Metabolic syndrome abnormalities are associated with severity of anxiety and depression and with tricyclic antidepressant use

OBJECTIVE: The metabolic syndrome (MetSyn) predisposes to cardiovascular disease and diabetes mellitus. There might also be an association between the MetSyn and anxiety and depression, but its nature is unclear. We aimed to investigate whether diagnosis, symptom severity and antidepressant use are associated with the MetSyn. METHOD: We addressed the odds for the MetSyn and its components among 1217 depressed and/or anxious subjects and 629 controls, and their associations with symptom severity and antidepressant use. RESULTS: Symptom severity was positively associated with prevalence of the MetSyn, adjusted odds ratio (OR) 2.21 for very severe depression: 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.06-4.64, P = 0.04, which could be attributed to abdominal obesity and dyslipidemia. Tricyclic antidepressant (TCA) use also increased odds for the MetSyn (OR 2.30, 95% CI: 1.21-4.36, P = 0.01), independent of depression severity. CONCLUSION: The most severely depressed people and TCA users more often have the MetSyn, which is driven by abdominal adiposity and dyslipidemia.