The links between heart disease and depression : an honors thesis (HONRS 499)

Abstract

The role of depression associated with heart disease has drawn increasing attention over the past two decades, not only in regard to its potential contribution to the development of the disease, but also because of the adverse impact on prognosis among patients diagnosed with the disease. Many studies have been performed to examine whether depression causes heart disease and vice versa. After examining a selection of studies, it is obvious that there is some link between the two diseases. Despite this evidence, depression is not considered a risk factor for heart disease. In the vast majority of healthcare facilities that treat heart disease, patients are not even screened for depression. The failure of physicians to treat depression as a risk factor for heart disease has caused thousands of depressed people to develop a deadly disease that could be prevented if they would be treated for their depression. This failure has also caused thousands of heart patients to die unnecessarily as a result of their depression caused or worsened by heart disease. Because, in this case, patients may not be able to rely on the medical community, the patients and their loved ones must be educated on how to screen for depression themselves. All of the progress made in the fight against heart disease could be taken one step further if depression would be universally recognized as a significant risk factor for the development and progression of heart disease.