Depression and heart failure - the incidence of depressive symptoms assessed by the PHQ9 and their association with HF outcomes

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Abstract Background Depression is a prevalent, debilitating, and potentially modifiable comorbidity that affects heart failure (HF) patients and is associated with increased mortality and morbidity. Current HF guidelines recommend addressing depression using questionnaires, including the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), which is a 9-item questionnaire that can be self-administered in less than 3 minutes. Objectives To evaluate the performance of PHQ-9 in a Portuguese cohort of HF patients and present a practical approach for the screening and management of depression in patients with HF. Methods We conducted a prospective study enrolling consecutive patients observed in the HF clinic from June 2022 to August 2022. Patients answered the PHQ-9 before the beginning of the appointment, during which the physician evaluated the results and managed them according to the suggested protocol. – figure 1. We then evaluated the severity of depression by PHQ-9 at baseline and its association with the levels of serum NT-proBNP, the severity of HF symptoms, and the incidence of a composite of all-cause mortality and HF exacerbation at 90-days follow-up. Results A total of 124 patients were observed in the HF consultation and answered PHQ-9: mean age of 74±12,1years, 68% (n=84) male, 82% (n=102) with NYHA I-II, 48% (n=60) with preserved ejection fraction, 23% (n=29) with a previous diagnosis of depression and on antidepressant therapy. After the evaluation of PHQ-9, 52% (n=65), 27% (n=33), 10% (n=12), 8% (n=10) and 3% (n=4) had minimal, mild, moderate, moderately severe, and severe depression symptoms, respectively. In the no previous depression diagnosis group, 49% (n=46) had at least mild depressive symptoms. The presence of depressive symptoms was associated with higher levels of serum NT-proBNP (r=0.31; p<0.001) and worse HF symptoms assessed by the NYHA classification (p<0,001). Patients who met the composite outcomes (death or HF exacerbation) during follow-up had a significantly higher PHQ-9 score (10±7 vs. 5±5; p<0,001). Conclusions This study confirmed the high prevalence of depressive symptoms in this real-world cohort of HF patients and demonstrated that screening for depressive symptoms can be efficiently integrated in the HF consultation. A higher burden of depressive symptoms was associated with higher serum NT-proBNP, more severe symptoms and higher incidence of death or HF admissions.

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