Abstract:

Infection with hepatitis C (HCV) is one of the leading causes of liver disease; worldwide prevalence is estimated to be 3% or more than 170 million people (Alter, 1997). Depression is one of the most common and potentially dangerous complications of chronic illness. Any chronic condition can trigger depression, but the risk increases in direct proportion to the severity of the illness and the life disruption it causes. The specific aims of this research were to (1a)?describe and (1b)?compare the prevalence of depression in individuals with HCV to the prevalence of depressive symptoms in individuals with (i)?hepatitis B (HBV); (ii)?hypertension (HTN), and the (iii)?general population; (2)?to determine the population prevalence of sociodemographic, health, behavioral risk, and protective factors (gender; race, age, level of education, marital status; insurance status, having a particular place for health care, perceived health status; physical exercise; use of tobacco, alcohol, and cocaine) and compare these factors between depressed individuals with HCV, HBV, HTN and the general population; and (3)?examine the association between significant liver inflammation or fibrosis and depression in individuals with HCV. Data from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III) was used for this research. Chi square and frequencies were utilized for the statistical analysis. The prevalence of depression in persons with HCV was similar to what was found in persons with HTN and the general population. Persons with HCV and depression were more likely to use tobacco and cocaine than depressed persons with HTN or the general population who were depressed. Contrary to expectations, depressed persons with HCV were significantly more likely to be physically active than non-depressed persons with HCV. While not statistically significant, depressed persons with HCV were more physically active than depressed persons with HTN or depressed persons in the general population. Further research is needed to investigate the feasibility of developing an exercise intervention to decrease or prevent depressive symptoms in persons with HCV. This exercise intervention may provide an alternative or serve as an adjunct to conventional therapy and improve the treatment for depression in persons with HCV.