Relationships between anxiety, depression and wound healing outcomes in adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

<h4>Objectives</h4>To examine whether there is a relationship between anxiety and/or depression and wound healing.<h4>Design</h4>Systematic review and meta-analysis.<h4>Data sources</h4>Searches were conducted on PsycINFO, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and Web of Scienc...

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Main Authors: Fiona O'Donovan, Lora Capobianco, Joseph Taylor-Bennett, Adrian Wells
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2025-01-01
Series:PLoS ONE
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0309683
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author Fiona O'Donovan
Lora Capobianco
Joseph Taylor-Bennett
Adrian Wells
author_facet Fiona O'Donovan
Lora Capobianco
Joseph Taylor-Bennett
Adrian Wells
author_sort Fiona O'Donovan
collection DOAJ
description <h4>Objectives</h4>To examine whether there is a relationship between anxiety and/or depression and wound healing.<h4>Design</h4>Systematic review and meta-analysis.<h4>Data sources</h4>Searches were conducted on PsycINFO, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and Web of Science on the 06-March-2023.<h4>Methods</h4>Eligible studies explored the effects of anxiety and/or depression on wound healing in adults. Healing outcomes included time to heal and complication rates. Anxiety and depression outcomes were considered separately.<h4>Results</h4>Fifty-five studies were included in the narrative synthesis (26,612,809 participants), and 26 studies in the meta-analysis. Studies utilised a range of observational and experimental designs. Wounds included in the review were: surgical, ulcer, burn and experimental wounds. The narrative synthesis gave mixed results, with some studies noting positive associations between increased anxiety or depression and wound healing, while others did not find an association. Results from the meta-analysis found no significant effect of anxiety on wound healing outcomes. However, depression was associated with significantly higher odds of delayed wound healing, OR = 2.10, [1.02, 4.33]; higher risk of wound complications, RR = 1.30, [1.11, 1.53] and increased risk of wound infection RR = 1.25, [1.09, 1.44].<h4>Conclusion</h4>These findings suggest depression negatively impacts wound healing. There is less evidence for an association with anxiety, but this may be due to less research in this area. Future studies should explore the mechanism of associations between depression and wound healing to inform clinical interventions.
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spelling doaj-art-bd10fadfb1ff4159907e52a0bbceb1572025-08-20T03:46:33ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032025-01-01205e030968310.1371/journal.pone.0309683Relationships between anxiety, depression and wound healing outcomes in adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Fiona O'DonovanLora CapobiancoJoseph Taylor-BennettAdrian Wells<h4>Objectives</h4>To examine whether there is a relationship between anxiety and/or depression and wound healing.<h4>Design</h4>Systematic review and meta-analysis.<h4>Data sources</h4>Searches were conducted on PsycINFO, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and Web of Science on the 06-March-2023.<h4>Methods</h4>Eligible studies explored the effects of anxiety and/or depression on wound healing in adults. Healing outcomes included time to heal and complication rates. Anxiety and depression outcomes were considered separately.<h4>Results</h4>Fifty-five studies were included in the narrative synthesis (26,612,809 participants), and 26 studies in the meta-analysis. Studies utilised a range of observational and experimental designs. Wounds included in the review were: surgical, ulcer, burn and experimental wounds. The narrative synthesis gave mixed results, with some studies noting positive associations between increased anxiety or depression and wound healing, while others did not find an association. Results from the meta-analysis found no significant effect of anxiety on wound healing outcomes. However, depression was associated with significantly higher odds of delayed wound healing, OR = 2.10, [1.02, 4.33]; higher risk of wound complications, RR = 1.30, [1.11, 1.53] and increased risk of wound infection RR = 1.25, [1.09, 1.44].<h4>Conclusion</h4>These findings suggest depression negatively impacts wound healing. There is less evidence for an association with anxiety, but this may be due to less research in this area. Future studies should explore the mechanism of associations between depression and wound healing to inform clinical interventions.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0309683
spellingShingle Fiona O'Donovan
Lora Capobianco
Joseph Taylor-Bennett
Adrian Wells
Relationships between anxiety, depression and wound healing outcomes in adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
PLoS ONE
title Relationships between anxiety, depression and wound healing outcomes in adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
title_full Relationships between anxiety, depression and wound healing outcomes in adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
title_fullStr Relationships between anxiety, depression and wound healing outcomes in adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
title_full_unstemmed Relationships between anxiety, depression and wound healing outcomes in adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
title_short Relationships between anxiety, depression and wound healing outcomes in adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
title_sort relationships between anxiety depression and wound healing outcomes in adults a systematic review and meta analysis
url https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0309683
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