Abstract
To assess whether functional capacity is a better predictor of coronary heart disease (CHD) than depression or abnormal sleep duration.
Adult civilians in the USA (n=29,818, mean age 48±18years, range 18–85years) were recruited by a cross-sectional household interview survey using multistage area probability sampling. Data on chronic conditions, estimated habitual sleep duration, functional capacity, depressed moods, and sociodemographic characteristics were obtained.
Thirty-five percent of participants reported reduced functional capacity. The CHD rates among White and Black Americans were 5.2% and 4%, respectively. Individuals with CHD were more likely to report extreme sleep durations (short sleep [⩽5h] or long sleep [⩾9h]; odds ratio [OR] 1.65, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.38–1.97; P<0.0001), less likely to be functionally active (anchored by the ability to walk one-quarter of a mile without assistance [OR 6.27, 95% CI 5.64–6.98; P<0.0001]) and more likely to be depressed (OR 1.78, 95% CI 1.60–1.99; P<0.0001) than their counterparts. On multivariate regression analysis adjusting for sociodemographic factors and health characteristics, only functional capacity remained an independent predictor of CHD (OR 1.81, 95% CI 1.42–2.31; P<0.0001).
Functional capacity was an independent predictor of CHD in the study population, whereas depression and sleep duration were not independent predictors.
