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Ripu D. Jindal, MD; Matcheri S. Keshavan, MD

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

We read with great interest the article by Gehi et al¹ as well as the subsequent letter to the editor by Birkhofer et al.² In the large epidemiological study, no association was detected between depression and heart rate variability (HRV) in patients with stable coronary artery disease.¹ The results were contrary to those of multiple studies of relatively younger populations.

In their reply, Gehi and Whooley addressed the concern expressed by Birkhofer et al² that the results may have been confounded by the younger age of the participants with depression. We would like to highlight 2 other potential confounders. Mulsant et al³ found that 89% of participants in a large study of community-dwelling elderly individuals (mean age, 78.2 years) had significant serum anticholinergic activity. Other studies have shown that anticholinergic activity of medications affects the autonomic system. For instance, antipsychotic agents with . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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RELATED LETTER

Heart Rate Variability and Depression
Andreas Birkhofer, Georg Schmidt, and Hans Förstl
Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2006;63(9):1052.
EXTRACT | FULL TEXT  

RELATED ARTICLE

Depression and Heart Rate Variability in Patients With Stable Coronary Heart Disease: Findings From the Heart and Soul Study
Anil Gehi, Dennis Mangano, Sharon Pipkin, Warren S. Browner, and Mary A. Whooley
Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2005;62(6):661-666.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT