Depression Increases Mortality Risk in Heart Failure Patients

A new study has revealed that heart failure patients who are also dealing with depression are more likely to die within a year when compared to those who do not show depression related symptoms.

Following their discharge from a hospital, if heart failure patients suffer from moderate to severe depression, they become five times more vulnerable to dying.

"Our research clearly shows a strong association between depression and risk of death in the year after discharge from hospital," said chief study investigator John Cleland, professor of cardiology at the Imperial College London.

Depression often leads to a living a lower quality of life. The symptoms of depression include loss of interest in daily activities, lack of motivation, loss in confidence, changes in appetite and sleep disorders.

Cleland points out that, "This could explain the association we found between depression and mortality."

For the study, the team included patients with heart failure who were admitted to hospitals. Among them, 27 patients were diagnosed with mild depression, 24 with moderate to severe depression while 103 patients showed no signs of depression.

"Our results show that depression is strongly associated with death during the year following discharge from hospital after an admission for the exacerbation of heart failure; we expect that the link persists beyond one year," said Cleland.

"This included social, mental, and physical frailty, as well as comorbidities and the severity of heart failure. Depression has been reported to predict death in patients with heart failure, but until now it was thought that this could be because depressed patients have more severe heart failure and more comorbidities," he concluded.