A Pilot Study Concerning Psychological and Psychiatric Problems among Ischemic Heart Patient

Introduction: Psychosocial stresses and psychiatric problems may make worse the prognosis of patients with ischemic heart disease. Therefore assessing their incidence among this group of patients may perhaps enhance our perception concerning their dynamic significance in the field of psychological medicine. Method and Materials: 101 patients with diagnosed ischemic heart disease, in the coronary care unit of a general hospital, had been interviewed by a psychiatrist to find that is there any meaningful association between psychiatric complications or psychosocial strains and ischemic cardiac events. Results: Ischemic events were meaningfully more prevailing amongst patients with both biological risk factors and psychiatric problems. Moreover, the quantity of patients suffering from psychiatric difficulties was significantly more than patients without psychiatric complications. Besides, there was a significant alteration between male and female patients as regards the category of psychosocial stress. Seventy- nine percent of psychosocial stresses had been experienced by patients who had psychiatric complications. Besides, while more dysthymic illness was evident in the acute assembly of patients, more major or minor depressive disorder was noticeable in the chronic group of cardiac patients; a variance which looked significant. Conclusion: The high incidence of psycho-social stresses and psychiatric problems among ischemic heart patients, which may act as co-factors in triggering the pathogenicity of organic risk factors, ask for enough care for recognition, checking, and controlling of them, by way of reasonable clinical and psycho-social interventions.