TY - JOUR
T1 - Cause of Death Among Cardiac Patients With and Without Anxiety
AU - Christensen, Anne Vinggaard
AU - Cromhout, Pernille Fevejle
AU - Jørgensen, Martin Balslev
AU - Ekholm, Ola
AU - Juel, Knud
AU - Svendsen, Jesper Hastrup
AU - Rasmussen, Trine Bernholdt
AU - Borregaard, Britt
AU - Mols, Rikke Elmose
AU - Thrysoee, Lars
AU - Thorup, Charlotte Brun
AU - Berg, Selina Kikkenborg
N1 - Copyright © 2021 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.
PY - 2022/9
Y1 - 2022/9
N2 - BACKGROUND: Mental distress is reported internationally among patients with cardiac disease. A Danish survey found that 25% of patients with cardiac disease experienced symptoms indicating anxiety and that anxiety was associated with an increased risk of death.AIM: The aims of this study were to (1) compare cause of death patterns among deceased cardiac patients with anxiety to those without anxiety and (2) examine the association between anxiety symptoms and specific causes of death.METHODS: We used data from the DenHeart survey to evaluate symptoms of anxiety at discharge by using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. Data on mortality in the 3 years after discharge and cause of death according to International Classification of Diseases-10 classification came from national registers. Cause of death was compared between patients with and without anxiety using χ2 tests. The association between symptoms of anxiety and cause of death was investigated using logistic regression.RESULTS: Of 12 913 patients included, a total of 1030 (8%) died within 3 years. After 1 year, 4% of patients with anxiety symptoms had died versus 2% of patients without; after 3 years, the proportions were 9% versus 8%, respectively. Almost all died of natural causes irrespective of anxiety symptoms. No statistically significant differences were found regarding the cause of death between patients with and without anxiety.CONCLUSION: Despite higher mortality rates in patients with cardiac disease with anxiety symptoms, the pattern of cause of death was identical for patients with cardiac disease with and without anxiety symptoms. It seems that an acceleration of morbid processes leading to mortality is more likely than a difference in cause of death. However, further research is needed to better understand the behavioral and pathophysiological processes that cause the higher mortality seen among patients reporting symptoms of anxiety.
AB - BACKGROUND: Mental distress is reported internationally among patients with cardiac disease. A Danish survey found that 25% of patients with cardiac disease experienced symptoms indicating anxiety and that anxiety was associated with an increased risk of death.AIM: The aims of this study were to (1) compare cause of death patterns among deceased cardiac patients with anxiety to those without anxiety and (2) examine the association between anxiety symptoms and specific causes of death.METHODS: We used data from the DenHeart survey to evaluate symptoms of anxiety at discharge by using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. Data on mortality in the 3 years after discharge and cause of death according to International Classification of Diseases-10 classification came from national registers. Cause of death was compared between patients with and without anxiety using χ2 tests. The association between symptoms of anxiety and cause of death was investigated using logistic regression.RESULTS: Of 12 913 patients included, a total of 1030 (8%) died within 3 years. After 1 year, 4% of patients with anxiety symptoms had died versus 2% of patients without; after 3 years, the proportions were 9% versus 8%, respectively. Almost all died of natural causes irrespective of anxiety symptoms. No statistically significant differences were found regarding the cause of death between patients with and without anxiety.CONCLUSION: Despite higher mortality rates in patients with cardiac disease with anxiety symptoms, the pattern of cause of death was identical for patients with cardiac disease with and without anxiety symptoms. It seems that an acceleration of morbid processes leading to mortality is more likely than a difference in cause of death. However, further research is needed to better understand the behavioral and pathophysiological processes that cause the higher mortality seen among patients reporting symptoms of anxiety.
KW - Anxiety
KW - Anxiety Disorders
KW - Cause of Death
KW - Heart Diseases/complications
KW - Humans
KW - Surveys and Questionnaires
U2 - 10.1097/JCN.0000000000000832
DO - 10.1097/JCN.0000000000000832
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 34224466
SN - 0889-4655
VL - 37
SP - E122-E128
JO - The Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing
JF - The Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing
IS - 5
ER -