Analysis of risk factors for negative emotions in patients with thyroid nodules: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Investigations have indicated that there is a correlation between thyroid nodules and patients’negative emotions. Nevertheless, the risk factors contributing to the development of negative emotions in thyroid nodule patients remain unidentified. This cross-sectional study recruited 150 patients diagnosed with thyroid nodules through ultrasound examination from January 2022 to January 2023 at Jinan Central Hospital, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, and Qingyun County Maternal and Child Health Hospital as the case group, which were categorized based on their levels of anxiety and depression. Simultaneously, 150 individuals with normal thyroid ultrasound findings were selected as the control group. The researchers chose a self-administered general information questionnaire and 6 psychological scales as the assessment tools for the patients. SPSS 26.0 was used to analyze the risk factors for negative emotions in patients with thyroid nodules. The scores of the self-rating anxiety scale were higher in the case group than in the control group (40.90 ± 9.490 vs 38.37 ± 6.836, P = .028), as were the scores of the self-rating depression scale (44.35 ± 9.180 vs 41.48 ± 8.297, P = .004). There is a positive correlation between thyroid nodules and degrees of anxiety and depression (R = 0.176, P = .002; R = 0.206, P = .000). The results of the binary logistic regression analysis revealed that both fatigue state (P = .013) and negative life events (P = .001) exerted independent effects on anxiety, whereas negative life events (P = .002) had independent effects on depression. This study enhances the understanding of the relationship between thyroid nodules and anxiety and depression. It reveals that thyroid nodules are associated with negative emotions and that negative life events have a significant influence on anxiety and depression in these individuals, which may contribute to the development of strategies for preventing and treating thyroid nodules in clinical practice.