Peer Reviewed
Perspectives
How can one mend a broken heart? Depression and cardiovascular disease
Abstract
A strong association has been found between depression and cardiovascular disease. The GP plays an important role in screening cardiac patients for depression and monitoring cardiac and depressive outcomes.
Key Points
- Epidemiological and clinical studies indicate a bidirectional association between depression and cardiovascular disease.
- Interplay between depression and cardiovascular disease contributes to risk and outcomes of both conditions.
- Screening for depression in patients with cardiovascular disease is recommended in routine clinical practice.
- Treatment should encompass lifestyle modification (e.g. diet, exercise), and specific psychological interventions should be offered where appropriate.
- Pharmacotherapy requires careful balancing of efficacy versus risk, specifically cardiac risk issues.
Picture credit: © Sturti/iStockphoto. Model used for illustrative purposes only.
Purchase the PDF version of this article
Already a subscriber? Login here.