Mental health and disability among patients with chronic sciatica

Introduction Sciatica pain represents a typical symptom of spinal radicular syndromes. Disability due to this pain can affect mental health of patients. Objectives Our study aims to assess the relationship between mental health and disability among patients with chronic sciatica. Methods We conducted a descriptive, analytical and cross-sectional survey among patients suffering from documented common sciatic pain evolving for more than 3 months. We collected socio-professional data. We used the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI). Results Our study population was exclusively female, including 69 patients. The mean age of participants was 56.2 ±12.6 years. The most frequent etiology of sciatica pain was a herniated disc, followed by lumbar spinal stenosis and spondylolisthesis. The root path was L5 in 49 cases and S1 in 20 cases. The mean Oswestry score was 25 ± 4.1. The disability was moderate, severe and crippled respectively in 10.1%, 82.6% and 7.2% of patients. Regarding the patients’ anxiety levels, it was found that 76.8%, 20.3%, and 2.9% appeared to have mild, moderate, and severe anxiety, respectively. As for the depression levels of patients, 13 were mildly depressed (18.8%), 20 were moderately depressed (29%), and 36 were severely depressed (52.2%). We found that anxiety and depression were correlated with disability (p = <0.05, r = 0.2). Conclusions Our findings highlight a correlation between altered mental health and disability among patients with chronic sciatica. It is crucial to screen psychiatric disorders among these patients in order to improve their well-being. Disclosure of Interest None Declared