Evaluation of Patients Diagnosed with Essential Hypertension in Terms of Mental and Personality Disorders

Objective: Recent studies have suggested a link between hypertension and psychiatric disorders. However, the relationship between hypertension and mental health conditions remains unclear. So in this study, it was aimed to compare the prevalence of psychiatric diseases seen in hypertension patients with the healthy group.

Methods: Psychiatric interviews were conducted with 104 patients in the hypertension group and 102 participants in the control group. The Sociodemographic and Clinical Data Form, Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D), Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A), Structured Clinical Interview for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) Disorders, Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-5— Clinician Version, and DSM-5 Structured Clinical Interview for Personality Disorders were implemented for participants.

Results: Patients with hypertension were found to have a significantly higher number of psychiatric disorders compared to the control group (χ2=29.389; P=.001). Statistically significant difference in the diagnosis of severe depression, chronic depression disorder, and specific phobia was discovered between the 2 groups (P < .05). The HAM-A and HAM-D scores were also significantly higher in the hypertension group (P < .001). No statistically significant difference was found between the patient and control groups in terms of the frequency of personality disorders. (χ2=0.045; P=.833).

Conclusion: The fact that depression and anxiety symptoms are more common in hypertension patients stands out as a subject that needs further investigation in terms of both the pathophysiology of hypertension. In this regard, since essential hypertension is a serious risky disease for mortality and morbidity on its own, it is critical to conduct psychiatric screening and develop new additional treatments to provide patients with supportive care.

Cite this article as: Kaya T, Demir N. Evaluation of patients diagnosed with essential hypertension in terms of mental and personality disorders. Alpha Psychiatry. 2024;25(1):54-62