Impact of gliomas in different brain hemispheres on anxiety and the prognosis of neurosurgical patients

Several studies have reported that laterality of the human brain affects anxiety levels. However, the correlation between anxiety and glioma laterality remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate the effects of different hemispheric gliomas on the anxiety and prognosis of patients with glioma and to explore the independent risk factors for anxiety in different hemispheric gliomas. This study included 379 patients with gliomas. Two different scales, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and the Zung self-rating anxiety scale (SAS), were both applied before surgery and at 6 months and 1 year after surgery. All these patients were followed up until death or 36 months. Overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) were identified from the survival data of these patients. Anxiety scores before surgery were higher in patients with right-hemisphere gliomas than in patients with gliomas in the left hemisphere. However, this difference was not observed at 6 months or 1 year after surgery. We found that female sex, diabetes, epilepsy, and World Health Organization (WHO) grade were independent risk factors for anxiety in patients with left hemispheric gliomas and that epilepsy was an independent risk factor for anxiety in patients with right hemispheric gliomas. Worse OS and PFS were closely related to gliomas in the left hemisphere. Gliomas in the right hemisphere are more likely to cause anxiety. Gliomas in the left hemisphere tend to lead to poorer survival. Risk factors might contribute to early psychological prevention in patients with gliomas.