Background
Depression and inflammation independently predict adverse cardiovascular outcomes
in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD). Depression has been associated with
elevated levels of inflammation in otherwise healthy patients without known CHD. However,
studies investigating the link between depression and inflammation in patients with
established CHD have produced inconclusive results.
Methods
We sought to examine the association of major depression with inflammation in 984
outpatients with established CHD from the Heart and Soul Study. We assessed current
major depression with the Computerized Diagnostic Interview Schedule and collected
venous blood samples for measurement of five inflammatory biomarkers (white blood
cell count, CD40 ligand, C-reactive protein [CRP], fibrinogen, and interleukin-6 [IL-6]).
We used multivariate analysis of variance to examine the association of current depression
with inflammatory markers, adjusted for potential confounding variables.
Results
Of the 984 participants, 217 (22%) had current major depression. Depression was not
associated with increased levels of any inflammatory marker. Contrary to our hypothesis,
depression was associated with lower levels of CRP (p = .09), fibrinogen (p = .006), and IL-6 (p = .007) in both unadjusted and adjusted models.
Conclusions
We found no evidence that current depression is associated with greater inflammation
in outpatients with CHD. Inflammation is unlikely to explain the adverse cardiovascular
outcomes associated with depression in patients with established CHD.
Key Words
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: April 19, 2007
Accepted:
October 10,
2006
Received in revised form:
October 5,
2006
Received:
August 22,
2006
Identification
Copyright
© 2007 Society of Biological Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
