Gender differences in the relationship between symptoms of depression and high-sensitivity CRP

Abstract

Background Depression has been associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). The inflammatory marker C-reactive protein (CRP) has also been identified as an independent predictor of short- and long-term CVD events. Inflammation may influence the relationship between depression and CVD. Objective The objective of this study was to investigate the association between symptoms of depression and high-sensitivity CRP (hs-CRP) in an obese clinical population. We also sought to determine whether this relationship was different in men and women, given prior reports of a gender effect. Methods Symptoms of depression and hs-CRP were measured in 390 participants enrolled in a weight loss intervention trial that was delivered in a primary care setting. Symptoms of depression were evaluated with the Patient Health Questionnaire-8 (PHQ-8), in which a score > 10 is consistent with major depression. Results A total of 58 (15.2%) participants reported a PHQ-8 score ≥ 10. The median (interquartile range) hs-CRP concentration was significantly higher in participants with symptoms consistent with major depression [7.7 (4.2–13) mg/L] compared to those without depression [5.1 (3–9.7) mg/L; p<0.01]. Symptoms consistent with major depression were significantly associated with log-transformed hs-CRP concentrations in an analysis adjusted for age, gender, obesity class, and other metabolic variables (p=0.04). When interaction by gender was examined, this relationship remained significant in men (p<0.01) but not in women (p=0.32). Conclusions Symptoms consistent with major depression were significantly associated with hs-CRP in men only, even after adjusting for age, obesity class, metabolic variables, and medications known to affect inflammation. This finding suggests that there are biologic differences between men and women that may modify the relationship between hs-CRP and depression. Further studies are needed to elucidate the biologic basis for these findings.

Serum and synovial fluid C-reactive protein level variations in dogs with degenerative joint disease and their relationships with physiological parameters

“…According to our results, the SFCRP mean in the DJDG was 2.22 ± 0.59 mg/l with a minimum of 1 mg/l and maximum of 3.55 mg/ml, and although with no statistically significant differences observed between the SFCRP values and gender, the SFCRP values were always higher in females than in males. These findings are similar to what is described for human (Vetter et al 2013), and may be directly related to the fact that CRP levels are influenced by body distribution and the amount of adipose tissue. Quantities of body fat are greater in the subcutaneous region than the viscera for females and the opposite occurs in males (Castracane and Henson 2006).…”

The longitudinal association between inflammation and incident depressive symptoms in men: The effects of hs-CRP are independent of abdominal obesity and metabolic disturbances

“…Though the findings are in line with prior studies implicating cardiometabolic and inflammatory biomarkers in depression [17,20,39] a discrete finding was the relationship between annualized ΔhsCRP, and to a lesser extent baseline hsCRP, with five-year depressive symptoms in persons with waist circumference b 102 cm and with ≤ 1 metabolic disturbance. The general absence of association between TNF-α and IL-6 with incident depressive symptoms contrasts to several longitudinal studies [25,40,41], while is in line with others [42,43], reflecting the lack of consensus in this area.…”

Association between C reactive protein level and depressive symptoms in an elderly Korean population: Korean Social Life, Health and Aging Project

“…In an obese clinical population, depressive symptoms were significantly associated with CRP in men only, even after adjusting for age, obesity, metabolic variables and medications known to affect inflammation. This finding suggests that there are biological differences between men and women that may modify the relationship between CRP levels and depression 28. In the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III), depression and elevated CRP levels were more common in women than in men, but the association between CRP levels and depression was significant only in men 29.…”