title: Depressive mood after a cardiac event: gender inequality and participation in rehabilitation programme.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Depressive mood after a cardiac event is common with serious consequences for the patient.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To compare gender in depressive mood during the first year after a cardiac event and to evaluate the effect of participating in a multidimensional secondary prevention program on depressive mood.
  
  
  METHODS
  166 men and 54 women, <73 years, consecutively answered a questionnaire concerning depressive mood at 2 weeks, 6 weeks, 5 months and 1 year after discharge after a cardiac event. At 2 weeks, each patient met a nurse, and was informed about the disease and received individual support about lifestyle changes. Of those invited to participate in a secondary prevention program, 127 patients accepted, and 93 declined participation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  At each of the four follow-ups, women had significantly higher depression scores than men. Depressive mood in both women and men was significantly reduced at 6 weeks. Thereafter, it increased to the 2-week level in women and to above the 2-week level in men. No differences were seen in patients participating or not in secondary prevention programs.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Women had higher depressive mood scores than men and secondary prevention programs failed to improve depressive mood in both women and men.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Heart Center, University Hospital, SE-90185 Umeå, Sweden. signild.norrman@vll.se
authors.forename: Signild
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Norrman
authors.forename: Birgitta
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Stegmayr
authors.forename: Marie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Eriksson
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Hedbäck
authors.forename: Gunilla
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Burell
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Brulin
mesh_terms: D015906:Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D017678:Sex Distribution; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology