Depression and anxiety in COPD – prevalence and patient characteristics in Sweden

16 May 2023

Introduction: Depression and anxiety are important comorbidities in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) that increase the risk of morbidity and mortality. The aim of this study was to describe the prevalence of depression and/or anxiety in COPD patients in Sweden, and to identify patient characteristics associated with comorbid depression and/or anxiety. 

Methods: In total, 2245 randomly selected patients with COPD from 98 primary healthcare centres and 13 hospitals in Sweden were included. Information on patient characteristics, symptoms, and comorbidities, including depression and/or anxiety were collected using patient self-completion questionnaires. 

Results: The self-reported prevalence of depression and/or anxiety was 23.3% (n=524), women 29.2% and men 15.8%. Patients with comorbid depression and/or anxiety had a lower mean age, slightly higher mean BMI, where less physically active, and current smoking was more common (Table 1). Comorbid depression and/or anxiety was associated with being female (OR =2.07 [95% CI 1.65-2.58]), age <65 years (OR = 1.78 [95% CI 1.41-2.24]), comorbid asthma (OR = 1.65 [95% CI 1.31 – 2.08]), current smoking (OR=1.91 [95% CI 1.54-2.39]), and mMRC ≥2 (OR 1.68 [95% CI 1.36 – 2.09]) (Adjusted odds ratios). Comorbid heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and educational level were not significantly associated with depression and/or anxiety. 

Discussion: Our study shows that COPD patients in Sweden commonly suffer from symptoms of depression and/or anxiety. Characteristics associated with depression and/or anxiety were being female, younger age, comorbid asthma, current smoking and experiencing functional disability due to dyspnoea. Healthcare professionals should work proactively and be vigilant about clinical symptoms and signs of depression and/or anxiety in patients with COPD to enable best possible care. 

Resource information

Respiratory conditions
  • COPD
Type of resource
Abstract
Conference
Munich 2023
Author(s)
Therese Öfverholm 1,2, Hanna Sandelowsky 1,2, Anna Nager 1, Karin Lisspers 3, Mikael Hasselgren 4,5, Björn Ställberg 3, Josefine Sundh 6, Scott Montgomery 7,8,9, Christer Jansson 10, Marta Kisiel 11, Maaike Giezeman 4,5 1 Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Section for Family Medicine and Primary Care, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden, 2 Academic Primary Care Centre, Region Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden, 3 Department of Public Health and Caring Sciences, Family Medicine and Preventive Medicine, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden, 4 School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, , Örebro, Sweden, 5 Centre for Clinical Research, Region Värmland, Karlstad, Sweden, 6 Department of Respiratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden, 7 Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden, 8 Clinical Epidemiology Division, Department of Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden, 9 Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London, London, United Kingdom, 10 Department of Medical Sciences, Respiratory, Allergy and Sleep Research, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden, 11 Department of Medical Sciences, Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden