Abstract P230: Antidepressant Use and Incident Heart Failure among Veterans with and without HIV Infection and Major Depressive Disorder

Depression is associated with an increased risk of heart failure (HF) among HIV infected (HIV+) and uninfected (HIV-) veterans. Antidepressants are commonly prescribed to mitigate psychosocial symptoms related to major depressive disorder (MDD). The purpose of this study was to determine whether antidepressant use was associated with lower HF risk among a large cohort of HIV+ and HIV- veterans with MDD. We analyzed data on 13,849 veterans (36.5% HIV+) from the Veterans Aging Cohort Study (VACS), a prospective study of HIV+ and matched HIV- veterans who had a diagnosis of MDD (ICD-9 codes 296.2x & 296.3x) and were free of cardiovascular disease (CVD) at baseline. Antidepressant use was defined as documentation of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRIs), tricyclic antidepressant (TCAs), and non-SSRI, non-TCA antidepressant use from the VA pharmacy records during the baseline period (1998 - 2003). Incident HF was identified using ICD-9 codes and defined as first HF event on or after 4/1/2003 until 12/...