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ST. LOUIS (UPI) -- A history of major depression raises the risk of heart disease over and above any genetic predisposition, U.S. researchers found.
Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis analyzed data from more than 1,200 male twins who served in the U.S. military during the Vietnam War. The men were surveyed on a variety of health issues in 1992, including depression, and were assessed again in 2005.
First author Jeffrey F. Scherrer of the Washington University School of Medicine and the St. Louis Veterans Affairs Medical Center said men with depression in 1992 were twice as likely to develop heart disease in the ensuing years, compared with men with no history of depression.
"Based on our findings, we can say that after adjusting for other risk factors, depression remains a significant predictor of heart disease," Scherrer said in a statement.
"In this study, we have demonstrated that exposure to depression is contributing to heart disease only in twins who have high genetic risk and who actually develop clinical depression. In twins with high genetic risk common to depression and heart disease, but who never develop depression itself, there was no increased risk for heart disease."
The findings strongly suggest that depression itself independently contributes to risk for heart disease, Scherrer added.
The findings were presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychosomatic Society this week in Chicago
Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis analyzed data from more than 1,200 male twins who served in the U.S. military during the Vietnam War. The men were surveyed on a variety of health issues in 1992, including depression, and were assessed again in 2005.
First author Jeffrey F. Scherrer of the Washington University School of Medicine and the St. Louis Veterans Affairs Medical Center said men with depression in 1992 were twice as likely to develop heart disease in the ensuing years, compared with men with no history of depression.
"Based on our findings, we can say that after adjusting for other risk factors, depression remains a significant predictor of heart disease," Scherrer said in a statement.
"In this study, we have demonstrated that exposure to depression is contributing to heart disease only in twins who have high genetic risk and who actually develop clinical depression. In twins with high genetic risk common to depression and heart disease, but who never develop depression itself, there was no increased risk for heart disease."
The findings strongly suggest that depression itself independently contributes to risk for heart disease, Scherrer added.
The findings were presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychosomatic Society this week in Chicago
