Depression Linked to Early Heart Disease
(HealthDay News, 2/6/07)

To detect signs of early heart disease, Jesse C. Stewart of Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, and team, measured the thickness of the inner layers of the carotid arteries of 324 adults at the start of the study and after three years. The investigators found a link between the progressive thickening of blood vessels and depressive symptoms, like fatigue and loss of appetite. The researchers say that the physical symptoms of depression predate the signs of artherosclerosis and seem to predict its progression These findings suggest that the physical indicators of depression may also be markers for an increased risk of heart disease and treating depression may affect that risk.

(Archives of General Psychiatry, February 2007)