Depression, Anxiety and Stress among patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam : A quantitative study

Abstract: Abstract Introduction: Previous research showed that comorbidities that are common in patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) are anxiety and depression. Furthermore, stress can be associated with more depressive symptoms. Patients suffering from depression along with an additional medical condition, tend to have more severe symptoms in both depression and their medical illness.   Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate depression, anxiety, and stress among COPD patients, and also to examine if there was a difference in levels of depression, anxiety and stress between genders, and between COPD patients and patients with COPD together with comorbid chronic condition.   Method: This study had a descriptive and cross-sectional design with a quantitative method. The data collection took place at a respiratory ward at Cho Ray Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Sixty two COPD patients, both men and women, participated voluntarily by answering a questionnaire. Virginia Henderson´s nursing theory was used as a theoretical framework. Data analysis was conducted through using the statistical program SPSS.   Result: More than half of the COPD patients (88.8%) presented symptoms of depression, 93.5% presented symptoms of anxiety, and 54.8% presented symptoms of stress. There was a statistical significance between genders among COPD patients in anxiety, where all female participants (100%) showed extremely severe levels of anxiety. In levels of extreme severity, both patients with only COPD diagnosis and patients with COPD and comorbid chronic condition presented symptoms in both depression and anxiety, but not in levels of stress.     Conclusion: COPD patients in Ho Chi Minh City presented high levels of depression and anxiety. In addition, levels of stress were present, although not as high as depression and anxiety among this patient group. More information concerning psychological distress needs to be offered by healthcare professionals to COPD patients. Further research in this field is desirable.