DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS ON THE DECLINE IN OLDER ADULTS: BIRTH COHORT ANALYSES FROM THE RUST BELT

Abstract

Introduction Many older adults with depressive symptoms have adverse health outcomes and reduced quality of life, but do not meet the clinical threshold for Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). Studies suggest that prevalence of MDD and depressive symptoms is increasing in children and younger adults, but little is known about population trends in depressive symptoms in older adults over age 65. Methods We pooled data from two large prospective community-based epidemiological studies of older adults in southwestern Pennsylvania between 1987-Present. We identified four birth cohorts of sufficient sample size: 1902-1911 (n=305), 1912-1921 (n=1202), 1922-1931 (n=1051), 1932-1941 (n=669). In both studies, a modified Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (mCESD) was used to determine presence of symptomatic depression (≥5 symptoms) at each wave of examination. The percentage of participants in each birth cohort who had at least one study visit with symptomatic depression varied by age but ranged between 22.9-23.1% for the 1902-1911 cohort, 19.5-26.0% for the 1912-1921 cohort, 9.8-17.0%% for the 1922-1931 cohort, and 12.2-15.4% for the 1932-1941 cohort. To minimize potential bias due to the association between depression and attrition, we fit a shared parameter model that jointly modeled depressive symptoms and attrition. Results The 1922-1931 and 1932-1941 cohorts were significantly less likely to report ≥5 depressive symptoms than the 1902-1911 cohort (p Conclusions Understanding trends in older adult depression will help identify relevant subgroups and factors which will improve ability to plan better mental health services for our aging population. This research was funded by This work was supported by the National Institute on Aging at the National Institutes of Health (R01 AG023651, U01 AG06782, R01 AG07562, P30 AG053760, P30 AG008017 and T32 AG000181).