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Development of anxiety and depression in patients with benign intracranial meningiomas: a prospective long-term study

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Abstract

Purpose

The aim of this study was to provide the first prospective longitudinal assessment of anxiety and depression in patients with a benign intracranial meningioma (WHO° I).

Methods

The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale was applied prior to (t1) and directly after (t2) neurosurgery as well as 6 months after surgery (t3). The research was conducted in a single treatment centre in Germany. Numerous sociodemographic, medical, psychological and cognitive accompanying measures were assessed. The study population consisted of 52 meningioma patients. Additionally, a control group of 24 patients with malignant brain tumours (astrocytoma WHO° III) was assessed.

Results

In meningioma patients, anxiety was high prior to surgery but declined significantly after successful neurosurgical treatment. Low levels of depression were observed at all times. In contrast, astrocytoma patients showed constantly high levels of anxiety whilst depression increased over the course of the disease. Numerous medical, psychosocial and psychological factors were associated with psychiatric morbidity in meningioma patients.

Conclusions

In conclusion, psychiatric morbidity of patients with benign intracranial meningiomas was comparable to that of the general population after successful neurosurgical treatment. Numerous associated factors suggest complex relationships within a biopsychosocial model. However, due to the small sample size and recruitment in a single institution, our results are of limited generalisability and need cross-validation in future studies.

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Abbreviations

WHO:

World Health Organization

HADS:

Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale

KPS:

Karnofsky Performance Status. The KPS allows patients to be classified as to their functional impairment ranging from 100 (“normal, no complaints, no signs of disease” to 0 (“death”)

HRQoL:

Health-Related Quality of Life

EORTC QLQ C-30:

European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Core Quality of Life Questionnaire

PDS:

Posttraumatic Stress Diagnostic Scale

FSozU:

Fragebogen zur Sozialen Unterstützung; one of the most frequently used measures of social support in Germany

TMT:

Trail making test

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Conflicts of interests

None. We have full control of all primary data and agree to let the journal review the data if requested.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, Schittenhelmstr 10, 24105, Kiel, Germany

    Simone Goebel & H. Maximilian Mehdorn

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  1. Simone Goebel
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  2. H. Maximilian Mehdorn
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Correspondence to Simone Goebel.

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Goebel, S., Mehdorn, H.M. Development of anxiety and depression in patients with benign intracranial meningiomas: a prospective long-term study. Support Care Cancer 21, 1365–1372 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-012-1675-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-012-1675-5

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