Association Between Depressive Symptoms and Cardiac Structure and Function in a Peruvian Population

Depressive disorders are a leading cause of disability and are globally pervasive. It is estimated that 80% of depression occurs in low-income and middle-income countries. Depression is associated with worse outcomes in patients with cardiac disease including heart failure (HF); however, mechanistic understanding to explain heightened risk in HF remains poorly characterized. We examined the association between depressive symptoms and cardiac structure and function by transthoracic echocardiography. We selected a random sample of adult participants in Puno and Pampas de San Juan de Miraflores, Peru, from the CRONICAS cohort study. Depression symptoms were self-reported and measured with the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale in 2010. Participants underwent transthoracic echocardiography in 2014. Multivariable linear regression was used to examine the relationship between depressive symptoms and echocardiographic measures of cardiac structure and function and was adjusted for relevant covariates. Three hundred and seventy-three participants (mean age 56.7 years, 57% female) were included in this analysis of which 91 participants (24%) had clinically significant depressive symptoms. After adjustment, clinically significant depressive symptoms were associated with a reduced diastolic relaxation velocity compared to non-depressed subjects (–0.72 cm/s, 95% CI –1.21 to –0.24, p = 0.004). Other differences between depressed and non- depressed participants were less obvious. In conclusion, clinically significant depressive symptoms were associated with a lower septal e’ velocity in the Peruvian population. Depressive symptoms were not obviously associated with other abnormalities in cardiac structure or function.