Depressive, anxious and somatization symptoms and quality of life in stress-related disorders

Background/Aim. Recent studies have shown a significant relation of the post-traumatic stress disorder and impairment of quality of life. The research on the relations of other stress-related disorders and quality of life is scarce. The aim of this research was to determine which symptoms within the stress-related disorders (depressive, anxious and somatization) have the strongest effect on the quality of life decrease. Methods. The study group comprised 80 subjects who have developed a certain stress-related disorder. The diagnosis was made based on the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10) criteria. Manchester Short Assessment Quality of Life Scale (MANSA) and Symptom Check List-90 Revised (SCL-90-R) were administered. Results. The presence of all three types of symptoms (depressive, anxious or somatization) was in negative correlation with the quality of life, contributing to the variation of quality of life with 40%. Depressive symptoms had the greatest impact on the quality of life impairment. Conclusion. When it comes to stress-related disorders, the quality of life is mostly impaired by depressive symptoms. Target therapeutic interventions aimed at depressive symptoms might have a significant effect on the quality of life improvement in the person who developed stress-related disorders.