Living with an auto-immune condition can be hard. These are diseases like lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, which can cause a lot of pain.
But now, researchers from the University of Cambridge and King’s College London have found that these patients often struggle with their mental health too. Surprisingly, doctors don’t usually ask about these problems.
This is concerning because more than half of the people with auto-immune diseases also have mental health issues like depression or anxiety.
What’s more, these patients rarely tell their doctors about their mental health symptoms. The researchers believe that there are many more mental health and neurological symptoms than we previously thought.
What the Research Tells Us
To learn more about this issue, the research team surveyed nearly 2,000 patients and about 300 doctors.
The patients were people with systemic auto-immune rheumatic diseases, or SARDs. The doctors included specialists like rheumatologists, psychiatrists, and neurologists.
The team asked about 30 different symptoms, including things like fatigue, hallucinations, anxiety, and depression.
They found that most patients had experienced many of these symptoms. For example, over half had depression or anxiety, and nearly nine out of ten had severe fatigue.
The researchers were shocked by these findings. They were especially surprised by how common some symptoms were.
For instance, almost half of the lupus patients had thought about suicide. This was three times higher than what the doctors had estimated.
Different Opinions Among Doctors
Interestingly, the researchers found disagreements among the doctors. Some doctors focused more on the physical symptoms, like joint pain. They didn’t think that SARDs usually affected the brain.
But other doctors believed that mental health symptoms were often overlooked because patients weren’t usually asked about them in the clinic.
Unfortunately, very few hospitals had effective teams of rheumatologists, neurologists, and psychiatrists working together.
This could have helped ensure that both the physical and mental health of the patients were taken care of.
The Need for Change
Dr. Tom Pollak from King’s College London believes that all doctors need to ask their patients about their mental health.
“These symptoms can have a big impact on a person’s life. We need to ask about mental health, and patients need to feel safe talking about it. No one should have to suffer in silence,” he said.
The research team is optimistic about the future. They believe that with more understanding and better patient-doctor communication, we can help these patients get the care they need.
Sarah Campbell, Chief Executive of the British Society for Rheumatology, agrees. “We need to improve mental health support for these patients.
It’s very concerning that only a small number of rheumatology departments in England and Wales have a psychologist in their team,” she said.
The Rt Hon the Lord Blunkett also commented on the issue. “It’s shocking that almost half of lupus patients have thought about suicide.
We need to fund the NHS better and provide more holistic care for these patients. It’s time for the Government to act,” he said.
A Call to Listen and Understand
This research has shed light on an important issue. People with auto-immune diseases are struggling not just with their physical health, but with their mental health too.
It’s crucial for doctors to start asking about these problems and listening to their patients. Only then can these patients get the understanding, support, and treatment they need.
If you care about depression, please read studies about how dairy foods may influence depression risk, and B vitamins could help prevent depression and anxiety.
For more information about health, please see recent studies that olive oil may help you live longer, and vitamin D could help lower the risk of autoimmune diseases.
The study was published in Rheumatology.
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