Relationship among depression, anxiety and social support in elderly patients from community outpatient clinic

Abstract

Objective To explore the relationship among depression, anxiety and social support in elderly patients in community outpatient clinic. Methods A total of 551 elderly outpatients from two community health service centers of Hongkou District in Shanghai were evaluated with patient health questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), generalized anxiety disorder-7 (GAD-7), perceived social support scale(PSSS) for depression, anxiety, physical health and social support. Results The prevalence rates of depression and anxiety were 26.1% and 17.2%, respectively. The scores of PHQ-9 and GAD-7 were 2.0(4.0) and 1.0(2.0). There were statistically significant differences in the scores of family support, friend support, other support and social support among the elderly patients with different degrees of depression or anxiety (P<0.01). Family support(B=-0.196) and friend support(B=-0.171) were protective factors of depression in elderly patients in community outpatient clinic.Age, family support and friend support were protective factors of anxiety in elderly patients, while gender and fluctuation of physical diseases were protective factors of anxiety(P<0.05). Conclusions The depression and anxiety is intimately related to social support in elderly outpatients. Appropriate measures should be taken to optimize social support, mitigate bad mood negative improve their quality of life. Key words: Elderly outpatients; Depression; Anxiety; Social support