Psychological interventions for depression may reduce CVD risk
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Key takeaways:
- Managing depression through psychological therapy was associated with a 12% reduction in CVD risk.
- The association was strongest among those younger than 60 years.
Managing depression with psychological interventions may reduce CVD risk, especially in those younger than 60 years, according to a study published in the European Heart Journal.
In a retrospective cohort study of 636,955 people older than 45 years, researchers examined incidence of new-onset CVD, coronary heart disease, stroke and all-cause mortality in individuals who completed a course of psychotherapy after a median follow-up of 3.1 years.
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“Reliable improvement of depressive symptoms after psychological therapy was associated with a 12% decrease in CVD risk at any given time,” Céline El Baou, MSc, research assistant and PhD student at University College London, and colleagues wrote. “This association was stronger in adults aged under 60.”
The absolute risk for experiencing a CV event 4 years after psychological treatment was 7.64% in those with reliable symptom improvement and 8.38% in those without improvement.
The researchers found that risk for experiencing any CV event was reduced by 12% for those who reliably improved after psychological therapy (HR = 0.88; 95% CI, 0.85-0.89) compared with those who did not. CVD risk reduction was 15% in those younger than 60 years (HR = 0.85; 95% CI, 0.82-0.87) compared with 6% in those older than 60 years (HR = 0.94; 95% CI, 0.91-0.97).
“These findings are important as they suggest that successful outcomes of evidence-based psychological interventions may extend beyond psychological health and have long-term physical health benefits, particularly for those aged under 60,” El Baou and colleagues wrote.
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