Causal Link Found Between Heart Disease and Depression

A UCLA imaging study shows heart failure patients with depression have significant loss of brain tissue in areas that regulate the autonomic nervous system, the same area of the brain that shows changes in people with major depression. The tissue damage interferes with the ability of the cardiovascular system to respond quickly to changes in blood pressure and heart rate, which may explain the depression link. See Heart Failure Patients Show Depression-Linked Brain Injury.