Depression Could Increase Risk Factor for A-Fib Strokes

Along with financial obstacles, including higher poverty rates and lack of health insurance, the stigmatization of mental illness and mistrust of the health care system among the African American community could be solid factors when it comes to the correlation between depression, stress, and matters of the heart.

A new study suggests, depression can raise your risk of developing an irregular heart rhythm that’s been linked to stroke and heart failure.

A person’s risk of atrial fibrillation increased by about a third if they either reported symptoms of depression or had been prescribed antidepressants, the investigators found.

Previous research has linked fright and anxiety to poor heart health, but this is the first to make a connection between depression and the heart, said lead researcher Dr. Parveen Garg. He’s an assistant professor of clinical medicine with the University of Southern California’s Keck School of Medicine in Los Angeles.

“Our research emphasizes the link between

Along with financial obstacles, including higher poverty rates and lack of health insurance, the stigmatization of mental illness and mistrust of the health care system among the African American community could be solid factors when it comes to the correlation between depression, stress, and matters of the heart.

A new study suggests, depression can raise your risk of developing an irregular heart rhythm that’s been linked to stroke and heart failure.

A person’s risk of atrial fibrillation increased by about a third if they either reported symptoms of depression or had been prescribed antidepressants, the investigators found.

Previous research has linked fright and anxiety to poor heart health, but this is the first to make a connection between depression and the heart, said lead researcher Dr. Parveen Garg. He’s an assistant professor of clinical medicine with the University of Southern California’s Keck School of Medicine in Los Angeles.

“Our research emphasizes the link between