Patients with major depressive disorder may have significantly high Triglyceride levels and CVD risk: Study

A new study published in the journal of Public Library of Science found that the triglyceride levels of individuals with major depressive disorder (MDD) were markedly higher. Cardiovascular disease is more common in those who are depressed. Young individuals who self-reported feeling melancholy or having bad mental health days had higher rates of strokes, heart attacks, and heart disease risk factors than their counterparts without mental health concerns. According to literature, this can be the case since sadness can promote hazardous lifestyle choices including smoking, consuming alcohol, sleeping less, and not exercising, as well as an increase in blood pressure and heart rate.

Triglycerides are thought to be a risk factor in and of itself for atherosclerosis, which causes myocardial infarction and ischemic stroke. This research hypothesized that there is a substantial change in triglyceride levels in patients with depression when compared to healthy controls. Since a previous study revealed that lipid metabolites might vary between patients with severe depressive disorder and healthy participants. To evaluate peripheral blood triglyceride levels between MDD patients and healthy controls, Di-Ru Xu and team made the decision to carry out a new study.

Until March 2023, the studies were searched in the Cochrane, EMBASE, PsycINFO, and PubMed databases. The standardized mean difference (SMD) was calculated by extracting the mean (±SD) for TG concentrations and combining them quantitatively using random-effects meta-analysis. Meta-regression and subgroup analysis were used to investigate the heterogeneity resource.

38 studies that measured peripheral blood TG concentrations in 3272 HCs and 2604 MDD patients were included. According to the findings of the meta-analysis, the patients with MDD had significantly higher TG levels than HCs. There was evidence of heterogeneity (χ2 = 269.97, p < 0.01, I2 = 85%). Subgroup analysis revealed that there were no differences across groups, although there were significant variations in TG levels between patients with MDD and HCs based on age, body mass index, and medication usage (p < 0.05). Additionally, meta-regression revealed no significant factors. Overall, these results point to the need to measure the possible advantages of a low-triglyceride diet in MDD patients and look into the possible roles of triglycerides in the pathophysiology of depression.

Source:

Xu, D.-R., Gao, X., Zhao, L.-B., Liu, S.-D., Tang, G., Zhou, C.-J., & Chen, Y. (2024). Association between triglyceride and depression: A systematic review and meta-analysis. In Md. R. Islam (Ed.), PLOS ONE (Vol. 19, Issue 10, p. e0311625). Public Library of Science (PLoS). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0311625