Prevalence and clinical correlates of anxiety symptoms in first-episode
and drug-naïve major depressive disorder patients with dyslipidemia at
different ages of onset: a large cross-sectional study
Abstract
Background: Major depressive disorder (MDD) patients often have
different clinical manifestations at different age of onset. Anxiety
symptoms are frequently seen in patients with MDD, and dyslipidemia is
also prevalent in these populations. There is limited reporting on the
frequency of anxiety symptoms and their associations with clinical
factors in patients with abnormal lipid metabolism who have MDD.
Methods: Our study included 1718 first-episode untreated MDD
outpatients aged 18-60 years, 1408 of whom had dyslipidemia. We
collected basic information, clinically relevant data, and biochemical
indicators from these patients. Anxiety, depression and psychiatric
symptoms were evaluated by Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAMA), Hamilton
Depression Scale (HAMD) and Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS)
positive subscale, respectively. Results: Anxiety symptoms were
found in 57.8% of depressed outpatients with dyslipidemia, a rate
significantly higher than in MDD patients with normal lipid levels. No
statistical difference was observed in the prevalence of anxiety
symptoms between the early adulthood onset (EAO) group and mid-adulthood
onset (MAO) group. Anxiety symptoms were significantly correlated with
both HAMD and PANSS scores, regardless of the age of onset.
Thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), total cholesterol (TC) levels and
suicide attempts were independently associated with anxiety symptoms in
the EAO group, whereas fasting blood glucose (FBG) was independently
related to anxiety symptoms in the MAO group. Conclusions: Our
research findings indicated that the age of MDD onset in patients with
dyslipidemia did not impact the presence of anxiety symptom. The
clinical factors linked to anxiety symptoms varied between the EAO and
MAO groups, potentially aiding in the prediction of anxiety symptoms in
the specific population.