Abstract P136: The Association Between Depressive Symptoms and Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors Among West African Immigrants in the African Immigrant Health Study

Abstract

Introduction: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death globally and in the US. Blacks have a higher burden of CVD compared to other racial/ethnic groups. However, Blacks are not monolithic and include both foreign-born and US-born individuals. West African immigrants (WAIs)—a sub-group of US Blacks—are a growing immigrant population. It is unknown whether depressive symptoms are associated with CVD risk factors among WAIs. Hypothesis: We hypothesized that depressive symptoms will be associated with having ≥2 CVD risk factors among WAIs. Methods: We included WAIs born in Ghana, Nigeria, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Cameroon who participated in the African Immigrant Health Study in Baltimore-Washington D.C. The main predictor was depression scores on the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-8). The main outcome variable was CVD risk defined as having ≥2 risk factors, including body mass index, self-reported diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia. Multivariable logistic regression was used to examine the association between depressive symptoms and CVD risk adjusting for age, sex, household income, marital status, and level of education. Results: A total of 326 WAIs were included. The mean age (±SD) was 46 (±10.6) years. Females made up approximately 60% of the sample (n=194). Approximately half of participants reported residing in the US for ≥10 years. Also, 31% were diagnosed with hypertension, 88% were overweight/obese, 20% were diagnosed with high cholesterol and 13% were diagnosed with diabetes. Overall, 41% of participants (n=133) had ≥2 CVD risk factors and 7% (n=22) had moderate/severe depression (PHQ-8 scores ≥10). WAIs who had mild to severe depression were 2.31 (95%CI: 1.2-4.4) times more likely to have ≥2 CVD risk factors compared to those without reported minimal depression levels in the adjusted analyses. Conclusion: We observed a positive association between symptoms of depression and CVD risk factors. WAIs with elevated symptoms of depression had a higher likelihood of having ≥2 CVD risk factors than those reporting minimal depressive symptomology. Targeted behavioral health interventions are needed to help address psychosocial determinants of cardiovascular health among WAIs residing in the US.