Individual and joint effects of diabetes and depression on incident cardiovascular diseases and all-cause mortality: Results from a population-based cohort study

Aims: 

To assess the individual and joint effects of diabetes and depression on all-cause mortality and cardiovascular disease (CVD) in the middle-aged and elderly Chinese populations. 

Methods: 

9105 individuals without CVD from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) were included and followed up for 9 years. Participants were divided into four comparative groups: diabetes alone, depression alone, both conditions, and neither condition. Multivariate binary logistic regression models were performed to compare the risks of all-cause mortality and CVD among the four groups. 

Results: 

When compared to those without diabetes and depression, the multivariate adjusted odds ratios (aORs) for CVD in individuals who had diabetes only, depression only, and both diabetes and depression were 1.245 (95 % CI 1.023 to 1.515), 1.318 (95 % CI 1.171 to 1.485) and 1.722 (95 % CI 1.361 to 2.178), respectively. The aORs for all-cause mortality were 1.366 (95 % CI 1.035–1.804) for diabetes alone, 1.082 (95 % CI 0.916–1.279) for depression alone, and 1.590 (95 % CI 1.152–2.195) for both conditions when compared with those with neither condition. 

Conclusions: 

Individuals with both diabetes and depression had greater risk of CVD and all-cause mortality when compared to those with diabetes or depression alone, or those without either condition.