The prognostic impact and optimal timing of the Patient Health Questionnaire depression screen on 4-year mortality among hospitalized patients with systolic heart failure

An American Heart Association (AHA) Science Advisory recommends patients with coronary heart disease undergo routine screening for depressive symptoms with the two-stage Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ). However, little is known on the prognostic impact of a positive PHQ screen on heart failure (HF) mortality. We screened hospitalized patients with systolic HF (left ventricle ejection fraction≤40%) for depression with the two-item Patient...