Depressed People at Higher Risk of Stroke

Researchers have established in a new meta-analysis – a study analyzing other studies – that people who suffer from depression are at a higher risk of suffering a stroke, or dying as a result of suffering one, than individuals who are not depressed.

This recent investigation covered the conclusions of dozens of other research, looking for broader correlations than any single study can establish. The effort was led by expert An Pan, PhD, who is based at the Harvard University School of Public Health, in Boston.

Their systematic review covered potential links between mild, moderate and major depression and several types and subtypes of strokes. About 28 studies – all published over the past few years – met the requirements the team put forth for inclusion in the meta-analysis.

In total, the previous investigations included 317,540 test subjects. A number of 8,478 cases of strokes were recorded during the follow-up period, which ranged from 2 years in some studies, to as much as 29 years in others.

When the Harvard experts finally began scanning for the link, they immediately noticed that depressed individuals had 45 percent more chances of suffering a stroke (deadly or not) when compared to mentally-healthy peers, PsychCentral reports.

“Stroke is a leading cause of death and permanent disability, with significant economic losses due to functional impairments,” the team writes in a paper accompanying the study. Interestingly enough, depression does not affect patients' risk of developing hemorrhagic stroke.

The mental disorder contributes to a 55 percent increase in sufferers' risk of being killed by a fatal stroke, as well as a 25 percent higher risk of suffering from an ischemic stroke. The reasons why hemorrhagic strokes were unaffected by depression are still unknown.

“Depression is highly prevalent in the general population, and it is estimated that 5.8 percent of men and 9.5 percent of women will experience a depressive episode in a 12-month period. The lifetime incidence of depression has been estimated at more than 16 percent in the general population,” the team explains.

Details of the new investigation were published in the September 21 issue of the esteemed Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). According to statistics, the US general population suffers 106 cases of stroke per 100,000 individuals every single year.

“In conclusion, this meta-analysis provides strong evidence that depression is a significant risk factor for stroke. Given the high prevalence and incidence of depression and stroke in the general population, the observed association between depression and stroke has clinical and public health importance,” the team concludes.