Journal article
Establishing the bidirectional relationship between depression and subclinical arteriosclerosis - rationale, design, and characteristics of the BiDirect Study
H Teismann, H Wersching, M Nagel, V Arolt, W Heindel, BT Baune, J Wellmann, HW Hense, K Berger
BMC Psychiatry | BMC | Published : 2014
Abstract
Background: Depression and cardiovascular diseases due to arteriosclerosis are both frequent and impairing conditions. Depression and (subclinical) arteriosclerosis appear to be related in a bidirectional way, and it is plausible to assume a partly joint causal relationship. However, the biological mechanisms and the behavioral pathways that lead from depression to arteriosclerosis and vice versa remain to be exactly determined.Methods/design: This study protocol describes the rationale and design of the prospective BiDirect Study that aims at investigating the mutual relationship between depression and (subclinical) arteriosclerosis. BiDirect is scheduled to follow-up three distinct cohorts..
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Funding Acknowledgements
BiDirect is funded by a research grant (FKZ-01ER0816) from the German Ministry of Research and Education (BMBF). We would like to thank all participants for their interest and engagement. This study could not have been realized without the support of many co-workers. We would like to specifically thank our team of study nurses and data managers for their excellent work and commitment during three years of data collection. We also acknowledge support by Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft and Open Access Publication Fund of the University of Munster.