Coping Styles and Mental Health Outcomes in Common Variable Immunodeficiency: A Focus on Self-Punishment and Depression

Background and Aims Common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) is a heterogeneous immunodeficiency disorder characterised by increased susceptibility to infections and immune dysregulation; it can have multifaceted effects in cognitive, emotional, behavioural, and social domains. The aim of this study was to compare the psychological resilience, coping mechanisms and depression/anxiety levels of patients with CVID with healthy individuals. Methods The study included 40 CVID patients and 40 age- and gender-matched healthy control subjects. Participants were assessed using a sociodemographic data form, Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC), Coping Attitudes Rating Scale (COPE) and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Results There were no significant differences between the groups in terms of age and gender. Depression scores were significantly higher in CVID patients compared to healthy individuals (p=0.023), while a significant difference was found in the "tenacity and personal competence" sub-dimension of the CD-RISC (p=0.03). No significant difference was observed between the groups in terms of coping mechanisms and other psychometric measures. Positive correlations were found between psychological resilience and coping mechanisms in both groups. In particular, strong positive correlations were found between "self-punishment" coping style and depression and anxiety scores in the CVID group (p=0.002 and p=0.008, respectively). Moderation analyses showed that the presence of CVID had a significant moderating role on the relationship between self-punishment coping style and depression (p=0.013). Conclusion Our study revealed that the relationship between self-punishment coping style and depressive symptoms was stronger in patients with CVID. The results of our study provide important evidence that non-drug individual interventions for depression in patients with CVID may need to focus on patients' self-blaming and punitive coping attitudes.