A comparative study of serum C-reactive protein in patients with Generalised Anxiety Disorder and Depression

Background:There is yet limited research and dearth of study on immune dysregulation and Generalised Anxiety Disorders (GAD) & Depression in India till date.Very few studies have investigated the relationship between GAD, Depression and inflammatory biomarkers, in particular C-reactive protein (CRP).Aims and Objectives: This study aimed to assess and compare serum C-reactive protein (CRP) level in Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), Depression & Control group.Study Design: This was a prospective, comparative hospital based cross sectional study.Setting: The study was conducted only on the indoor patients admitted in the Department of Psychiatry, Assam Medical College and Hospital, Dibrugarh.Materials and Methods: 50 GAD and 50 Depression patients diagnosed as per ICD-10 in the age group 18-65 years admitted in the Department of Psychiatry, AMCH were included for the study.A control group of 50 individuals was selected from age & sex matched people from normal healthy population.C-reactive protein level was estimated in all respondents by particle enhanced turbidimetric immunoassay (PETIA) technique.Statistics: Statistical analyses were done using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), Chi square test and Fischer's exact test (where the cell count was <5).P value <0.05 was taken as significant.Results: Mean serum CRP level of GAD and Depression patients were higher than Control group and it was also noted that mean serum CRP level of Depression patients were significantly elevated than GAD patients.Conclusions: Our study findings are consistent with the role of inflammation in GAD and Depression.So, future study in this aspect with a larger sample and follow up is needed to explore the existence of a possible "psychoneuroimmune link" between GAD, Depression and inflammatory markers.