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Depression and anxiety are common features of all forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) and have a significant impact on an individual's quality of life, everyday functioning and rehabilitation outcome. They are potentially treatable causes of disability in this population. This study aimed to investigate the use of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scales (HADS) as a useful tool for measuring anxiety and depression in people with MS who live in the community and to provide normative data for clinicians and researchers.

In total, 144 individuals with MS completed the HADS as part of a larger community postal survey.

Individuals with MS report significantly greater levels of anxiety and depression than a healthy population. The HADS had good levels of internal reliability in this sample. Raw scores and percentile equivalents for use with MS patients are reported.

This study provides useful normative data on the HADS in a community sample of people with MS, which has been unavailable to date. The findings support previous studies, indicating high prevalence rates of anxiety and depression in this patient population, highlighting a need for interventions aimed at addressing the psychological distress associated with MS.