1 in 3 adults with congenital heart disease have symptoms of depression and anxiety

Publicly released:
Australia; International
Image by Pexels from Pixabay
Image by Pexels from Pixabay

Adults with a congenital heart disease - a heart abnormality that developed before birth - are at a high risk of depression and anxiety according to Australian and international researchers. The team asked about 3800 adults from 15 countries with a congenital heart disease diagnosis to complete screening for anxiety and depression symptoms. They say just under a third of the participants showed elevated symptoms of depression, anxiety or both. Analysing the quality of life and overall health of the participants, the researchers say higher depression and anxiety symptoms were associated with poorer health and quality of life. The researchers say addressing the psychological impacts of congenital heart problems should be considered in managing the condition.

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Research American College of Cardiology, Web page The URL will go live after the embargo ends
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conference:
Journal of the American College of Cardiology
Research:Paper
Organisation/s: Monash University, KU Leuven–University of Leuven, Belgium
Funder: This work was supported by the Research Fund–KU Leuven (Leuven, Belgium) through grant OT/11/033, by the Swedish Heart-Lung Foundation (Sweden) through grant number 20130607, by the University of Gothenburg Centre for Person-Centered Care (Gothenburg, Sweden), by the Cardiac Children’s Foundation (Taiwan) through grant CCF2013_02, by the Research Foundation Flanders through grant 1159522N, and by the Ricerca Corrente funding from the Italian Ministry of Health to IRCCS Policlinico San Donato. Furthermore, this work was endorsed by and conducted in collaboration with the International Society for Adult Congenital Heart Disease. The authors have reported that they have no relationships relevant to the contents of this paper to disclose.
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