Cited by 955Cardiac Health and Mental HealthHeart Rate Variability and Autonomic ControlCardiovascular Health and Risk Factors

State of the art review: depression, stress, anxiety, and cardiovascular disease

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Cohen, Beth E., Edmondson, Donald, Kronish, Ian M.·2015·American Journal of Hypertension

Abstract

The notion that psychological states can influence physical health is hardly new, and perhaps nowhere has the mind-body connection been better studied than in cardiovascular disease (CVD). Recently, large prospective epidemiologic studies and smaller basic science studies have firmly established a connection between CVD and several psychological conditions, including depression, chronic psychological stress, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and anxiety. In addition, numerous clinical trials have been conducted to attempt to prevent or lessen the impact of these conditions on cardiovascular health. In this article, we review studies connecting depression, stress/PTSD, and anxiety to CVD, focusing on findings from the last 5 years. For each mental health condition, we first examine the epidemiologic evidence establishing a link with CVD. We then describe studies of potential underlying mechanisms and finally discuss treatment trials and directions for future research.

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Crossref · 10.1093/ajh/hpv047

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  • Negative psychological health, including depression, anxiety, and stress, is associated with smoking, lower levels of physical activity, poorer diet quality, and being overweight or obese.

    “As described earlier, negative psychological health, including depression, anxiety, and stress, is associated with smoking, lower levels of physical activity, poorer diet quality, and being overweight or obese. 25,95”

    From Psychological Health, Well-Being, and the Mind-Heart-Body Connection: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association (2021) · cites this paper as [95]

    The Discussion (page unavailable) associates depression, stress, and anxiety with unhealthy lifestyle behaviors and names smoking, poor diet, and a sedentary lifestyle. The Potential mechanisms section also links anxiety to smoking, lower physical activity, and poor diet. The retrieved passages do not support the additional association with being overweight or obese. (LLM, conf=0.87)

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  • Depression is an established prognostic risk factor for cardiovascular disease, whereas anxiety is not.

    “Depression is an established prognostic risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD), which is not the case for anxiety. 1”

    From The effects of internet-based cognitive behaviour therapy for depression in cardiovascular disease on symptoms of anxiety: a secondary analysis of a randomized trial. (2024) · cites this paper as [1]

    The Abstract and Discussion report strong evidence for depression as a prognostic risk factor, particularly after acute coronary syndrome. The Epidemiology section describes evidence on anxiety and adverse outcomes as mixed, supporting a distinction in certainty. But the Discussion also says European guidelines identify anxiety as a risk factor for adverse outcomes in patients with existing CVD, so the categorical contrast overstates the review. (LLM, conf=0.84)

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  • Most forms of psychological distress lead to activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, resulting in dysregulation of the autonomic nervous system and downstream effects that can increase the risk of developing cardiovascular disease.

    “Most forms of psychological distress (eg, anger, anxiety, depression, PTSD) lead to activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, resulting in dysregulation of the autonomic nervous system and a cascade of downstream effects that can increase the risk of developing CVD. 95,101”

    From Psychological Health, Well-Being, and the Mind-Heart-Body Connection: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association (2021) · cites this paper as [95]

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  • Although some pathways are shared across negative and positive psychological factors, specific manifestations of psychological health may have distinct biobehavioral effects.

    “Although some pathways are shared across negative and positive psychological factors, 11,53,77,94,95 specific manifestations of psychological health may also have distinct biobehavioral effects. 96”

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Authors
Cohen, B. E., Edmondson, D., & Kronish, I. M.
Affiliations
  • San Francisco VA Medical Center (US)
  • Columbia University Irving Medical Center (US)
Venue
American Journal of Hypertension
Published
2015-04-24
Volume
28
Issue
11
Pages
1295-1302
ISSN
  • 0895-7061 (ISSN-L)
  • 1941-7225
OpenAlex
W2017141822
Cited by
955
References
97
Citations by year
2026: 51 · 2025: 93 · 2024: 99 · 2023: 150 · 2022: 128 · 2021: 128 · 2020: 115 · 2019: 72 · 2018: 67 · 2017: 27 · 2016: 22 · 2015: 3
FWCI
6.81
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
public-domain
Locations
  • American Journal of Hypertension (publishedVersion, public-domain)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, public-domain)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, public-domain)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • eScholarship (California Digital Library) (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • American Heart Association (UL1 TR000040)
  • National Institutes of Health (UL1TR000040)
  • National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (K23HL094765, HL117832, K23HL098359, R01HL117832)
  • National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (TR000040)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine › Cardiac Health and Mental Health
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine › Heart Rate Variability and Autonomic Control
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine › Cardiovascular Health and Risk Factors
Keywords
depression, psychological stress, post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, cardiovascular disease, mind-body problem, psychocardiology, cardiovascular risk factors
MeSH terms
Anxiety, Cardiovascular Diseases, Depression, Humans, Psychological Techniques, Psychotropic Drugs, Risk Factors, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, Stress, Psychological, Comorbidity

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