A pathogenesis of post-stroke depression

Thirty-one patients (17 males and 14 females aged 30-74 years, mean age 61 year,) with depression were examined 3-6 months after ischemic stroke. Control group included 10 sex- and age-matched healthy subjects, Neurological, psychological and psychometric tests (the Hamilton, Beck, Spilberger, mini mental scales and Quality of Life questionnaire) were conducted. A mean depression level in patients with stroke did not differ from that in the controls and did not depend on lesion size, location, neurological deficit degree. Clinically pronounced, ie relatively severe, post-stroke depression was detected in 22% of the patients and its severity was higher in cases of right-hemisphere stroke. Psychosocial factors were found to be the most significant in post-stroke depression. Depression occurred more often in patients, who were single, in women, in preserved intelligence and higher level of personality anxiety. Loss of job as a result of the vascular disaster proved to be not a very important psycho-traumatizing factor in the group studied.