156. The relation between depression symptoms and cardiovascular disease associated inflammatory markers varies across race, sex, and poverty status

Abstract

Depression is a well-established risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). We examined relations of depressive symptoms to CVD- related inflammatory biomarkers as a function of sociodemographic characteristics. Participants were 2459 African Americans and Whites (average age = 48, 56.5% female) enrolled in the Healthy Aging in Neighborhoods of Diversity across the Lifespan (HANDLS) study who completed the Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale (CES-D), subscales of negative affect (NA), positive affect (PA), somatic complaints (SC), and interpersonal problems (IP). Inflammatory biomarkers included C-reactive protein (CRP), white blood cell count (WBC), and neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio. Sex stratified multiple regressions examined relations between CES-D subscales (analyzed separately), interactions of CES-D subscales with race and/or poverty status, and inflammatory biomarkers. Covariates included age, CVD diagnosis, smoking status, and BMI. Results revealed significant interactions of IP, race, and poverty status for WBC count in women ( p p