[Clinical assessment of anxiety and depression in children with vertigo: a retrospective analysis of 189 cases].

Objective

To assess the emotional characteristics, specifically anxiety and depression, in children with vertigo and their association with the subtypes of vertigo.

Methods

This retrospective analysis was conducted on 189 children (103 male and 86 female children; age, 7-14 years; median, 10 years) who visited the Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at the Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Capital Medical University, between February 2021 and February 2024, with complaints of dizziness or vertigo. The participants comprised 44 children with recurrent vertigo, 127 with vestibular migraine, and 18 with possible vestibular migraine (PVMC). The participants' demographic and clinical data were collected, and emotional assessments, including anxiety and depression, were performed. Anxiety was assessed using the Children's Self-Rating Anxiety Scale, while depression was assessed using the Children's Self-Rating Depression Scale. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 29.0 software to compare the clinical characteristics and correlations of anxiety and depression in children with vertigo.

Results

Overall, 48.7% (92/189) of children with vertigo had anxiety, and 34.9% (66/189) had depression, indicating that anxiety was more prevalent than depression. Additionally, children in all groups had varying degrees of emotional problems. In the vestibular migraine group, 52.0% (66/127) had anxiety, while 36.2% (46/127) had depression. In the recurrent vertigo group, 38.6% (17/44) had anxiety and 31.8% (14/44) had depression. In the PVMC group comprising 18 children, 9 had anxiety while 6 had depression. Overall, the proportion of children with anxiety was higher than that of those with depression in all the groups; however, there was no statistically significant difference between the groups (anxiety score, U=0.877, P=0.645; depression score, U=0.524, P=0.770). Furthermore, there was a positive correlation between anxiety scores and depression scores in the recurrent vertigo group, vestibular migraine group, and PVMC group (r=0.71, P=0.012; r=0.59, P<0.001; r=0.70, P=0.001, respectively).

Conclusion

Children with common vertigo have emotional problems, including anxiety and depression, which should be considered during diagnosis and treatment.