Screening for abdominal aortic aneurysms does not increase psychological morbidity

Screening can lead to harmful psychological effects in the screened population--an argument used against abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) screening. However, there is no evidence for this in AAA screening. We applied the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) to a group of men undergoing screen...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England 1998-09, Vol.80 (5), p.341-342
Main Authors: Khaira, H S, Herbert, L M, Crowson, M C
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aged
Anxiety - etiology
Aortic Aneurysm, Abdominal - prevention & control
Depression - etiology
England
Follow-Up Studies
Humans
Male
Mass Screening - psychology
Psychiatric Status Rating Scales
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Summary:Screening can lead to harmful psychological effects in the screened population--an argument used against abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) screening. However, there is no evidence for this in AAA screening. We applied the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) to a group of men undergoing screening for AAA. The HADS questionnaire was completed by subjects found not to have AAA, subjects with known small aneurysms attending for follow-up scans, subjects with known AAA on waiting lists for surgery, and controls not involved in the screening programme. The groups were well matched for age and the number of additional diseases. There was no significant difference in the distribution of patients for anxiety and depression according to the HADS questionnaire (chi 2 test, P > 0.1). The results from this study suggest that AAA screening does not increase anxiety or depression in the screened subjects--contrary to the argument put forward against screening for this condition.
ISSN:0035-8843
1478-7083