A cross-sectional study on the association of anxiety and depression with the disease activity of systemic lupus erythematosus

Background Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease that affects multiple systems and increases the risk of mental disorders such as depression and anxiety. We conducted an observational, single-center, cross-sectional study to investigate the relationship between depression, anxiety, and SLE disease activity. Methods The Patient Health Questionnaire 9 (PHQ-9) was used to assess depression, and the 7-item Generalized Anxiety Disorders Scale was used to assess anxiety (GAD-7). Using the chi-square/exact Fisher's tests, socio-demographic data, clinical and other characteristics of SLE patients were compared between depression or anxiety and non-depression/non-anxiety groups. To identify optimal levels of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI) for predicting depression or anxiety, receiver-operator curves (ROC) were drawn. Results Among the 325 patients involved in this study, patients with depression or anxiety had significantly higher SLE activity (p < 0.001), and more frequent musculoskeletal (p < 0.05) and neuropsychiatric symptoms (p < 0.05). Depression and anxiety are more common in the moderate-severe active group than in the inactive-mild active group (depression: OR 3.350, 95%CI 2.015, 5.570, p < 0.001; anxiety: OR 4.085, 95%CI 2.493, 6.692, p < 0.001). The optimal SLEDAI cutoff value of 8.5 predicted depression with a sensitivity of 50.5% and a specificity of 78.4% (AUC 0.660, p < 0.001) and anxiety with a sensitivity of 54.2% and a specificity of 78.4% (AUC 0.684, p < 0.001). Conclusion SLE disease activity is positively associated with the severity of depression and anxiety. Those patients whose SLEDAI scores are greater than 8.5 are more likely to suffer from mental disorders which require additional attention to them.