Nikki L. Damen

Depression is independently associated with 7-year mortality in patients treated with percutaneous coronary intervention: Results from the RESEARCH registry

BACKGROUND Depression has been associated with poor prognosis in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD), but little is known about the impact of depression on long-term mortality. We examined whether depression was associated with 7-year mortality in patients treated with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), after adjusting for socio-demographic and clinical characteristics, anxiety, and the distressed (Type D) personality. METHODS The sample comprised a cohort of consecutive PCI patients (N=1234; 72.0% men; mean age 62.0 ± 11.1 years, range [26-90] years) from the Rapamycin-Eluting Stent Evaluated At Rotterdam Cardiology Hospital (RESEARCH) registry. At baseline (i.e., 6 months post-PCI), patients completed the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) to assess anxiety and depression and the Type D scale (DS14) to assess Type D personality. The endpoint was defined as all-cause mortality. RESULTS The prevalence of depression (HADS-D ≥ 8) was 26.2% (324/1236). After a median follow-up of 7.0 ± 1.6 years, 187 deaths (15.2%) from any cause were recorded. The incidence of all-cause mortality in depressed patients was 23.5% (76/324) versus 12.2% (111/910) in non-depressed patients. Cumulative hazard functions differed significantly for depressed versus non-depressed patients (log-rank X(2)=25.57, p<.001). In multivariable analysis, depression remained independently associated with all-cause mortality (HR=1.63; 95% CI [1.05-2.71], p=.038), after adjusting for socio-demographic and clinical characteristics, anxiety, and Type D personality. CONCLUSIONS Depression was independently associated with a 1.6-fold increased risk for 7-year mortality, above and beyond anxiety and Type D personality. Future studies are warranted to further elucidate the potential pathways linking depression to long-term mortality following PCI.

Reduced positive affect (anhedonia) is independently associated with 7-year mortality in patients treated with percutaneous coronary intervention: results from the RESEARCH registry

Aims: Negative mood states (e.g., anxiety and depression) have been associated with increased cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in coronary artery disease (CAD), but little is known about the impact of positive emotions on these health outcomes. We examined whether anhedonia (i.e., reduced positive affect) was associated with 7-year mortality in patients treated with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Methods: Consecutive PCI patients (n = 1206; 71.5% men; mean age 62.0 ± 11.1 years) from the Rapamycin-Eluting Stent Evaluated At Rotterdam Cardiology Hospital (RESEARCH) registry completed the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) to assess anhedonia at baseline. Anhedonia was defined as a score ≤7 (i.e., one SD below the mean) on the positive affect scale of the HADS. The endpoint was defined as all-cause mortality. Results: The prevalence of anhedonia was 23.7% (286/1206). After a median follow up of 7.0 ± 1.6 years, 186 deaths (15.4%) from any cause were recorded. The incidence of mortality in anhedonic patients was 22.7% (65/286) vs. 13.2% (121/920) in non-anhedonic patients (HR = 1.66, 95% CI [1.19–2.32], p = 0.003). Cumulative hazard functions were significantly different for anhedonic vs. non-anhedonic patients (log-rank χ2 = 16.61, p < 0.001). In multivariable analysis, anhedonia remained independently associated with all-cause mortality (HR = 1.51, 95% CI [1.03–2.22], p = 0.036), after adjusting for socio-demographics, clinical characteristics, and negative and relaxed affect. Conclusion: Anhedonia was independently associated with a 1.5-fold increased risk for all-cause mortality in patients who survived the first 6 months post-PCI. Enhancing positive emotions, in addition to reducing negative emotions, may constitute an important target for future psychological intervention trials in CAD patients.

Intra-individual changes in anxiety and depression during 12-month follow-up in percutaneous coronary intervention patients.

BACKGROUND Only a paucity of studies focused on intra-individual changes in anxiety and depression over time and its correlates in cardiac patients, which may contribute to the identification of high-risk patients and point to targets for intervention. We examined changes in anxiety and depression over a 12-month period and the demographic and clinical correlates of change scores using an intra-individual approach in patients treated with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). METHODS Consecutive PCI patients (N=715) completed the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) at baseline and at 12 months post-PCI. Individual change scores were calculated and in secondary analysis, three categories of change were identified (i.e., stable, improved, and deteriorated anxiety or depression). RESULTS The mean individual change was -.16 (± 3.0) for anxiety and -.02 (± 2.8) for depression. In linear regression analysis, baseline anxiety levels (B = -.25, 95%CI[-.30 to -.20], p = <.001) and baseline depression levels (B = -.28, 95%CI[-.33 to -.22], p =< .001) were significant correlates of individual change scores. Secondary analysis showed that anxiety remained stable in 76.4% (546/715) of patients, while depression remained stable in 81.4% (582/715) of patients. CONCLUSIONS The findings of the current study showed that levels of anxiety and depression remained stable in the majority of PCI patients from the index PCI to 12 months post-PCI. Future studies using an intra-individual approach are warranted to further examine individual changes in anxiety and depression over time in CAD, and PCI in particular, as a means to bridge the gap between research and clinical practice.

Antidepressant use and risk for mortality in 121,252 heart failure patients with or without a diagnosis of clinical depression

BACKGROUND Depression is a risk factor for mortality in patients with heart failure (HF), however, treating depression with antidepressant therapy does not seem to improve survival. We examined the prevalence of antidepressant use in HF patients, the correlates of antidepressant use subsequent to hospital discharge and the relation between antidepressant use, clinical depression and mortality in patients with HF. METHODS 121,252 HF patients surviving first hospitalization were stratified by antidepressant use and a diagnosis of clinical depression. RESULTS In total, 15.6% (19,348) received antidepressants at baseline, of which 86.7% (16,780) had no diagnosis of clinical depression. Female gender, older age, higher socio-economic status, more comorbidities, increased use of statins, spironolactone and aspirin, lower use of beta-blockers and ACE-inhibitors, greater HF severity and a diagnosis of clinical depression were independently associated with antidepressant use. Patients using no antidepressants with clinical depression and patients using antidepressants, with or without clinical depression, had a significantly higher risk for all-cause mortality (HR, 1.25; 95% CI, 1.15-1.36; HR, 1.24; 95% CI, 1.22-1.27; HR, 1.21; 95% CI, 1.16-1.27, respectively) and CV-mortality (HR: 1.17; 95% CI, 1.14-1.20, P<.001; HR: 1.20; 95% CI, 1.08-1.34, P<.001; HR: 1.21; 95% CI, 1.12-1.29, P<.001, respectively) as compared to patients not using antidepressants without depression in adjusted analysis. CONCLUSION Patients with HF taking antidepressants had an increased risk for all-cause and CV-mortality, irrespectively of having clinical depression. These results highlight the importance of further examining the antidepressant prescription pattern in patients with HF, as this may be crucial in understanding the antidepressant effects on cardiac function and mortality.

Cardiac patients who completed a longitudinal psychosocial study had a different clinical and psychosocial baseline profile than patients who dropped out prematurely

Non-response is a serious threat to the external validity of longitudinal psychosocial studies. Little is known about potential systematic differences between patients with coronary artery disease who complete a psychosocial study and those who drop out prematurely due to non-response, or whether drop-outs may have a different cardiovascular risk. We studied a cohort of 1132 consecutive patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). At baseline, all patients completed the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and the Type D Scale (DS14). At 12 months follow-up, 70.8% (n = 802) of patients completed both questionnaires, while 29.2% (n = 330) dropped out. We observed significant differences in socio-demographic, clinical, and psychological baseline characteristics between completers and drop-outs. Drop-outs were younger, more likely to smoke, but less often prescribed cardiovascular medications, including calcium antagonists and angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, as compared with completers. Drop-outs more often had depression, anxiety, and negative affectivity, as compared with completers (all p-values <0.05). After a median follow-up of 4 years, we found no significant differences in mortality risk between completers and drop-outs (6.5 vs. 7.3%; adjusted HR 1.34, 95% CI 0.82–2.19, respectively). In conclusion, a possible attrition bias occurred, as drop-outs and completers differed systematically on some socio-demographic, clinical, and psychological baseline characteristics. Despite these differences, this did not translate into a poorer short-term prognosis, as there were no differences in the mortality risk of completers vs. drop-outs after a median follow-up of 4 years. In future prospective studies, attention should be paid to attrition bias, and its possible impact on study results and implications should be discussed.

The distressed (Type D) personality mediates the relationship between remembered parenting and psychological distress in cardiac patients.

Objective: Both the distressed (Type D) personality (i.e. the combination of negative affectivity and social inhibition traits) and dysfunctional parenting styles are associated with anxiety and depression. As parenting styles have been related to personality development, dysfunctional parenting styles may also be associated with Type D personality. We examined whether remembered parenting was associated with anxiety and depression in cardiac patients and whether Type D personality mediated this relationship. Methods: Our sample comprised 435 patients treated with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and 123 patients with congestive heart failure (CHF). Patients completed the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, Type D Scale (DS14), and Remembered Relationship with Parents (RRP10) scale. Results: Remembered parenting was significantly associated with higher anxiety and depression levels and Type D personality. In multivariable linear regression analyses, Type D personality accounted for 25–29% of the variance in anxiety and 23–46% of the variance in depression, while remembered parenting was no longer significantly associated with these domains. Sobel tests and bootstrapping indicated that Type D personality mediated the relationship between remembered parenting and anxiety and depression. Conclusion: Type D personality mediated the relationship between remembered parenting and anxiety and depression in both PCI and CHF patients.