The Association Between Depressive Symptoms and N-Terminal Pro-B-Type Natriuretic Peptide With Functional Status in Patients With Heart Failure.
Zyad T Saleh, Jia-Rong Wu, Ibrahim Salami and 2 others
PMID 29438191WHAT IT FOUND
Depressive symptoms were linked to worse self-reported function regardless of NT-proBNP level in 284 heart failure patients.
The two groups with depressive symptoms did not differ in function by NT-proBNP.
Key findings
01Patients without depressive symptoms were more likely to have better self-reported functional status than patients with depressive symptoms, regardless of NT-proBNP level.
02Patients with low NT-proBNP levels and no depressive symptoms were nearly 2.9 times more likely, and patients with high NT-proBNP levels and no depressive symptoms were nearly 2.4 times more likely, to have better functional status scores than patients with high NT-proBNP levels and depressive symptoms.
03There was no significant difference in functional status likelihood between the two groups with depressive symptoms.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study was cross-sectional, so it cannot show that depressive symptoms caused worse function or that treating them would improve function. Most patients were Caucasian males, so the results may not apply to other heart failure populations. NT-proBNP was measured only once and does not reflect long-term cardiac function. Some groups were small after splitting patients by NT-proBNP level and depressive symptoms. Functional status was self-reported, so patients' perception of symptoms may influence the scores.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest. The work is listed as supported by NIH extramural funding.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that treating depressive symptoms will improve functional status. This was a cross-sectional association study, not a treatment trial.