Risk of Depression and Dementia Increases in Bleeding Stroke Survivors

People who survive brain bleeds, the most lethal form of stroke - are at significantly higher risk of later developing depression and dementia.

Highlights

Bleeding stroke or Intracerebral hemorrhage is when a weakened blood vessel ruptures and bleeds into the brain.
Depression and anxiety are not often recognised or diagnosed in people who have had a stroke.
Depression and anxiety can make it hard for people to manage the treatment for their stroke.
Within a year of bleeding stroke, 7% of patients are diagnosed with depression and are more likely to have dementia.

People who survive brain bleeds or Intracerebral hemorrhage - the most lethal form of stroke - are at significantly higher risk of later developing depression and dementia, according to research presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2017.

Intracerebral Hemorrhage

How to Deal with a Stroke - Signs - Symptoms - Risk Factors - Prevention
Stroke is a brain attack, which occurs when the blood supply to the brain is interrupted. It affects all age groups; according to the WHO, 15 million people are affected by stroke annually.

‘Lower educational levels, evidence of disease of the white matter of the brain, and carrying a variant of the apolipoprotein E gene predicts the risk of developing depression in patients who were diagnosed with bleeding stroke.’

Intracerebral hemorrhage is a stroke caused when a weakened blood vessel ruptures and bleeds into the brain. Previous studies of depression and stroke have focused on ischemic stroke (caused by blockages in blood vessels), but little is known about depression among survivors of hemorrhagic stroke.

"Our study changes the way we look at depression after a hemorrhagic stroke," said lead author Alessandro Biffi, M.D., Assistant in Neurology at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and Director of the Aging and Brain Health Research group.

Study Details

Stroke – Early Warning Signs - Risk Factor - Rehab - Treatment
Stroke can cause permanent disability and it is important to recognize its early warning signs to stop its progress. Early warning signs of stroke include sudden weakness of facial muscles.

Researchers followed 695 survivors of intracerebral hemorrhage with no pre-stroke history of depression for five years. Participants were 50 percent women, approximately 75 percent white, and most had one or more of the known cardiovascular and cerebrovascular risk factors (hypertension, diabetes, or hyperlipidemia).

Researchers surveyed the study participants over the phone every six months asking about mood, anxiety, and cognitive performance to monitor the onset of depression and dementia.

Depression - Types, Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment
Depression is one of the most common mental disorders affecting approximately 340 million people in the world. No one is immune from depression - it occurs in people of all social classes, all countries and all cultural settings.

Depression after Bleeding Stroke

The findings point out that 40 percent of the study participants developed depression during the first 50 months of follow-up after intracerebral hemorrhage, a rate of approximately 7 percent per year, which is higher than that found in the general population of the same age and gender.

Depression - Symptom Evaluation
Depression occurs due to alterations in the levels of neurotransmitters in the brain.

The researchers also found that risk factors normally associated with the risk of having another hemorrhagic stroke -- lower educational levels, evidence of disease of the white matter of the brain, and carrying a variant of the apolipoprotein E gene -- also predicted the risk of developing depression.

Finally, patients who developed depression were also highly likely to develop dementia later in the course of the study. The overlap of depression and dementia was present in 63 percent of study participants; and among them, depression was diagnosed before the onset of dementia in 80 percent of cases, on average 18 months in advance.

The need to treat Depression

"Depression is not just an isolated phenomenon following a hemorrhagic stroke. It may identify those who are likely to develop dementia, and this is important when these patients are evaluated, particularly in outpatient care settings."

Depression and anxiety can make it hard for people to manage the treatment for their stroke effectively.

People with untreated mental health problems can find it difficult to concentrate, stay motivated, keep appointments and stick to treatment plans, including medication. Carers, family members and friends of people who have a stroke can often have depression as well.

"When caring for hemorrhagic stroke patients, healthcare providers tend to focus on preventing another stroke," Biffi said. "We have found that even among patients who do not have a second stroke, the incidence of depression and subsequently dementia are very high, and healthcare providers need to be on the lookout for it in order to counsel patients and families."

Reference

Alessandro Biffi et al., Bleeding stroke survivors at higher risk of depression, dementia, AHA/ASA International Stroke Conference (2017).
https://strokefoundation.org.au/about-stroke/help-after-stroke/stroke-resources-and-fact-sheets/depression-and-anxiety-after-stroke-fact-sheet.

Source-Medindia