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Depression predicts failure to complete phase-II cardiac rehabilitation

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Abstract

Reduced adherence to medical treatment regimens may help to explain the higher risk of mortality among depressed cardiac patients. Participation in cardiac rehabilitation is a highly recommended part of the medical treatment regimen for cardiac patients. This study examined if elevated depressive symptomology, as measured by the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), predicted failure to complete a 12-week phase II cardiac rehabilitation program for 600 patients. Logistic regression analysis showed that patients with elevated levels of depressive symptomology (BDI scores ≥ 10) were 2.2 times less likely to complete cardiac rehabilitation compared to patients without depression (BDI < 10), after controlling for age, gender, body mass index, and employment. Somatic symptoms predicted non-completion due to medical reasons, whereas younger age predicted failure to complete cardiac rehabilitation due to non-medical reasons. Given the difficulty of reducing mortality by treating depression directly, interventions targeting behavior change to improve medical treatment adherence might be an effective complementary strategy.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Kent State University, P.O. Box 5190, Kent, OH, 44242, USA

    Elizabeth Casey & Joel W. Hughes

  2. Summa Health System, Akron, OH, USA

    Joel W. Hughes, Donna Waechter, Richard Josephson & James Rosneck

  3. Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Richard Josephson

Authors
  1. Elizabeth Casey
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  2. Joel W. Hughes
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  3. Donna Waechter
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  4. Richard Josephson
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  5. James Rosneck
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Correspondence to Joel W. Hughes.

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Casey, E., Hughes, J.W., Waechter, D. et al. Depression predicts failure to complete phase-II cardiac rehabilitation. J Behav Med 31, 421–431 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10865-008-9168-1

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