Impact of psychiatric disorders on the quality of life of brazilian HCV-infected patients

Abstract

The aim of our study was to determine the impact of psychiatric comorbidities on the health-related quality of life of HCV-infected patients. Assessment of clinical, socio-demographic and quality of life data of the patients followed up at a Hepatology unit was performed by using a standard questionnaire and the SF-36 instrument. Psychiatric diagnoses were confirmed by using the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview, Brazilian version 5.0.0 (MINI Plus). Evaluation using the MINI plus demonstrated that 46 (51%) patients did not have any psychiatric diagnosis, while 44 (49%) had at least one psychiatric diagnosis. Among patients with a psychiatric comorbidity, 26 (59.1%) had a current mental disorder, out of which 22 (84.6%) had not been previously diagnosed. Patients with psychiatric disorders had lower scores in all dimensions of the SF-36 when compared to those who had no psychiatric diagnosis. Scores of physical functioning and bodily pain domains were lower for those suffering from a current psychiatric disorder when compared to those who had had a psychiatric disorder in the past. Females had lower scores of bodily pain and mental health dimensions when compared to males. Scores for mental health dimension were also lower for patients with advanced fibrosis. The presence of a psychiatric comorbidity was the variable that was most associated with the different scores in the SF-36, compared to other variables such as age, gender, aminotransferase levels, and degree of fibrosis.

Depressive symptoms and harmful alcohol use in hepatitis C patients: prevalence and correlates

“…The demographic and clinical characteristics of the sample were similar to those in other Brazilian studies [15][16][27][28] ; this similarity increases the external validity of our fi ndings. OR: odds ratio; 95%CI: 95% confi dence interval.…”

“…Brazilian studies on this subject remain scarce 9,10,[15][16][17][18] and have focused on the prevalence of impulsive behaviors 10 and psychiatric disorders 9,15,17 in CHC sufferers and the impact of the disease on their quality of life 16,18 . The aim of this investigation was to estimate the prevalence of depressive symptoms and harmful alcohol use in patients with CHC at the onset of antiviral treatment and to evaluate the possible demographic, clinical and psychosocial correlates.…”

“…The prevalence of depressive symptoms and harmful alcohol use and their associated factors were estimated. To our knowledge, very few Brazilian studies have systematically investigated the sociodemographic and lifestyle characteristics (e.g., tobacco and illicit drug use, social support) of CHC patients at the beginning of antiviral treatment or examined the association of these characteristic with psychiatric conditions 10,[15][16][17] . Moreover, in the present study depressive symptoms and harmful alcohol use were evaluated using standardized instruments.…”

Interferon-induced depression in patients with hepatitis C: an epidemiologic study

“…The BDI seems to be more sensitive to changes during treatment period. As depression affects the quality of life and adherence to treatment, 3,7,8 it is fundamental to have strategies to deal with this condition. Although prophylaxis of IFN-induced depression with antidepressants remains controversial, 22 pharmacological treatment of depression after its onset has proven effective and beneficial.…”

“…3,7,8 Early diagnosis and treatment of depression are associated with better adherence to antiviral therapy; 3 therefore, practical diagnosis and assessment tools are useful in non-psychiatric medical settings, in order to adequately treat this disorder.…”