Article Text
Abstract
Introduction Current clinical trial designs for endovascular treatments (EVT) do not always account for sex-related differences in neuro-psychological outcomes.
Aim of Study This study evaluates psychological status, coping mechanisms, and overall quality of life, focusing potential disparities in psychological impacts and adaptive strategies, proposing this cutting-edge topic to current scientific literature and clinical protocols.
Methods We conducted a prospective evaluation of the psycho-pathological and cognitive status in a consecutive cohort of patients scheduled for EVT, as shown in the following table 1.
We collected clinical data of data of past medical history, procedural and periprocedural complications, duration of hospitalization, and the level of disability and neuroradiological findings.
We performed descriptive statistical analysis , Wilcoxon matched-pairs signed-rank test to compare outcomes before and after the procedure and Mann-Whitney test to analyze sex difference.
Results The study enrolled 25 patients: 13 females, 12 males.
At the baseline assessment, female patients showed a higher score of depressives (p=0.0067) and anxious symptoms (p=0.0163; p=0.0195) than male cohort and female outperformed in long term verbal (p=0.0194) and visuo-spatial (p=0.0042) memory.
We observed a significant reduction in symptoms of depression (p=0.01), and state anxiety (p < 0.001) following treatment, in both cohorts. No statistically significant changes were noted in coping strategies and quality of life measures over the same period.
Conclusion Despite small sample size, our preliminary findings suggest that sex differences are indeed present and underscore the importance of considering them when assessing outcomes in EVT. Additional research is required to corroborate and extend these findings.