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Location: Indiana, United States

I became a Professor Emeritus after serving 29 years as a recreational therapy faculty member at Indiana University. I'm a long-time Hoosier, having grown up in Hanover, Indiana. My RT practitioner work was in psych/mental health. After completing my Ph.D. at the University of Illinois, my first faculty position was at the University of North Texas. RT has been a wonderful profession for me as I have had the opportunity to serve as an author and national leader.

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Deeper Depression Diminishes Outcomes in HF

I just read an account of the research reported below on depression and patients with heart failure. It made me wonder if any RTs have been involved with the treatment of heart patients with depression -- and, if so, if these RTs have seen positive results in thier patients.

Here is the account of the research:
Andrew Sherwood, MD, of Duke University, and colleagues reported in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology that there is a high prevalence of clinically significant depression in patients with heart failure.

Heart failure patients whose depression worsens over time are more likely to have poorer outcomes, these researchers say.

Sherwood's study suggests that worsening of depression during the course of one year in patients with heart failure was associated with increased risk of cardiovascular hospitalization or mortality.

Those who had bigger changes in depression scores were more than twice as likely to have adverse cardiovascular outcomes, regardless of disease severity (P=0.002),

It seems to me that RTs might well have a place in the treatment of heart patients with depression. I hope some RTs have experience in this area and can comment.

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