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New Hot Paper Comments

By Brenda W. J. H. Penninx, PhD

ESI Special Topics, May 2003
Citing URL - http://www.esi-topics.com/nhp/2003/may-03-BrendaPenninx.html

Brenda W. J. H. Penninx, PhD answers a few questions about this month's new hot paper in the field of Psychiatry/Psychology.

From •>>May 2003

Field: Psychiatry/Psychology
 Article Title: "Depression and cardiac mortality - Results from a community-based longitudinal study"
 Authors: Penninx, BWJH;Beekman, ATF;Honig, A;Deeg, DJH;Schoevers, RA;van Eijk, JTM;van Tilburg, W
Journal: ARCH GEN PSYCHIAT
Volume: 58
Page: 221-227
Year: MAR 2001
* Wake Forest Univ, Sch Med, Sticht Ctr Aging, Med Ctr Blvd, Winston Salem, NC 27157 USA.
* Vrije Univ Amsterdam, Inst Res Extramural Med, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
* Vrije Univ Amsterdam, Dept Psychiat, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
* Univ Limburg, Acad Hosp Maastricht, Dept Psychiat, Maastricht, Netherlands.
* Univ Maastricht, Dept Med Sociol, Maastricht, Netherlands.

ST:  Why do you think your paper is highly cited?

My paper is highly cited because it gives strong evidence that late-life depression is increasing the risk of cardiovascular mortality.

ST:  Does it describe a new discovery or a new methodology that's useful to others?

The demonstrated link between depression and the onset of cardiovascular mortality should stimulate others to examine the underlying mechanism of this link. Why does depression increase cardiovascular disease risk? More research should be directed at exploring the potential biological and psychosocial pathways that explain the adverse effects of depression, so that we can work on preventing it.

ST:  Could you summarize the significance of your paper in layman's terms?

The study shows that persons who suffer from depressive symptoms or a more severe depression are more likely to die because of cardiovascular mortality than those without depression symptoms. This finding was independent of cardiovascular disease, meaning that it applied to both persons with and without some signs of cardiovascular disease.

ST:  How did you become involved in this research?

I have been working in the area of late-life depression for about 10 years now. I am intrigued in the link between psychological problems and somatic health, since it appears to be such a strong link for which we don't have all the explanations yet.End

Brenda Penninx, Ph.D.
Wake Forest University, School of Medicine
The J. Paul Sticht Center on Aging and Rehabilitation
Winston Salem, NC, USA

ESI Special Topics, May 2003
Citing URL - http://www.esi-topics.com/nhp/2003/may-03-BrendaPenninx.html

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