Antidepressants Boost Heart Patients' Death Risk

[Guest guest]

http://www.forbes.com/lifestyle/health/feeds/hscout/2006/03/04/hscout5

31382.html

Antidepressants Boost Heart Patients' Death Risk

03.04.06, 12:00 AM ET

SATURDAY, March 4 (HealthDay News) -- Men and women with coronary

artery disease who take antidepressants appear to be at a higher risk

of dying, surprising new research suggests.

There was no ready explanation for the finding, which contradicts

previous studies.

" This was an unexpected finding, " said study co-author

Blumenthal, a professor of medical psychology at Duke University

Medical Center. " There is no obvious explanation. "

But, he added, " it is improper to conclude that antidepressants

caused the patients to die. "

" It contradicts what we were hoping, " added Dr. Nieca Goldberg, chief

of women's cardiac care at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City and a

spokeswoman for the American Heart Association. " But we can't prove

it one way or the other. "

The research, presented Saturday at the American Psychosomatic

Society meeting in Denver, showed that, even after adjusting for a

variety of factors, the researchers found heart patients taking

antidepressants had a 55 percent higher risk of dying than those not

taking antidepressants. There was no statistical significant

difference between those taking selective serotonin reuptake

inhibitors (SSRIs) and those taking other types of antidepressants.

(continued at link)