Long-term depression ‘can double risk of stroke’

Older people with persistent depression are potentially at a much higher risk of suffering a stroke, according to a new study.

US researchers used data from 16,178 participants aged 50 and older who had been interviewed as part of the Health and Retirement Study about depressive symptoms, history of stroke and stroke risk factors every two years between 1998 and 2010.

People with high depressive symptoms at two consecutive interviews were shown to be more than twice as likely to suffer an initial stroke, while those with depressive symptoms at the first interview but not the second had a 66 percent higher stroke risk.

This indicates that stroke risk remains higher even after the symptoms of depression go away.

Maria Glymour, study senior author and an associate professor of epidemiology and biostatistics at the University of California, San Francisco, said: "We still need research to understand exactly why this link occurs and whether we can potentially reduce stroke risk by treating depression."

Depression is associated with an increased risk of high blood pressure, nervous system abnormalities and increased inflammatory responses, while it may also trigger underlying vascular problems, such as infection or atrial fibrillation.