Factors associated with the development of psychiatric symptoms after hospital discharge in the families of patients admitted to the intensive care unit: post-hoc analysis

Abstract

Objectives: This study investigates factors associated with the development of psychiatric symptoms after hospital discharge in family members of patients admitted to the ICU. Methods: This study is a case-control study conducted after the main analysis. This study explored the medical history of patients who were admitted to the ICU for 48 hours or more, and those of family members who had visited the ICU at least once. Patients and family members were divided into two groups:those with and those without psychiatric symptoms [Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) anxiety≧8 or HADS depression≧8 or impact of event scale-revised (IES-R)≧25]. Factors associated with psychiatric symptoms were retrospectively examined. Results: Among the family members of 178 discharged patients who survived, 61 were included in the analysis who were available for participation in the study three months after discharge from the hospital. There were 20 (33%) family members with psychiatric symptoms. The psychiatric symptoms experienced by the patients’ family members were associated with the patients’ Barthel index (P=0.013) and HADS depression (P=0.010) at the time of hospital discharge. However, multivariate analysis revealed no significant associated factors. Conclusion: The patient’s decreased independence in activities of daily living and psychiatric symptoms at the time of discharge may be related to the occurrence of psychiatric symptoms in family members 3 months after discharge.