Patient acceptance and outcome of mental health screening in Swedish adults with cystic fibrosis

PURPOSE: Anxiety and depression are common among adults with cystic fibrosis (CF), and the International Committee on Mental Health in CF (ICMH) recommends annual screening for mental health problems. We implemented screening according to the recently published guidelines and assessed the results from the first year, as well as the patients’ attitude to annual screening METHODS: Adult patients attending Gothenburg CF-center from Feb 2015 to Dec 2016 completed the GAD-7 (anxiety) and PHQ-9 (depression) forms at the time of their annual review. In addition, questions regarding the screening process and instruments used were asked. RESULTS: All invited patients (n = 100, 52% males, 2% lung transplanted), with a median age of 28 years (range 18–65), agreed to participate. In general (83%), the patients were positive to screening on an annual basis. No significant differences in total GAD-7 and PHQ-9 scores were found when comparing men and women. Patients younger than 30 years of age reported more symptoms of anxiety compared to older patients (p = 0.02). There were 21 (21%) patients with scores > 10 for GAD-7 and/or PHQ-9 indicating at least moderate anxiety or depression. Scores > 10 were reported by 15 patients on GAD-7, 15 patients on PHQ-9, and 9 patients reported scores above 10 on both measures. CONCLUSION: The patients considered annual check-ups for mental health issues important. Although the screening results are reassuring, the group is heterogenic and younger individuals should be given extra attention. Follow-up over longer time will provide more robust data.