Preliminary Investigation on the Association between Depressive Symptoms and Driving Performance in Heart Failure

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Neuropsychology
• Gerontology

Background:

• Heart failure (HF) patients exhibit cognitive dysfunction, impacting driving ability.
• Depression is prevalent in HF, associated with cognitive deficits and reduced driving fitness in other populations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between depressive symptoms, cognitive function, and simulated driving performance in HF patients.
• To explore if cognitive dysfunction mediates the association between depression and driving impairment in HF.

Main Methods:

• Eighteen HF patients completed a simulated driving task, the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II), and a cognitive test battery.
• Partial correlations were used to analyze associations, controlling for demographic and medical confounders.

Main Results:

• Higher BDI-II scores correlated with increased driving errors (collisions, centerline crossings, time out of lane).
• Increased depressive symptoms were associated with lower attention/executive function.
• Poorer attention/executive function performance correlated with a greater number of driving errors.

Conclusions:

• Depressive symptoms may negatively impact driving performance in HF patients, potentially via cognitive dysfunction.
• Larger studies incorporating on-road testing are necessary to confirm these preliminary findings and inform clinical practice.