulou
Faculty of Nursing, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece. Electronic address: nikfotos@nurs.uoa.gr.
Nikolaos V
NV
Fotos
Faculty of Nursing, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece. Electronic address: a.chatziefstratiou@yahoo.gr.
Anastasia A
AA
Chatziefstratiou
Cardiac Surgery Intensive Care Unit, Evangelismos General Hospital of Athens, Greece. Electronic address: k.giakoumidakis@gmail.com.
Konstantinos
K
Giakoumidakis
Cardiac Surgery Intensive Care Unit, Evangelismos General Hospital of Athens, Greece. Electronic address: ielefs@com.gr.
Ioannis
I
Elefsiniotis
Faculty of Nursing, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece. Electronic address: heropan@nurs.uoa.gr.
Hero
H
Brokalaki
D000368:Aged; D001007:Anxiety / Q000209:etiology*; D003863:Depression / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006115:Greece; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011788:Quality of Life; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors
Anxiety; Depression; Heart failure; Quality of life