Psychopathology,psychosocial factors and quality of life in patients with myasthenia gravis [Myastenia gravis hastalarında psikopatoloji,psikososyal etkenler ve yaşam kalitesi]

Introduction: myasthenia gravis (mg) is a chronic disease which affects physical,psychological and social functioning of patients. in this study we aim to determine psychiatric comorbidity,some psychosocial factors and their relations with quality of life in patients with mg. methods: a total of 52 patients underwent psychiatric examination and the following scales were applied: socio-demographic data form,hospital anxiety and depression scale (hads),quality of life (qol) scale short form 36 (sf-36),psychosocial adjustment to illness scale-self report (pais-sr),multidimensional scale of perceived social support (mspss) and posttraumatic growth inventory (ptgi). results: among 52 patients with mg,36.5% (n=19) had no psychiatric diagnosis; 21.2% (n=11) had adjustment disorder; 19.2% (n=10) had depression and 23.1% (n=12) had anxiety disorder. patients with a psychiatric diagnosis had lower scores in general health,vitality,social functioning,emotional role and mental health domains of sf-36. pais-sr scores,total mspss and friends scores were significantly higher in patients without a psychiatric diagnosis. significant correlations of psychosocial factors with quality of life were determined. conclusion: in mg patients,there is a high prevalence of psychopathology and it is associated with quality of life,perceived social support and psychosocial adjustment of the patients. quality of life is reduced in both physical and mental aspects. diagnosis and treatment of psychopathology in mg patients is crucial to decrease disease burden. © 2016,ege university press. all rights reserved.