Introduction: Atrial fibrillation belongs to the group of supraventricular arrhythmias. The episode begins with anxiety about the loss of health or life. Anxiety is accompanied by depressive disorders. The aim of this work was to study the intensity of depression in patients with atrial fibrillation.
Material and methods: We used Beck Depression Inventory in 52 patients with atrial fibrillation hospitalized at the Department of Internal Medicine of the Poviat Hospital in Białogard. Correlations between the intensity of depression and age, gender, and education level were determined.
Results: The intensity of depression depended on age, gender, and education level. Mild depression was more common in women, moderate in men, and was very severe in 2 women. Patients between the age of 61 and 80 years and with incomplete primary and vocational education presented with all forms of depression.
Conclusions: The intensity of depression correlates with episodes of atrial fibrillation and depends on such factors as age, gender, and education level (p < 0.05). Effective therapy of atrial fibrillation may help reduce the intensity of depression.