Key result
Physical inactivity and clinically relevant depressive symptoms had a statistically significant additive interaction, explaining 40.6% of the incident CVD risk among inactive persons with depression.
Why the study?
To determine whether a synergistic effect between clinically relevant depressive symptoms and cardiovascular risk factors disproportionately increases cardiovascular disease risk in older adults.
Do clinically relevant depressive symptoms and cardiovascular risk factors synergistically increase the risk of incident cardiovascular disease in older adults?
Cohort (n=3,091)
Do clinically relevant depressive symptoms and cardiovascular risk factors synergistically increase the risk of incident cardiovascular disease in older adults?
Older adults with both clinically relevant depressive symptoms and physical inactivity have a synergistically increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease, representing an important target for prevention.
Answers are grounded in this paper and cite their sources.
Highlights high-risk older adult subgroup for CVD prevention; leaves open whether joint interventions reduce incidence.
OBJECTIVE: To determine if there is a synergistic effect between clinically relevant depressive symptoms and cardiovascular risk factors that disproportionately increases the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) among older adults with depressive symptoms. METHODS: Data were obtained from the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam, a longitudinal cohort study. N = 3091 respondents with up to seven years of follow-up were included. Incident CVD was based on self-report, medication use, general practitioners' diagnoses and causes of death. A score of ≥16 points on the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale indicated clinically relevant depressive symptoms. Risk factors included were sex, education, obesity, smoking, alcohol use, physical inactivity and diabetes mellitus. Data were analysed with Cox regression models. Measures of multiplicative and additive interaction were calculated to determine if the presence of both depressive symptoms and a risk factor amplified the risk of CVD. RESULTS: Of all participants, 12.6% had clinically relevant depressive symptoms and, after a median follow-up of six years, 15.7% developed CVD. Only the additive interaction between physical inactivity and depressive symptoms was statistically significant and explained 40.6% of the CVD risk among inactive persons with depressive symptoms. CONCLUSION: In the general population, we did not detect synergistic effects for most risk factors. However, older adults with clinically relevant depressive symptoms and a physically inactive lifestyle appeared to be at a particularly high risk to develop CVD and may represent an important target for cardiovascular prevention.
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Zutphen et al. (2021) conducted a cohort in Incident cardiovascular disease (n=3,091). Clinically relevant depressive symptoms and cardiovascular risk factors vs. Absence of depressive symptoms or risk factors was evaluated on Incident cardiovascular disease (CVD). Physical inactivity and clinically relevant depressive symptoms had a statistically significant additive interaction, explaining 40.6% of the incident CVD risk among inactive persons with depression.
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