The association between depression, anxiety, and heart disease in males: a longitudinal study

Depression, anxiety, and heart disease are prevalent conditions that contribute a significant burden to Australian males. While depression is well researched in relation to heart disease, the association with anxiety is less understood, particularly in males. Thus, the purpose of this study was to explore whether depression and/or anxiety contributed to the onset of heart disease, and whether heart disease contributed to the onset of depression and/or anxiety. The sample used longitudinal data collected from Australian males in 2014 and 2016. Analyses were conducted using firth’s penalized logistic regression model and adjusted for covariates. Results showed that depression alone, and co-occurring depression and anxiety significantly increased a person’s risk of developing new onset heart disease. Results also found that heart disease did not significantly increase a person’s risk of new onset depression or anxiety over a two-year period. These findings have important implications for our theoretical understanding of the association between depression, anxiety, and heart disease among males. Mental health is an important consideration when assessing heart disease risk among males.