Depression and coronary heart disease have been linked by researchers but the reason has not been clearly understood. Now a study that was published in the November 26, 2008 issue of Jama suggests that that depression may be a factor in heart disease because the depressed person may not be getting enough physical activity.
Depression a Risk Factor in Depression
Depression has been a known risk factor for the development of cardiovascular disease in both healthy patients and in patients who have existing cardiovascular disease. Researchers recognize that it is essential to discover the reason for the link between depression and heart disease in order to develop interventions.
Research Study VA Medical Center in San Francisco
A study was conducted by Mary A. Whooley, M.D., of the VA Medical Center, San Francisco, and colleagues to discover the reason depressive symptoms are associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular events.
There were 1,017 outpatients with stable coronary heart disease in the study who were followed-up for an average of 4.8 years.A questionnaire was used to measure symptoms of depression. Researchers used a variety of models to evaluate the extent of the association between depressive symptoms with subsequent cardiovascular events.
Cardiovascular events include heart failure, heart attack, stroke and transient ischemic attack.
Study researchers found that the people who had depressive symptoms had a 50 percent greater risk of heart disease and cardiovascular events.
Researchers found that the people with depressive symptom had a 31 percent higher rate of cardiovascular events.
Researchers then made adjustments for health behaviors, including physical inactivity. They found that physical inactivity was associated with a 44 percent increased rate of cardiovascular events.
The researchers note that patients with depressive symptoms are less likely to adhere to dietary, exercise, and medication recommendations and poor health behaviors can lead to cardiovascular events.
Behavior Modification and Exercise May Help
The study authors wrote in a press release that the findings indicate that patients with depression could be treated with behavior modification, especially including exercise in the daily routine.
Exercise has been found to improve heart function. The study suggests that intervening with the depressed patient to encourage them to exercise may help for prevent the onset, or recurrence of a cardiovascular event, such as a heart attack.
The study suggests that treatment for depression may help to encourage the patient to embrace healthy habits, including exercise. Many people with severe depression respond to a treatment regiment that includes antidepressant medication.
Resources
Mayo Clinic website
JAMA and Archives Journals: Link between depression, higher risk of cardio events may be because of changes in health behaviors. EurekAlert
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