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. 2008 Feb 2:2:333-6.
doi: 10.2147/ppa.s4424.

Brief report: Characteristics of antidepressant use in patients with heart failure

Paul J Mills  1 , Joel E Dimsdale, Suzi Hong, Geoffrey Van Den Brande, Laura Redwine, Barry H Greenberg, Thomas Rutledge
Affiliations

Brief report: Characteristics of antidepressant use in patients with heart failure

Paul J Mills et al. Patient Prefer Adherence. .

Abstract

Background: Depression is common in heart failure (HF), but there is little data on the characteristics of antidepressant use in patients with HF.

Objective: To survey basic information on antidepressant prescription characteristics, use, effectiveness, and follow-up.

Methods: Observational study in two outpatient cardiology clinics of 37 NYHA class I-IV HF patients taking antidepressant medication.

Results: Thirty-one percent of prescriptions for antidepressants were obtained from psychiatrists, 58% from primary care physicians, and 8% from cardiologists. The majority of patients (87%) reported regularly taking their antidepressant medication as prescribed, however 48% reported never having had the dosage of their antidepressant medication adjusted. Only 53% of the patients reported that the medication had helped their mood "almost entirely" or "mostly" back to normal since starting their antidepressants, while the remaining patients reported that their mood was only "halfway" or "somewhat" back to normal or that the medication had not helped their depression at all. Among a subset of 10 patients who completed the Beck Depression (BDI) inventory, 6 still had depressed mood (BDI >/= 10).

Conclusion: The findings from this survey study provide insight into the characteristics of antidepressant use in patients with HF and argue for better follow up of HF patients who are prescribed antidepressants.

Keywords: adherence; antidepressant medication; effectiveness; heart failure.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The figure presents the respective percentages of patients providing one of five possible responses to the question, “Do you think the antidepressant medication has improved your mood?” Patients could respond with either my mood is ‘Almost entirely back to normal’, ‘Mostly back to normal’, ‘Halfway back to normal’, ‘Somewhat back to normal’, or ‘No improvement’. Only slightly more than half of the patients (53.3%) reported a significant improvement in their depression.
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