Depression Increases Heart Disease Risk to Same Extent That Obesity, High Cholesterol Do

July 17, 2017 · Posted in Risk Factors 

heart failureIn men, depression seems to be equal to obesity and high cholesterol in increasing heart disease risk. A German study about heart disease risk included 3,428 men between the ages of 45 and 74 who were observed over a period of 10 years.

In an article in the journal Atherosclerosis, lead researcher Karl-Heinz Ladwig reported that while high blood pressure and smoking are the most powerful risk factors for fatal cardiovascular disease, depression is comparable to obesity and high cholesterol levels. Depression accounts for about 15% of cardiovascular deaths.

Ladwig suggests that depression screening should be standard in patients with other risk factors for heart disease.

Editor’s Note: Long-term preventive treatment for depression may have the added benefit of preventing heart attacks. In people with two prior depressions, most guidelines now recommend lifetime continuation of antidepressant treatment.

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