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Returning home after intensive care: A comparison of symptoms of anxiety and depression in ICU and elective cardiac surgery patients and their relatives

Intensive Care Medicine volume 31, pages 86–91 (2005)Cite this article

Abstract

Objective

This study gathered data on symptoms of anxiety and depression in patients and relatives after discharge from intensive care and examined whether the intensive care population differ from an elective cardiac surgery group with regards to their anxiety and depression symptom reporting.

Design and setting

A single measurement point matched group comparison study in an ICU follow-up programme.

Patients and participants

Twenty ICU patients and their relatives and a matched comparison group of 15 elective cardiac surgery patients and their relatives.

Measurements and results

Patients and relatives completed the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. Relatives answered an open question to explore the perceived impact of Intensive care/cardiac surgery on their lives. ICU patients’ relatives reported significantly higher number of symptoms of anxiety than did ICU patients, higher number of symptoms of depression than cardiac surgery patients’ relatives, and more troubling and life-altering experiences than the relatives of cardiac surgery patients.

Conclusions

Relatives of ICU patients also suffer anxiety and depression, and services should address this need. Group differences suggest that ICU patients’ relatives have ‘unique’ characteristics of depression symptom reporting.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Behavioural Medicine, Hope Hospital, Clinical Sciences Building, Stott Lane, Salford, Manchester, M6 8HD, UK

    Ellen Young

  2. Intensive Care Unit, Manchester Royal Infirmary, Manchester, UK

    Jane Eddleston, Sarah Ingleby, Janice Streets & Lucy McJanet

  3. Clinical Psychology Department, University of Hull, Hull, UK

    Michael Wang & Lesley Glover

Authors
  1. Ellen Young
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  2. Jane Eddleston
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  3. Sarah Ingleby
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  4. Janice Streets
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  5. Lucy McJanet
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  6. Michael Wang
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  7. Lesley Glover
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ellen Young.

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Young, E., Eddleston, J., Ingleby, S. et al. Returning home after intensive care: A comparison of symptoms of anxiety and depression in ICU and elective cardiac surgery patients and their relatives. Intensive Care Med 31, 86–91 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00134-004-2495-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00134-004-2495-y

Keywords

  • Intensive care unit
  • Patients
  • Relatives
  • Anxiety
  • Depression