INTRODUCTION: Peripheral neuropathies include sensory-motor dysfunctions and chronic pain that may trigger psychiatric disorders such as anxiety and depression. The objective of the present study was to estimate the frequency of anxious and depressive symptoms among patients with peripheral neuropathies, correlating them with pain severity. METHODS: Cross-sectional study conducted in an outpatient neurology clinic between April 2006 and March 2007. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and the Pain Visual Analogue Scale were used to evaluate pain. The sample included 54 patients. RESULTS: We found a frequency of 68.5% (n = 37) of anxious symptoms and 51.9% (n = 28) of depressive symptoms. Severe pain was reported by 57.4% of the patients. There was a positive correlation between pain severity and anxious and depressive symptoms (p ≤ 0.05). Headache, trauma and family history of psychiatric disease were also associated with anxious and depressive symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings demonstrate a high frequency of anxious and depressive symptoms in patients with peripheral neuropathies. Such symptoms are positively correlated with pain severity.
Anxiety; depression; pain; pain measurement; peripheral nervous system
