Effect of comprehensive psychological intervention on anxiety and depression in patients with chronic heart failure

Objective To investigate the effect of group cognitive behavioral therapy on anxiety and depression in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF). Methods One hundred patients with CHF were recruited from January 2012 to December 2013 in cardiovascular department, and were divided into the intervention group and the control group, with 50 patients each. Comprehensive intervention including routine heart failure care and group cognitive behavioral therapy combined with other therapies was adopted on the patients in the intervention group. The Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and the Self-rating Depression Scale(SDS) were used to compare the difference of anxiety and depression between groups. Results At the baseline, the incidence of anxiety was 25%, within which 11 patients had mild anxiety, and 10 patients had moderate anxiety, and 4 patients had severe anxiety. The incidence of depression was 39%, within which 19 patients had mild depression, and 14 patients had moderate depression, and 6 patients had severe depression. The score of SAS and SDS in the intervention group after intervention were (36.90±8.465) and (27.53±7.162), respectively, which were significantly lower than (40.91±8.019) and (36.78±10.562) in the control group (t=9.244, 10.335, respectively; P<0.01). Conclusions Group cognitive behavioral therapy can effectively relieve the anxiety and depression in patients with chronic heart failure. Key words: Heart failure; Anxiety; Depression; Group cognitive behavioral therapy; Comprehensive measures