Abstract
Abstract Background Multimorbidity has negative impacts on the health outcomes of older adults. Previous research has discovered different patterns of multimorbidity. However, evidence is scarce for associations between multimorbidity patterns and depression, especially the role of social participation in it. This study aimed to explore the relationship between multimorbidity patterns and depression among older adults in Taiwan and the effect of social participation in different multimorbidity patterns. Methods This population-based cohort study used data from the Taiwan Longitudinal Study on Aging. It included 1,975 older adults (age >50 years) who were followed from 1996 to 2011. The participants’ multimorbidity patterns in1996 were determined by latent class analysis; their incident depression was ascertained in 2011 by using the 10-item CES-D. Multivariate logistic regression was used to analyse the relationship between multimorbidity patterns and depression. Results In 1996, the participants’ average age was 62.1 years. Four multimorbidity patterns were discovered through latent class analysis, as follows: (1) Cardiometabolic group (n = 93), (2) Arthritis–cataract group (n = 105), (3) Multimorbidity group (n = 128), and (4) Relatively healthy group (n = 1649). After multivariate analysis, participants in the Multimorbidity group had a greater risk of incident depression (Odds ratio: 1.62; 95% Confidence interval: 1.02–2.58), compared with the Relatively healthy group. Subgroup analysis showed that participants without social participation in the Arthritis-Cataract and Multimorbidity groups had greater risks of developing depression. Conclusion This 16-year, population-based cohort study showed that distinct multimorbidity patterns among older adults in Taiwan were associated with incident depression during later life, while social participation played a role as protective factor.
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