Heart Disease

Resources

Basic InformationMore InformationLatest News

Diet Pill Meridia Ups Heart Attack Risk: StudySomatic Depression Symptoms Show Heart Risk LinkSertraline May Not Be Effective for Depression in Heart FailureHostile, Competitive Types May Be Harming Their HeartsRed Meat May Boost Women's Heart Disease RiskTough Childhoods May Contribute to Adult Heart DiseaseChildhood Cancer May Be Linked to Later Heart ProblemsFDA Puts Partial Hold on Avandia Safety StudyWomen at Greater Risk From Serious Angina Than Men: StudyAvandia Raises Heart Risk But Should Stay on Market, FDA Panel FindsFDA Panel Seems Skeptical Over Key Avandia DataObstructive Sleep Apnea Tied to Heart Failure Risk in MenFDA Advisory Panel Decision on Avandia LoomsAnxiety Disorders, Heart Disease a Bad Combination: StudyFetal Genes May Be Linked to Certain Heart Disease in AdultsHigher Testosterone Tied to Heart Trouble in Older MenCommon Pain Relievers Raise Heart Risk for Healthy FolksAmniotic Stem Cells Promising for Cardiac RegenerationLess Frequent Toothbrushing Linked to Heart DiseaseDepression Key Consideration in Acute Coronary SyndromeGene Mutation Linked to Congenital Heart DiseaseAHA: Employee Health Program Improves Heart HealthTalk With Doctor Helps Heart Attack Patients Resume SexOvertime Boosts Heart Attack RiskHigh-Pressure Jobs Tied to Heart Disease Risk in WomenDepression After Heart Attack Tied to Brain ChangesRecall Issued for LIFEPAK 15 Monitor/DefibrillatorArteries Age Twice as Fast in SmokersNearly Half of U.S. Adults Have Heart Risk FactorsAntidepressants May Improve Heart HealthEarly Defibrillation Boosts Survival in Cardiac ArrestMoney Worries Delay Heart Attack TreatmentYoga Benefits African-American Heart Failure PatientsPlavix Can Help Cut Death Risk in Certain Heart PatientsLow-Fat Diet May Not Reduce Cardio Risks After MenopauseNewer Blood Thinner Beats Plavix for Bypass PatientsBlood Vessels Bounce Back Once Smokers QuitTreat Women With Heart Attack Just Like Men: StudyErectile Dysfunction Plus Heart Disease Raises Death RiskMany WTC Responders Show Signs of Heart TroublePsoriasis Tied to Raised Heart RiskBlacks, Hispanics With Heart Failure Less Likely to Use HospiceFatigue Found Predictive of Cardiovascular Events in ESRDHearts of Hospice Patients Being Needlessly ShockedWeight Loss Found to Reduce Carotid Artery Wall ThicknessYou Can't Exercise Away TV's Toll on the HeartRoutine Heart Tests for Athletes Would Save LivesFuture Heart Disease May Be in Store for Obese KidsCutting Off Blood Flow Limits Damage During Heart AttackHappiness Protects Your Heart

Questions and AnswersLinks

Related Topics

Health Sciences
Medical Disorders

Depression After Heart Attack Tied to Brain Changes

by -- Robert Preidt
Updated: May 7th 2010

new article illustration

FRIDAY, May 7 (HealthDay News) -- Persistent depression after a heart attack is associated with changes in the brain, a new study has found.

But more research is needed to determine whether depression causes these changes or vice versa, said the German study authors.

Depression is common after a heart attack and its presence increases the risk of recurrent heart problems and death.

The study included 22 patients who underwent brain scans three months after a heart attack. The researchers looked for cerebral deep white matter changes and structural abnormalities in the parts of the brain called the anterior cingulate cortex and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex.

In addition, the patients were assessed for other heart problems, depression and cardiovascular risk factors.

According to researchers led by Dr. Michael A. Rapp of the department of psychiatry at St. Hedwig's Hospital in Berlin, even after taking into account other existing heart problems, depression severity was associated with changes in the anterior cingulate cortex.

But when the researchers took into account other cardiovascular risk factors, the association disappeared.

Compared with the 14 patients who were not depressed three months after hospitalization, the eight patients with depressive symptoms had more advanced deep white matter changes overall, but not when the investigators took into account cardiovascular comorbidities.

"This study provides the first evidence that persistent depressive symptoms after [a heart attack] are associated with vascular brain changes. Longitudinal studies are needed to determine whether depressive symptoms precede these changes or vice versa," the researchers concluded.

The study findings are published in the April issue of the journal Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics.

More information

The American Academy of Family Physicians has more about depression after a heart attack.

This article: Copyright © 2010 HealthDay. All rights reserved.