News - Hypertension Week of May 4, 2003/ Vol. 2 No. 18

Study: Depression May Cause Hypertensives to Skip Medication

Hypertensives with depression are six times more likely to not take their blood pressure medications than those without depression, according to a study reported April 28 at the scientific meeting of the Inter-American Society of Hypertension in San Antonio.

Study author Alberto F. Rubio-Guerra, M.D., an internist and associate investigator in the hypertension clinic at the Hospital General de Ticoman in Mexico City, said the findings suggest that all hypertensive patients should be screened for depression since the two conditions often coexist.

Guerra said future studies should examine depression in larger populations of hypertensive patients to determine if therapy for depression can improve blood pressure control. This particular study involved only 31 participants.

Several recent studies have suggested that hormonal changes in the brains of depressed patients may increase blood pressure.

"What is different about our study is we looked not only at whether both diseases cluster in patients, but also if their simultaneous occurrence affects blood pressure control," Rubio-Guerra says. "Screening for depression in hypertensive patients may be an easy and cost-effective tool to improve outcomes."

Other sources: American Heart Association