Heart Monitor (Photo : Reuters)
A recent study shows that stress and depression could lead to increased chances of a heart attack, or even death, for heart disease patients.
Carmela Alcantara, the lead author for the study from the New York City's Columbia University Medical Center, said that adults with heart disease should stay away from depression and stressful situations as it is very harmful to their health.
Over 4,400 people who are at least 45-year-olds with a coronary heart disease have been studied by Alcantara and her team of researchers. The coronary heart disease is the most common form and is due to a plaque buildup in the person's arteries, according to Your Health.
Participants have answered questionnaires related to stress and depression, and have undergone in-home examinations between the years of 2003 and 2007.
The questionnaires made the participants report how often they felt that they were depressed or lonely, or how much they have cried.
The researchers found out that six percent reported they were both stressed and depressed, while 12 percent were stressed, and 14 percent were experiencing depression.
Six years after, more than 1,300 participants have either died or had a heart attack.
Alcantara and her team also found out that 6 percent of the participants that were both depressed and stressed were 48 percent more likely to have a heart attack or die, compared to participants who experienced only one of the risk factors.
A longer period for follow-ups did not affect the risks, according to Web MD.
Alcantara said that exercise, therapy and behavioral treatments might decrease the chances of having a heart attack or dying.
Dr. Gregg Fonarow from the University of California in Los Angeles said that Alcantara's study only indicated that there is an association between the risk factors and the disease, but did not prove a direct relation.
"Depression and stress have previously been found to be associated with the development of heart disease as well as fatal and nonfatal heart attacks and strokes in men and women already suffering from heart disease," Fonarow said.
