Relation between myocardial infarction, depression, hostility, and death

Objective To examine the independent impact of major depression and hostility on mortality rate at 6 months and 12 months after discharge from the hospital in patients with a myocardial infarction. Method Three hundred thirty-one patients were prospectively evaluated for depression with a modified version of the National Institute of Mental Health Diagnostic Interview Schedule for major depressive episode. The Cook Medley Hostility Scale data were analyzed by χ 2 procedures for nominal and categoric data, and Student t test was used for continuous data types. Results Depression was a significant predictor of death at 12 months ( P = .04) but not at 6 months ( P = .08). Hostility was not found to be a predictor of death at 6 months or 12 months. Conclusions Major depression in patients hospitalized after myocardial infarction is a significant univariable predictor of death at 12 months, although it was not a statistically significant predictor after adjusting for other variables. Hostility is not a predictor of death. Prospective studies are needed to determine the impact of aggressive treatment of depression on post–myocardial infarction survival. (Am Heart J 1999;138:549-54.)