Association of depression and anxiety status with 10-year cardiovascular disease incidence among apparently healthy Greek adults: the ATTICA study

Ioannis Kyrou, Natasa Kollia, Demosthenes Panagiotakos*, Ekavi Georgousopoulou, Christina Chrysohoou, Constantine Tsigos, Harpal S. Randeva, Mary Yannakoulia, Christodoulos Stefanadis, Charalabos Papageorgiou, Christos Pitsavos,

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Background: Chronic stress frequently manifests with anxiety and/or depressive symptomatology and may have detrimental cardiometabolic effects over time. As such, recognising the potential links between stress-related psychological disorders and cardiovascular disease (CVD) is becoming increasingly important in cardiovascular epidemiology research. The primary aim of this study was to explore prospectively potential associations between clinically relevant depressive symptomatology and anxiety levels and the 10-year CVD incidence among apparently healthy Greek adults.
Design: A population-based, health and nutrition prospective survey.
Methods: In the context of the ATTICA Study (2002–2012), 853 adult participants without previous CVD history (453 men (45 ± 13 years) and 400 women (44 ± 18 years)) underwent psychological evaluations through validated, self-reporting depression and anxiety questionnaires.
Results: After adjustment for multiple established CVD risk factors, both reported depression and anxiety levels were positively and independently associated with the 10-year CVD incidence, with depression markedly increasing the CVD risk by approximately fourfold (adjusted odds ratio (95% confidence interval) 3.6 (1.3, 11) for depression status; 1.03 (1.0, 1.1) for anxiety levels).
Conclusions: Our findings indicate that standardised psychological assessments focusing on depression and anxiety should be considered as an additional and distinct aspect in the context of CVD preventive strategies that are designed and implemented by health authorities at the general population level.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)145-152
Number of pages8
JournalEuropean Journal of Preventive Cardiology
Volume24
Issue number2
Early online date26 Sept 2016
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jan 2017

Keywords

  • anxiety
  • ATTICA Study
  • cardiovascular disease
  • CVD risk factors
  • depression

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Association of depression and anxiety status with 10-year cardiovascular disease incidence among apparently healthy Greek adults: the ATTICA study'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this