ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The frequency of body ailments combined with depression is relatively higher, and hence post stoke depression(PSD) has gained more and more concentration.OBJECTIVE: To investigate the morbidity, related factors and pathophysiological mechanism of PSD.DESIGN: Case analysis and observation study.SETTING: Department of eurology in a hospital of a university; Third department of internal medicine in a hospital of Chinese People' s Armed Police Force; Department of neurology in a province hospital.PARTICIPANTS: This study was carried out at the Neurological Department of First Clinical Hospital Affiliated to Harbin Medical University and the General Hospital of Armed Police Army in Heilongjiang Province from January 2001 to May 2004. A cohort of 312 stroke patients was followed up in this study.METHODS: All 312 patients scored for Hamilton rating scale for depression (HAMD) and European stroke scale(ESS) within 48 hours of hospitalization. Meanwhile their clinical presentations and social-psychological factors were also collected.MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The stroke morbidity in patients with different sex, age, personality, educational degree, as well as stroke type, lesion location and extent of neurological functional deficit.RESULTS: The morbidity of PSD was 40. 1%, predominated by mild and medium stroke; amongst which PSD was found more frequent in women than men( P ＜ 0.01), as well as in elders than youngers( P ＜ 0.01); Patients who has diffidence personality are liable to suffer from PSD; and it was found more common in patients with over middle school education than those received only elementary school education ( P ＜ 0.01 ); depression was more frequent in left-sided stroke than right-sided stroke( P ＜ 0.01 ), especially in frontal lobal stroke; PSD was found negatively correlated with the scores for ESS(r= -0.846, P ＜0.05).CONCLUSION: As the result of the interaction of multiple factors, the development of PSD is found accorded with biology-psychology-society mode.