Psychological Distress and Depressed Mood in Employees with Asthma, Chronic Bronchitis or Emphysema: A Population-Based Observational Study on Prevalence and the Relationship with Smoking Cigarettes

• Published in: European journal of epidemiology Vol. 19; no. 2; pp. 147 - 153
• Main Authors: Wagena, Edwin J., Kant, I. Jmert, Marcus J. H. Huibers, Ludovic G. P. M. van Amelsvoort, Gerard M. H. Swaen, Emiel F. M. Wouters, van Schayck, Constant P.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Kluwer Academic Publishers 2004; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Addictive behaviors; Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Age Distribution; Asthma; Asthma - epidemiology; Asthma - psychology; Autoimmune diseases; Biological and medical sciences; Bronchitis, Chronic - epidemiology; Bronchitis, Chronic - psychology; Cardiovascular diseases; Chronic diseases; Chronic illnesses; Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; Cigarette smoking; Cigarettes; Comorbidity; Comparative analysis; Confidence Intervals; Depression; Depressive Disorder - diagnosis; Depressive Disorder - epidemiology; Depressive disorders; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Health care; Health Surveys; Heart diseases; Humans; Hypertension; Male; Medical sciences; Mental depression; Mental illness; Mood disorders; Myocardial infarction; Netherlands - epidemiology; Observational studies; Occupational Health; Odds Ratio; Prevalence; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Pulmonary Diseases; Pulmonary Emphysema - epidemiology; Pulmonary Emphysema - psychology; Quality of Life; Questionnaires; Rheumatoid arthritis; Severity of Illness Index; Sex Distribution; Sickness Impact Profile; Smoking; Smoking - epidemiology; Smoking - psychology; Smoking Cessation; Stress; Stress, Psychological; Surveys and Questionnaires; Tobacco smoking; Netherlands; Mood disorder; Lung disease; Prevalence; Respiratory disease; Weaning; Tobacco smoking; Depression; Epidemiology; Asthma; Depressed mood; Smoking cessation; Chronic; Employee; Psychological distress; Bronchus disease; Bronchitis; Obstructive pulmonary disease; Emphysema; Occupational medicine; Public health; COPD; Smoking
• ISSN: 0393-2990; 1573-7284
• DOI: 10.1023/B:EJEP.0000017825.07470.41

Objectives: To evaluate if employees with asthma, chronic bronchitis or emphysema can be characterized as a population of patients with a high prevalence of psychological distress and/or depressed mood. Above all, we wanted to examine the influence of smoking status on the relationship between chronic disease and psychological distress/depressed mood. Methods: A postal survey was conducted among 12,103 employees participating in the Maastricht Cohort Study. Results: Smoking employees, who reported having asthma, chronic bronchitis or emphysema were more likely to report suffering from depressed mood compared to smokers with no long-lasting disease (prevalence rate, PR: 29.3 and 9.0%, respectively; OR for depressed mood = 4.04; 95% CI: 2.56-6.39) and when compared to smoking employees with a history of heart disease, hypertension or myocardial infarction (PR: 18.1%; OR: 1.99; 95% CI: 1.07-3.68), or rheumatoid arthritis (PR: 20.1%; OR: 1.73; 95% CI: 0.96-3.11). Conclusion: These findings provide health care professionals with additional evidence regarding the importance for including the assessment of psychological distress and depressed mood in the routine evaluation of the patient with asthma, chronic bronchitis or emphysema, especially with regard to smoking cessation.