Heart Disease, Diabetes, Depression a Deadly Mix

Heart disease, diabetes and depression can be a lethal triple-play -- boosting a patient's death risk by 20 percent to 30 percent, new research shows.

"We do not know what this increased risk is due to, but it could either be that depression influences crucial aspects of self-care behaviors needed to manage diabetes or that a more severe disease process is reflected in more depressive symptoms," said lead researcher Anastasia Georgiades, a research associate in the department of psychiatry and behavioral science at Duke University in Durham, N.C. ..

"This is an interesting study that replicates earlier work showing that symptoms of depression are associated with survival in persons with coronary artery disease," said Robert M. Carney, a professor of psychiatry and director of the Behavioral Medicine Center at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

Other studies have shown that depression is very common in patients with diabetes, and it is associated with poorer metabolic control and long-term complications in these patients, Carney said.

"The researchers also report a possible interaction between depression and diabetes in patients with coronary artery disease, such that having both disorders may more than additively increase the risk for mortality," the expert noted.

"This is potentially a very important finding, as it suggests a possible link between these two risk factors," Carney said. "This could help to identify those individuals at highest risk for dying and possibly lead to novel treatment strategies to improve survival in these patients."

•	Heart Disease, Diabetes, Depression a Deadly Mix The Washington Post, Friday, March 9, 2007 Byline: Steven Reinberg, HealthDay Reporter

•	Treating depression improves diabetes control Reuters, Tuesday, March 6, 2007 Byline: Megan Rauscher, Reuters Health

	Story also ran in 7 others:  Reuters (UK), Scientific American.com, CBC News (Canada), Austin American-Statesman (TX), Atlanta Journal Constitution, Lex 18 (KY) and WFIE-TV (IN)