Depression risk among patients with chronic wounds

OBJECTIVE: A wound is defined as chronic when it requires more than 6 weeks to heal. The link between chronic wounds and depression was first pointed out by House and Hughes in 1996 and later evaluated by other numerous studies. Several studies demonstrate that among chronic skin wounds causing chronical physical disease, the leg ulcers are the most frequently associated with depression. The aim of our study is to evaluate the prevalence of depression in patients with different types of chronic wounds. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We enrolled a total of 33 patients with chronic wounds and 33 healthy controls matched by sex and age. Both patients and controls underwent a BDI II survey. We evaluated 33 patients, with a mean age of 71 years (range 25-87), and 33 controls, with a mean age of 73 years (range 31-88). RESULTS: T he a verage s core a t t he B DI I I questionnaire was 14.5 and 8, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The depression among patients with chronic wounds has a multifactorial origin that should be treated with a multidisciplinary approach. Since the improvement of the psycho-emotional state means better compliance of the patient, we can also expect a better result in terms of efficacy in chronic wound treatment.