Depressed men, not women, face greater risk of heart death

CHICAGO (AP) -- New research gives depressed men something else to lament: They face an increased risk of dying from heart disease.

While previous research has shown that depression in men and women is linked to heart disease, a study published in today's Archives of Internal Medicine found that only men faced an increased risk of heart disease-related death.

The authors analyzed data from 5,007 women and 2,886 men enrolled in a 10-year national health and nutrition survey who initially did not have heart disease. About one-sixth of the women and one-tenth of the men had clinical depression at the outset.

Non-fatal heart disease symptoms occurred in 187 men and 187 women, while 137 women and 129 men died of heart disease-related causes during the study period.