Medizinische Universität Graz Austria/Österreich - Forschungsportal - Medical University of Graz
Gewählte Publikation:
Hinterbuchner, K.
The Association of Cardiovascular Risk Factors and Depression of an adult Population in Austria: Implications from the “BioPersMed” Study for Nursing Research and Practice
Masterstudium; Pflegewissenschaft; [ Masterarbeit ] Medizinische Universität Graz; 2021. pp. 71
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- Autor*innen der Med Uni Graz:
- Betreuer*innen:
- Großschädl Franziska
- Lohrmann Christa
- Altmetrics:
- Abstract:
- Introduction: Cardiovascular disease (CVD), which is substantially preventable, and depression often coincide and are considered major health issues with the most common causes of disability. Depression has been recognized as a cardiovascular risk factor. There are differences in prevalence of CVD risk factors and CVD care and prevention in Europe. Therefore, it is vital to identify where the focus of CVD prevention should be placed, to implement specific country-based programs to reduce the CVD burden, especially for people with depression. It is assumed that there is no study in Austria that has examined the association between depression and cardiovascular risk factors. The aim of this study is to investigate the association between common cardiovascular risk factors hypertension, body mass index (BMI), and smoking with the severity of depression in an adult Austrian population. The second aim was to identify sex-related differences. Method: This current thesis is a cross-sectional study examining the baseline data of the population from the K-Project/BioPersMed (The Biomarkers of Personalized Medicine) project in Graz, Austria. The initial non-probability recruitment started in the City of Graz between 2011 and 2015, resulting in a study population of 1,022 adult men and women who lived in the greater Graz area. Three CVD risk factors were examined for this paper and assessed by trained doctors and nurses at baseline: self-reported diagnosis of hypertension, self-reported smoking status, and BMI (kg/m²) by measuring the height and weight of each participant. The PHQ-9 (Patient Health Questionnaire) was analyzed by recording the total score value into three groups. Descriptive statistics, statistical correlation analysis, and an ordinal regression analysis was performed. Results: 977 participants were included in the data analysis, with a mean age of 57.3 years, and more than half of the participants (56%) were female. Results show a significant association between hypertension and the severity of depression (p<0.01) and between males and all three cardiovascular risk factors, and between females and overweight. People with hypertension and elevated BMI, adjusted for age, sex, diagnosis of depression, and smoking were more likely to fall into a higher level of depression (BMI: increase of 0.033 in the log odds, p<0.5; hypertension: increase of 0.339 in the log odds, p<0.01). Moreover, men were more likely to fall into a lower level of depression than women (decrease of 0.435in the log odds, p<0.5) Conclusion: This is the first cross-sectional study to examine the association between cardiovascular risk factors and the severity of depression in an adult Austrian population. Further research where causality can be applied and longitudinal analyses in a larger sample size where generalizability is given are recommended to thoroughly examine and confirm these findings. The importance of nurses in CVD prevention is evident; therefore, a focus should be on enhancing resources, programs, and tools to support nursing CVD interventions by serving an agenda for nursing researchers, funding agencies, and politics with orientation and priorities in cardiovascular nursing. The results are an indication for CVD prevention programs in Austria to incorporate specific screening (CVD and Depression) and management on cardiovascular risk factors in their protocols and readapt them according to depression severity.