DEPRESSION IN PATIENTS ON CHRONIC HEMODIALYSIS

Patients with chronic renal failure are at risk of developing psychiatric disorders. Long-term management of chronic renal failure includes hemodialysis and renal transplantation. In the 1960s, researchers described the psychological reactions associated with hemodialysis. They demonstrated that depression and denial are the two common responses observed among patients on chronic hemodialysis. Other studies reported a high prevalence of anxiety, suicide, and discontinuation of hemodialysis among these patients that happened in part due to the high mortality and severe complications of the techniques used for hemodialysis then. In Iran, there are more than 4000 patients undergoing chronic hemodialysis. Given the significant role of depression in determining the outcome of these patients, we conducted a study to determine the pattern of depressive disorders among 100 patients on chronic hemodialysis in Tabriz, North-West of Iran.