Mean platelet volume level in patients with generalized anxiety disorder

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is characterized by persistent and chronic anxiety state. Stressful life events and anxiety usually cause an increase in platelet volume and activity through various mechanisms. Mean platelet volume (MPV), which is indicative of platelet size, is accepted as an indication of platelet activity. METHOD: In this first retrospective cohort study about MPV among GAD patients, we compared complete blood count especially in terms of platelet count (PLT), platelet distribution width (PDW), plateletcrit (PCT) and MPV values of 60 GAD patients with 60 healthy controls. RESULTS: MPV was found to be significantly higher (p = .008) and platelet count was found to be significantly lower in the GAD group (p = .001). The area under the ROC curve (AUC) of MPV levels for GAD was 0.655 (95% CI: 0.557-0.754, p < .001). DISCUSSION: Increased MPV levels in GAD patients in our study supports the hypothesis of increased platelet activation due to sympathetic system activation. Also platelet levels were found to be significantly lower in GAD patients in our study. This finding is consistent with the non-linear inverse relation between platelet volume and platelet count. According to ROC curve analysis for differentiation of GAD from those in the control group, MPV would be considered to be a "poor" biochemical marker. We believe that further controlled prospective studies about this issue will be valuable. ARTICLE HISTORY

Platelet and Red Blood Cell Indices in Patients with Panic Disorder: A Receiver Operating Characteristic Analysis

“…[4][5][6][7]18 In addition, MPV has poor diagnostic value in patients with generalized anxiety disorder. 8 In this study, among the RBC indices, MCHC had the highest AUC, sensitivity, specificity, and Youden's index. Moreover, we found low MCHC level in patients with PD; this finding is consistent with previous findings.…”

“…[4][5][6][7] Furthermore, Almis et al in their study including a small group of patients with generalized anxiety disorder reported that MPV is a poor biochemical marker, indicating the need to explore other diagnostic markers. 8 The simple inexpensive red blood cell (RBC) indices, such as RBC distribution width (RDW) and the RBC count, may have diagnostic and prognostic value in patients with PD. 4 Studies have reported that both the platelet and RBC indices are altered in patients with depression, anxiety, psychosis, PD, or schizophrenia.…”

Evaluation of mean platelet volume and platelet count in patients with schizophrenia

“…MPV has been found to be elevated in various mental disorders. The relationship between anxiety disorders, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, major depression and increased platelet activity has been reported by several studies [11][12][13][14][15].…”

Beyond Haemostasis and Thrombosis: Platelets in Depression and Its Co-Morbidities

“…Other studies have focused on generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), a related disease characterized by a persistent and chronic anxiety state. In the first (retrospective) study specifically focusing on GAD patients, these showed higher MPV and lower Plt, but no significant differences in PDW and PCT, compared to healthy controls [ 173 ]. In partial concordance with these findings, GAD patients exhibited a higher MPV and Plt, as did MDD patients, in a study comparing depressive and anxiety disorder patients vs. healthy controls in a hospital setting [ 146 ].…”