title: Depression, antidepressants, and long-term mortality in heart failure.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  This study was designed to assess whether depression and the use of antidepressants were related to long-term mortality in heart failure.
  
  
  METHODS
  Heart failure outpatients (n=1017) from a specialized tertiary unit in Spain were prospectively studied for a median follow-up of 5.4 years (IQR 3.1-8.1). Depressive symptoms were assessed using an abbreviated version of the geriatric depression scale. Survival rates during the study period (August 2001 until December 2010) and hazard ratios (HR) for mortality were adjusted by several demographic and clinical variables.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Depressive symptoms were detected in 302 patients (29.7%) at baseline and 222 (21.8%) de novo during follow-up; 304 patients (29.9%) received at least one prescription of antidepressants, mainly selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (92.8%); 441 patients (43.4%) died. In a multivariate Cox proportional hazard model, depression was associated with an increased all-cause (HR, 1.39; 95% CI, 1.15-1.68), but not cardiovascular, mortality risk after adjustment for several demographic and clinical confounders. The use of any antidepressant was not independently associated with mortality (HR, 0.89; 95% CI, 0.71-1.13), but benzodiazepines showed a protective role (HR, 0.70; 95% CI, 0.57-0.87). On the contrary, fluoxetine prescriptions, but not duration of fluoxetine treatment, were associated with increased mortality (HR, 1.66; 95% CI, 1.13-2.44).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Depressive symptoms are associated with long-term mortality, but the use of antidepressants and benzodiazepines is safe regarding survival in HF patients, although further research is needed considering individual antidepressants separately.
authors.affiliation: Heart Failure Unit, Hospital Universitari Germans Trias i Pujol, Ctra Canyet, 08916 Badalona, Spain.
authors.forename: Crisanto
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Diez-Quevedo
authors.forename: Josep
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lupón
authors.forename: Beatriz
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: González
authors.forename: Agustín
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Urrutia
authors.forename: Lucía
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cano
authors.forename: Roser
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Cabanes
authors.forename: Salvador
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Altimir
authors.forename: Ramon
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Coll
authors.forename: Teresa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Pascual
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: de Antonio
authors.forename: Antoni
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bayes-Genis
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000928:Antidepressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003863:Depression / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D015996:Survival Rate / Q000639:trends; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D000928:Antidepressive Agents