Post stroke depression and related factors

Abstract

Objective: Depressive symptoms are frequently observed in patients with stroke. In this study, we investigated the prevalence of depression and the factors affecting depression in patients with chronic stroke. Method: The study included 90 patients having had sustained a stroke attack at least 6 months previously. The demographic characteristics, time since stroke, hemiplegic side, etiology of stroke, stroke-related risk factors, complications and accompanying neurological disorders, drug use, and the presence of additional diseases were questioned. Depressive symptoms were assessed by using the Beck Depression Scale (BDS). The patients were divided into two groups according to the BDS score: group 1 included those with depression (BDS score =17), and group 2 included those without depression (BDS score <17). Results: The mean age of the patients was 62.81±12.45 years. Thirty-nine (43.3%) patients were found to have depression. The proportion of widows in the depression group was found to be statistically significantly higher (p=0.002). The proportion of cases with urinary incontinence, hypertension, cardiac disease and age risk factors was found to be statistically significantly higher in the group with depression (p<0.05). Conclusion: Depression symptoms are common in the chronic period after stroke. The effects of patient age, gender, marital status, secondary diseases developing with stroke and complications on the development of post-stroke depression are the subjects that need to be investigated.