Therapist Unlimited Blog

A recent study has recently uncovered the linked between kidney disease and depression.
Based on the result of the research it was discovered  that 20% of patients with early stage chronic kidney disease (CKD) also suffered from depression.
The research made by Susan Hedayati, MD, at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, has showed that the prevalence of major depressive episodes in chronic kidney disease patients is greater than those reported for patients with other chronic diseases including diabetes (11%), congestive heart failure (14%) and coronary artery disease (16%).
To get the data, the researchers studied 272 patients with CKD in stages two through five who they categorized as depressed or nondepressed based on the presence or absence of the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) diagnosis of a current major depressive episode.
One in five patients met Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) criteria for a major depressive episode.

A recent study has shown that kidney disease and depression are linked together.

Hedayat revealed unemployment, psychiatric illness and diabetes were factors that seemed to contribute to depression in the chronic kidney disease patients they studied.
Moreover, Hedayat said patients with chronic kidney disease should understand that they are at increased risk for depression and ask physicians to monitor them regularly for signs of depression.
She said early screening is especially important since depression is associated with poor outcomes in patients with end stage kidney disease.
She added long term dialysis patients with clinical depression are twice as likely to die or require hospitalization.