The impact of psychological distress on long-term recovery perceptions in survivors of cardiac arrest

Abstract

Purpose: To determine the association of depressive and PTSD symptoms with cardiac arrest survivors' long-term recovery perceptions, after accounting for cognitive status, functional independence, and medical comorbidities. Methods: Perceived recovery of 78 cardiac arrest survivors at 6-months post-hospital discharge was assessed through the question, "Do you feel that you have made a complete recovery from your arrest?" Psychological symptoms were measured using the Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression scale (CES-D) and the PTSD Checklist-Specific (PCL-S). Logistic regression was utilized to assess the association between psychological symptoms with positive and negative recovery perceptions, adjusting for demographics, cognitive impairment, functional dependence, and medical comorbidities. Results: At 6 months, 53% of patients (n=41) had negative recovery perceptions. 32.1% (n=25) of patients screened for depression and 28.2% (n=22) for PTSD. Patients with higher CES-D scores were significantly more likely to have negative recovery perceptions in both unadjusted and adjusted analyses (OR: 1.10, 95% CI [1.03, 1.16], p<0.01). PCL-S scores were significantly associated with negative recovery perceptions in an unadjusted model (OR: 1.05, 95% CI [1.01, 1.10], p < 0.01), but not after adjustment of covariates. Conclusions: In contrast with cognitive and functional measures, depressive symptoms were strongly associated with cardiac arrest survivors' negative recovery perceptions at 6-months postdischarge.

European Resuscitation Council and European Society of Intensive Care Medicine Guidelines 2021: Post-resuscitation care

“…444À447 Symptoms of post-traumatic stress remain in about a quarter of the survivors. 436,444,447,448 Furthermore, some survivors show behavioural problems, such as aggressive/ uninhibited behaviour or emotional lability. 439 Fatigue is also frequently reported and is present in approximately 70% of the survivors at six months and remains in half of the survivors one year after the event.…”

Symptom Prevalence of Anxiety and Depression in Older Cardiac Arrest Survivors: A Comparative Nationwide Register Study

“…Hence, the state of knowledge is unclear and there is a need for further studies on the potential importance of age in relation to anxiety and depression in this group. However, as previous studies have shown that psychological distress is associated with recovery and quality of life [ 10 , 33 ], the importance of screening remains.…”

Post resuscitation care

“…Drei bis sechs Monate nach dem Kreislaufstillstand berichten 15-30 % der Überlebenden von Angst; diese besteht nach 12 Monaten noch bei 15-23 % [446][447][448]. Depressive Symptome reichen von 13 bis 32 % nach 3-6 Monaten und nehmen nach 12 Monaten auf 5-15 % ab [446][447][448][449]. Die Symptome von posttraumatischem Stress bleiben bei etwa einem Viertel der Überlebenden bestehen [438,446,449,450].…”

“…Depressive Symptome reichen von 13 bis 32 % nach 3-6 Monaten und nehmen nach 12 Monaten auf 5-15 % ab [446][447][448][449]. Die Symptome von posttraumatischem Stress bleiben bei etwa einem Viertel der Überlebenden bestehen [438,446,449,450]. Darüber hinaus zeigen einige Überlebende Verhaltensprobleme wie aggressives/ungehemmtes Verhalten oder emotionale Labilität [441].…”