Investigation of Prevalence and Associated Risk Factors of Depressive Symptoms Following Acute Ischemic Stroke (PSD) in the Aged

Yue Chen

doi:10.4236/psych.2011.25081

Abstract

Objective: The study aimed to investigate the prevalence and associated risk factors for post stroke depression (PSD), and their clinical correlations. Method: A consecutive cohort of 102 ischemic stroke patients with a mean age of 72.6 ± 7.2 years, were studied. Hamilton depression rating scale (HDRS), modified motor assessment scale (MMAS) and Barthel index (BI) were administered. Risk factors of PSD studied were gender, laterality of stroke, family history of depression and post stroke functional impairment. Results: From assessment with the HDRS, 71 (69.6%) of the subjects were non-depressive and the rest 31 (30.4%) had depression. Depressive symptoms (HDRS > 10) were relatively common, but the prevalence of severe depression (HDRS >17) was only 7.0%. Patients with depressive symptoms were more likely to be female(X2 = 4.01, P = 0.039), have a family history of depression(X2 = 3.87, P = 0.045), and a poor functional status(MMAS, t = 2.18 and P = 0.016; BI, t = 3.74 and P = 0.009). Conclusion: Our findings indicate that depressive symptoms occurred in about one third of post stroke patients. Important risk factors found for PSD included gender, family history of depression and functional impairment.

Highlights

Stroke is a common neurological problem and the third leading cause of death in developed countries of the world (Katra, Dale & Crome, 1993; Warlow, 1998)
Comparison of % of post stroke depression (PSD) between two groups university over two year period from October, 2008, until September, 2010 for problems related to acute ischemic stroke
An attempt was made to evaluate for depression with particular focus on prevalence and associated risk factors in the old patients of ischemic stroke

Summary

Introduction

Stroke is a common neurological problem and the third leading cause of death in developed countries of the world (Katra , Dale & Crome, 1993; Warlow, 1998). Depression is an important common problem for patients who have experienced strokes, and post-stroke depression (PSD) is present in at least 30% of the survivors of strokes (Gainotti, Antonucci, Marra et al, 2001; Carson, MacHale, Allen et al, 2000). Systematic review suggested that stroke severity or physical disability and functional impairment are important factors associated with depression (Herrmann, Black, Lawrence et al, 1998; Singh, Black, Herrmann et al, 2000). In China, the paucity of data on PSD and its associated risk factors prompted this study.

Methods

Results

Conclusion