Which psychological, psychophysiological, and anthropometric factors are connected with life events, depression, and quality of life in patients with cardiovascular disease

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to determine psychological, psychophysiological, and anthropometric factors connected with life events, level of depression, and quality of life in people at risk for cardiovascular disease and healthy controls. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study involving arterial hypertension patients and healthy controls. There were several measurements including physical, anthropological, cardiovascular, and psychophysiological measurements and administration of questionnaires. RESULTS: A total of 99 participants were recruited for this study, 54 healthy controls (mean age: 35.59±13.39 years) and 45 patients with cardiovascular disease (CVD) (mean age: 46.33±12.39 years). The healthy controls and the patients with CVD significantly differed in the mean total score of life events, level of depression, quality of life score, temperature, blood pressure (BP), pulse transit time, heart rate, high-frequency total power, heart rate variability total power, waist-to-height ratio (WHtR), body fat percentage, fat control, pulse wave velocity, and augmentation index. In healthy subjects, the total score of the life events was not correlated with any cardiovascular or anthropometric factor. A score of depression significantly correlated with the WHtR, augmentation index, body fat percentage, and fat control. The quality of life – visual scale correlated with the body temperature, BP, and percentage of body fat. In the group of the patients with CVD, the score of the life events did not correlate with any measured cardiovascular or anthropometric factor. The level of depression correlated with the augmentation index. The quality of life – visual scale significantly correlated with body temperature, WHtR, and fat control. CONCLUSION: The patients with CVD reported higher scores of life events, worse quality of life, and a greater level of depressive symptoms than healthy controls. In healthy controls, a higher mean total score of life events significantly negatively correlated with high-frequency total power, and the degree of depression correlated with being overweight. In patients with CVD, a score of depression was linked to being overweight.