Adjustment for Covariates of Major Depressive Episodes among Men and Women Aged 65 Years Old and Older

Abstract

The current study aimed to examine if sex can significantly predict risk for lifetime major depressive episodes among adults aged 65 and older with and without adjustment for covariate variables of race, education, marital status, health, and poverty. Secondary data was obtained from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health public-use data file to achieve study goals. The study participants were males and females aged 65 years or older. The unweighted sample included 3,969 adults aged 65 years or older, representing a weighted population size of 50,986,065.86 in the US. Lifetime major depressive episode.The study findings confirmed that sex could significantly predict risk for lifetime major depressive episodes among adults aged 65 or older with and without adjustment for health determinants of race, education, marital status, health, and poverty. Four of the five variables, including race, education, health, and poverty, were significant once as covariate variables adjusted for and once as predictor variables. In contrast, marital status was insignificant both as a covariate and a predictor variable. Close attention is required to the adults aged 65 or older at risk for lifetime major depressive episode diagnosis, particularly women, to meet their unique needs.