Depression, activities of daily living and quality of life in patients with stroke

Abstract

Introduction: Stroke patients are dealing with a wide variety of physical and psychological problems influencing their ability to carry out activities of daily living (ADL). The aim of the present study was to examine the relationship between the activity of daily living performances and degree of after stroke depression (ASD), as well as, the quality of life (QOL) in Iranian stroke survivors.

Materials and method: In a cross sectional study, 40 patients with stroke in two Rehabilitation Centers for Stroke Patients, were recruited consecutively. They were assessed using the Modified Barthel Index, the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II), and a quality of life questionnaire (SF-36). Data were analyzed using Pearson and Spearman correlation coefficient.

Results: Sixty five and one-half percent (65.5%) of the studied participants were either fully dependent or needed help in ADL. Also, 72.5% of the participants showed mild to severe ASD. There was a significant negative correlation between ADL performances and ASD and also between QOL and ASD. Furthermore a strong correlation was found between ADL and QOL.

Conclusion: ADL have a strong relationship with both level of depression and QOL in patients with stroke. It appears that motivating to perform ADL may enhance QOL. Further investigation with a larger sample size is required to better understand the causal relationship of these factors.