Depression and cardiac mortality - Coursework Example

Depression and Cardiac Morbidity and Mortality Depression is one of the tragic and deadly illnesses ever thought by any human being. For that reason, this paper will investigate the contribution of depression diseases in cardiac morbidity and mortality in patients. The paper will also investigate processes or step that can lead to treatment of depression in order to reduce cardiac morbidity and mortality. Depression has been one of the suppressive illnesses that have resulted to development of other chronic diseases and eventual death of millions of patients across the globe.

Depression in has dire effects on the neural system of human beings and even in the physiological processes that sustain the life of a human being. Depression also leads to unstained effects on the blood circulatory system with the greatest target organ being the heart. Upon affecting the heart, depression affects the functionality of the cardiac system thus leading to possible morbidity and mortality of the cardiac system. One fact worth noting is that depression itself does not affect individuals’ health in isolation but first creates a path for development and occurrence of other chronic diseases that work hand in hand with depression to ensure death affected persons.

According to Berkman, Leo-Summers and Horowitz (1992), depression has the potential of causing hypertension, especially where it suppresses the normal functioning of the heart. It is due to extreme effects of depression that an individual patient will resort to smoking and eventually get addicted. The nicotine obtained from cigarettes has the effect of increasing blood pressure, which if repeated for long time may weaken cardiac muscles, making them ineffective in sustaining the contraction and relaxation of the heart.

This hinders the pumping blood to body cells and may eventually cause cardiac mortality. Depression also makes individuals feel less motivated and therefore will stay for long periods without exercising. Depression is also associated with the development of diabetes among patients (Anda, Williamson, Jones, Macera et al., 1993). The collective effects of reduced physical exercise leads to accumulation of cholesterol, which have eventual effects of blocking blood vessels thereby reducing blood supply in the heart.

Low capacity of blood supplied into the heart strains the heart as it strives to pump the little blood to satisfy all other parts of the body. The straining effect of the heart thus leads to exhaustion of the cardiac muscles and eventual mortality. To be particular, diabetes in the view of Carney, Miller, Freedland and Jaffe (2002), carries along the risks of developing atherosclerosis, which is characterized by the hardening and constriction of the arteries thus the low blood supply into the other parts of the body.

Seymour and Benning (2012) assert that depression facilitates the development of diseases such as ischemic heart disease, myocardial and heart failure, all which lead to eventual dysfunction of the heart. Failure of the heart in performing its core functions leads to deregulation of the autonomic nervous system that works to lower baroreceptor sensitivity of the cardiac muscles, thus the morbidity and mortality of the cardiac system. Depression also works to result into impairment of the platelet functions, which leads to depressed heart functions and longitudinal imbalances in the autonomic tone.

The imbalanced autonomic impedes the body immune system and reduces resistance of insulin. These effects collectively lead to increased blood pressure and production of steroids that raise the risks of developing cardiac diseases (Brenda et al. 2001).In the move to treat depression and reduce cardiac morbidity and mortality, Kamphus et al (2006) recommend increased consumption of fish. Fish with reference to Kamphus et al (2006) contains nutritious n-3 fatty acids (FAs), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenic acid (EPA).

The combination of the omega 3 oils obtained from fish has functions of activating the neuron system to ensure reduction in the levels of depression thus low cardiac morbidity and mortality. Reduction in depression levels occasioned by consumption of omega 3 oils leads to healing of the cardiovascular disease and the eventual dysfunction of the blood vessels responsible for cardiac morbidity and mortality.In conclusion, depression has great influence in the morbidity and mortality of cardiac system.

The main effect of depression is to propel patients into other risk practices that contribute to the dysfunction of the heart and the neuron system. Depression leads to accumulation of cholesterol in the body due to the lack of physical exercise. Excess cholesterol leads to blockage of blood vessels thus poor supply of blood into the heart. This entirely leads to straining of the heart in effort to ensure fair blood supply to the parts of the body, thereby wakening and eventually killing the cardiac muscles.

However, cardiac morbidity and mortality reduces when patients suffering from depression start consuming fish, to enrich themselves with omega 3 oils that correct all the causative agents of depression. ReferencesAnda, R., Williamson, D., Jones, D., Macera, C., et al. (1993). Depressed effect, hopelessness, and risk of ischemic heart disease in a cohort of U.S. adults. Epidemiology, 4:285-94.Berkman, L.F., Leo-Summers, L., & Horowitz, R.I., (1992). Emotional support and survival after myocardial infarction: a prospective population-based study of the elderly.

Annals of Internal Medicine, 117:1003-9.Brenda, P. et al. (2001). Depression and Cardiac Mortality: Results from a Community-Based Longitudinal Study. Retrieved January 10, 2012 from: http://archpsyc.ama-assn.org/cgi/reprint/58/3/221.pdfKamphus, M. et al. (2006). Depression and cardiovascular mortality: a role for n–3 fatty acids? American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Vol. 84 (6), p 1513-1517.Seymour, J. & Benning, T. (2012). Depression, cardiac mortality and all-cause mortality. Retrieved January 10, 2012 from: http://apt.rcpsych.org/content/15/2/107.full