Somatic symptoms and their association with anxiety and depression in Chinese patients with cardiac neurosis

OBJECTIVE: We sought to investigate somatic symptoms detected by the Somatic Self-rating Scale and to evaluate whether they were associated with the psychological symptoms of anxiety and depression in patients with cardiac neurosis. METHODS: A total of 180 patients with cardiac neurosis at the Third Xiangya Hospital, Changsha, China, were surveyed from January 2017 to July 2018. Participants completed a general information questionnaire, the Somatic Self-rating Scale, the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 and the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale-7. RESULTS: The mean (±standard deviation) somatic symptom score in patients with cardiac neurosis was 40.83 ± 7.12. The most severe symptoms were cardiovascular symptoms, fatigue and muscle soreness. A total of 90 patients (46.4%) had anxiety and 80 (50.0%) had depression. Multiple stepwise regression analysis showed that somatic symptoms in patients with cardiac neurosis were associated with both anxiety and depression. CONCLUSION: Somatic symptoms in patients with cardiac neurosis were associated with both anxiety and depression. Therefore, it is important to provide effective emotional interventions to promote patient rehabilitation.