Depression and Anxiety in a Cardiovascular Outpatient Clinic: A descriptive study

OBJECTIVE Cardiac diseases are psycho-somatic disorders, and psychological aspects play an essential role in their initiation and exacerbation. The aim of this study was to gain appropriate knowledge in the epidemiology of co-morbid depression and anxiety disorder in cardiovascular outpatients. METHOD This study is descriptive with a sample of patients attending a cardio-vascular clinic. 238 individuals were included in this study using a consecutive sampling method. The study instrument was Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) questionnaire, which is a clinical scale for assessing anxiety and depression. RESULTS Of the 238 participants in this study, 93(38.7%) were male and 146 (61.3%) female. 28.5% of patients suffered from anxiety disorders, and 41.9% had depression. Regarding comorbid diseases such as diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidemia and hypertension, the severity of depression was just related to hypertension. There was a meaningful relationship between gender and symptoms of anxiety so that symptoms were more severe in women. CONCLUSION Considering the high prevalence of depression and anxiety in patients suffering from cardio-vascular diseases, it is necessary to screen psychological disorders in patients with cardio-vascular diseases and improve their cardio-vascular health and quality of life as mush as possible.