Sex Differences in the Association Between Depression and Incident Cardiovascular Disease
Keitaro Senoo, Hidehiro Kaneko, Kensuke Ueno, Yuta Suzuki, Akira Okada, Katsuhito Fujiu, Taisuke Jo, Norifumi Takeda, Hiroyuki Morita, Kentaro Kamiya, Junya Ako, Koichi Node, Hideo Yasunaga, Issei Komuro
Abstract
Background: Depression is a known risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD), but the potential sex differences in this association remain unclear. Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the association between depression and subsequent CVD events, and to explore potential sex differences. Methods: The authors conducted a retrospective analysis using the JMDC Claims Database between 2005 and 2022. The study population included 4,125,720 individuals aged 18 to 75 years without a history of cardiovascular disease or renal failure and missing data at baseline. Participants were followed up for a mean of 1,288 days to assess the association between depression and subsequent CVD events, such as myocardial infarction, angina pectoris, stroke, heart failure, and atrial fibrillation. Results: for interaction <0.001). Furthermore, the individual components of the composite endpoint were also associated with depression in both men and women, each of which was also observed to be more strongly associated in women. Conclusions: Our study provides evidence of a significant association between depression and subsequent CVD events in both men and women, with a more pronounced association observed in women. These findings highlight the importance of addressing depression and tailoring prevention and management strategies according to sex-specific factors.