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Psychological distress and depressed mood in employees with asthma, chronic bronchitis or emphysema: A population-based observational study on prevalence and the relationship with smoking cigarettes

  • Pulmonary Diseases
  • Published:
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Abstract

Objectives: To evaluate if employees with asthma, chronic bronchitis or emphysema can be characterized as a population of patients with a high prevalence of psychological distress and/or depressed mood. Above all, we wanted to examine the influence of smoking status on the relationship between chronic disease and psychological distress/depressed mood. Methods: A postal survey was conducted among 12,103 employees participating in the Maastricht Cohort Study. Results: Smoking employees, who reported having asthma, chronic bronchitis or emphysema were more likely to report suffering from depressed mood compared to smokers with no long-lasting disease (prevalence rate, PR: 29.3 and 9.0%, respectively; OR for depressed mood = 4.04; 95% CI: 2.56–6.39) and when compared to smoking employees with a history of heart disease, hypertension or myocardial infarction (PR: 18.1%; OR: 1.99; 95% CI: 1.07–3.68), or rheumatoid arthritis (PR: 20.1%; OR: 1.73; 95% CI: 0.96–3.11). Conclusion: These findings provide health care professionals with additional evidence regarding the importance for including the assessment of psychological distress and depressed mood in the routine evaluation of the patient with asthma, chronic bronchitis or emphysema, especially with regard to smoking cessation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of General Practice, Care and Public Health Research Institute (CAPHRI), Maastricht University, P.O. Box 616, 6200 MD, Maastricht, The Netherlands

    Edwin J. Wagena, Marcus J.H. Huibers & Constant P. van Schayck

  2. Department of Epidemiology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands

    IJmert Kant, Marcus J.H. Huibers, Ludovic G.P.M. van Amelsvoort & Gerard M.H. Swaen

  3. Department of Respiratory Medicine, University Hospital Maastricht, Maastricht, The Netherlands

    Emiel F.M. Wouters

Authors
  1. Edwin J. Wagena
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  2. IJmert Kant
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  3. Marcus J.H. Huibers
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  4. Ludovic G.P.M. van Amelsvoort
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  5. Gerard M.H. Swaen
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  6. Emiel F.M. Wouters
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  7. Constant P. van Schayck
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Correspondence to Edwin J. Wagena.

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Wagena, E.J., Kant, I., Huibers, M.J. et al. Psychological distress and depressed mood in employees with asthma, chronic bronchitis or emphysema: A population-based observational study on prevalence and the relationship with smoking cigarettes. Eur J Epidemiol 19, 147–153 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1023/B:EJEP.0000017825.07470.41

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/B:EJEP.0000017825.07470.41

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