A recent study published in the journal BMJ Opensuggests that people with comorbid depression and major depressive disorder (MDD) are at an increased risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) compared with those with hypertension alone, MDD alone and neither condition.
Researchers used prospective data from the UK Biobank and compared adverse CVD outcomes in four mutually exclusive groups (hypertension only, n=56,035; MDD only, n=15,098; hypertension plus MDD, n=12,929 and an unaffected [no hypertension, no MDD] comparison group, n=50,798).
Relative to the comparator group, the risk for adverse CVD outcomes was higher for hypertension only (aHR, 1.36; 95% CI, 1.22-1.52) and hypertension plus MDD group (aHR, 1.66; 95% CI, 1.45-1.9) but lower for MDD group (aHR, 0.55; 95% CI, 0.46-0.76). Relative to hypertension, comorbid hypertension plus MDD group had a significantly higher risk for adverse CVD outcomes (aHR, 1.22; 95% CI, 1.1-1.35).
“Our findings may have important implications for routine clinical practice, particularly within primary care settings and further demonstrate the complex relationship between depression and hypertension. Although evidence of an interaction is inconsistent, we found that comorbid hypertension and depression conferred greater hazard than hypertension alone for adverse CV outcomes,” the authors wrote.
