A new study suggests Depression increases the risk of dying from a stroke.

Researchers found men with the most depressive symptoms were twice as likely to die of a stroke compared to those reporting the fewest number of symptoms. The finding held true even after researchers adjusted the results to take other factors into account that could have impacted stroke risk.

Men with lower rates of Depression were also affected, with increased stroke risks ranging from about 25 percent to about 75 percent.

But, does Depression cause strokes, or is it the other way around? The investigators admit they don’t really know, but believe small, undiagnosed strokes could be the real culprit. “That is a real possibility,” says study author Brooks B. Gump, Ph.D., MPH, “because silent strokes, by definition, are not detected clinically, but might well produce Depression and predict fatal stroke later because having one stroke increases the risks of having another.”

The study was conducted by Gump and his colleagues at the State University of New York in Oswego and involved nearly 12,900 men who were in their mid-40s at the beginning of the research. None of the men had heart disease at the outset of the study but were considered to be at above-average risk for developing the condition.

After six years of the study, all completed a questionnaire aimed at measuring Depression. Investigators then followed the men for another 19 years, tracking morbidity and mortality rates.

The researchers believe their findings suggest a need for doctors to discuss Depression with patients at risk for cardiovascular disease and implement the corresponding psychosocial interventions as part of the medical management.

SOURCE: To be published in an upcoming issue of Stroke