The risk of depression and anxiety in patients with familial mediterranean fever – a cross-sectional study

Background: Familial Mediterranean Fever (FMF) is an autosomal recessive autoinflammatory disease associated with various systemic comorbidities. Recent research regarding the association with depression and anxiety has yielded conflicting results. The current study aims were to examine whether such an association exists using big data analysis methodology. Methods: This study was conducted as a cross-sectional analysis based on the Clalit Health Services database. We compared the proportions of depression and anxiety in patients diagnosed with FMF and age- and sex- matched controls. We used the Chi-square test and T-test for univariate analysis. Multivariate logistic regression was then applied to control for possible confounding variables. Results: The study included 7,670 patients with FMF and 7,670 matched controls. The prevalence of both depression and anxiety was found to be higher in the FMF group as compared to controls (6.22% and 4.58%, respectively, p<0.001, and 4.93% and 3.14%, respectively, p<0.001). These proportions remained significant after adjusting for important confounders, such as smoking and socioeconomic status. Limitations: Temporal association does not indicate a causal relationship, the validity of the diagnoses relies on clinical records and is not based on formal classifications or diagnostic criteria, information regarding disease duration and other parameters were not accessible. Conclusions: Our data imply that FMF is independently associated with both depression and anxiety. These findings highlight the importance of raising awareness for these comorbidities.