Incidence of Depression and Anxiety among Patients with Acute Myocardial Infarction during COVID-19 Pandemic

Objective: This study aimed to assess the incidence of anxiety and depression among AMI patients during COVID-19 pandemic in Pakistan. Material & Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted from February 27 to June 2, 2020, at the Cardiology ward of Dera Ghazi Khan Teaching Hospital. Total 611 patients selected through convenience sampling. The patients were requested to respond to Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and demographic information. An independent samples t test was applied for comparisons. Results: Patients’ age was ranging from 41 to 79 years, with a mean age of 52.35 ± 5.12. There was a high frequency of anxiety (51.72%) and depression (34.86%) among AMI patients. A significant difference was observed in the level of anxiety (p = 0.001) and depression (p = 0.000) among male and female patients. Conclusion: The present study findings affirmed that increased level of anxiety and depression are prevalent in AMI patients. Additionally, both anxiety and depressive symptoms were more common in female patients. Keywords: COVID-19, Anxiety, Depression, Acute Myocardial Infarction (AMI).