Increase in mortality after heart surgery in depression

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

Patients on antidepressants had a higher death and rehospitalization rate after heart surgery than those not on the drugs.
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are effective drugs for depression. However, a team at Duke University in the USA now reveals a link between SSRIs and negative outcome after heart surgery. They looked at nearly 5,000 patients having a heart bypass, of whom 5.1 per cent were on SSRIs before surgery.

Four years on, 75 per cent of those on SSRIs were still alive compared to 85 per cent of those not on SSRIs. It is not clear whether it is the SSRIs themselves or the depression that caused the patients to take these drugs contributes to higher mortality in this group. It is already known that depressed patients look after themselves less well - they may not take medication or follow a healthy diet or give up smoking. All these would contribute to a higher death rate. Previous work has shown a link between depression and heart disease. This study suggests that further research is needed, particularly into the way depression is treated in the context of heart disease.

Source
American Psychiatric Association meeting 25th May 2005