title: Recurrent depression, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes among middle-aged and older adult women.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The goal of this study was to investigate the concurrent and prospective relationships between a history of single and recurrent major depression disorder (MDD) and the medical conditions of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and diabetes using a community sample of middle- and older-aged women.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data from women (n=557 at baseline; mean age=55.7 years) participating in a two-wave longitudinal study (5-year interval) were used to examine associations between single and recurrent MDD, assessed with a structured clinical interview, and three self-report indicators of CVD (heart attack or myocardial infarction, stroke, angina), major CVD risk markers (hypertension, high cholesterol), and diabetes. Analyses were conducted to evaluate hypotheses which proposed that recurrent depression would be significantly associated with the three medical outcomes, but not single episode MDD.
  
  
  RESULTS
  After controlling for a range of important covariates (e.g., BMI, smoking, alcohol use), cross-sectional analyses indicated that recurrent MDD, but not single episode MDD, significantly predicted CVD risk and diabetes. Prospective analyses indicated that recurrent MDD, but not single episode MDD, increased the risk for CVD and diabetes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The sample was a predominantly white, middle-class sample so generalizability of findings may be limited for minorities and men. Reliance on self-report data may have biased the findings.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These findings suggest the benefits of measuring single versus recurrent MDD when investigating the risk of depression on chronic diseases. Findings also suggest the importance of identifying individuals suffering from recurrent MDD early in their lifespan with the goal of preventing future depressive episodes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Behavioral Sciences and Health Education, Emory University, United States. mwindle@emory.edu
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Windle
authors.forename: Rebecca C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Windle
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000453:epidemiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D008913:Minority Groups; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000453:epidemiology; D012008:Recurrence; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology; D020521:Stroke / Q000196:embryology
keywords: CVD; Cholesterol; Depression; Diabetes; Hypertension