Symptoms Geriatric Depression Research Articles

Association of Geriatric Depressive Symptoms and Government-Initiated Senior Employment Program: A Population-Based Study.

The impact of the government-initiated senior employment program (GSEP) on geriatric depressive symptoms is underexplored. Unearthing this connection could facilitate the planning of future senior employment programs and geriatric depression interventions. In the present study, we aimed to elucidate the possible association between geriatric depressive symptoms and GSEP in older adults. This study employed data from 9,287 participants aged 65 or older, obtained from the 2020 Living Profiles of Older People Survey. We measured depressive symptoms using the Korean version of the 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale. The principal exposure of interest was employment status and GSEP involvement. Data analysis involved multiple linear regression. Employment, independent of income level, showed association with decreased depressive symptoms compared to unemployment (p<0.001). After adjustments for confounding variables, participation in GSEP jobs showed more significant reduction in depressive symptoms than non-GSEP jobs (β=-0.968, 95% confidence interval [CI]=-1.197 to -0.739, p<0.001 for GSEP jobs, β=-0.541, 95% CI=-0.681 to -0.401, p<0.001 for non-GSEP jobs). Notably, the lower income tertile in GSEP jobs showed a substantial reduction in depressive symptoms compared to all income tertiles in non-GSEP jobs. The lower-income GSEP group experienced lower depressive symptoms and life dissatisfaction compared to non-GSEP groups regardless of income. These findings may provide essential insights for the implementation of government policies and community-based interventions.

Gender differences in geriatric depressive symptoms in urban China: the role of ADL and sensory and communication abilities.

ADL and Sensory and Communication Abilities are important indicators of the quality of life of the elderly which are significant determinants of health, particularly in developing countries. The present cross-sectional study investigated effect of ADL and Sensory and Communication Abilities on depressive symptoms, as well as the the role of gender in these effects. This is a cross-sectional study. A nationally representative cross-sectional survey among the Chinese population aged 60 years and over. A total of 163296 females and 148724 males aged 65 and over in 2019 in urban China. Prevalence, risk factors and gender differences in geriatric depressive symptoms among urban elderly. Approximately 95.69% of the participants had depressive symptoms according to the CESD-10, with no statistically significant gender difference of 52.15% in females and 47.85% in males. Logistic regression findings suggest that geriatric depressive symptoms are significantly associated with the lack of eldercare (OR=2.427, female; OR=1.426, male), living alone(OR= 1.430, female; OR= 1.179, male), ADL dysfunction (OR=1.528, female; OR=1.246, male), and impaired sensory and communication ability (OR=1.338, female; OR=1.185, male) among both female and male participants. Remarkably, geriatric depressive symptoms are only significantly associated with age (≥75, OR = 1.327), marital status (unmarried, OR=1.598), the number of children (no children, OR=2.271), and the living arrangement (living alone, OR= 1.430) among female participants. Significant gender differences in these associations were found for living alone, ADL dysfunction and impaired sensory and communication ability. Moreover, the study emphasized that the gender difference exists in terms of geriatric depression in urban China. Females are more likely to experience depressive than males with the same circumstances.

The mediating role of health-related behavior in the relationship between wisdom and depressive symptoms in older Polish adults

Objectives Although studies have shown that wisdom is positively related to mental health in older adults, little is known about its possible mechanisms. The current study examines whether health-related behavior can play a mediating role in the relationships between wisdom and geriatric depressive symptoms. Methods The study included 334 Polish older adults aged 60–99 years (M = 71.91; SD = 7.01). The respondents completed the Geriatric Depression Scale, Three-Dimensional Wisdom Scale, Health-Related Questionnaire for Seniors, and a sociodemographic survey. Results Three-dimensional wisdom and its three dimensions correlated negatively with geriatric depressive symptoms but positively with general health-related behavior and its factors. Health-related behavior acted partially as a mediator between wisdom and geriatric depressive symptoms. Conclusion Wiser seniors tend to take part in more health-promoting behavior, which may prevent depressive symptoms. The findings support the important role played by wisdom in mental health-promoting interventions for older adults.

Childhood abuse as a mediator of the relationship between early family socio-economic status and geriatric depression: A population-based study in China

Previous studies have suggested that childhood socioeconomic status (SES) is linked to geriatric depressive symptoms in many developed countries. However, the potential pathways of the relationship between childhood SES and geriatric depressive symptoms need to be further explored. This study aimed to assess the mediating effect of being abused during childhood on the association between childhood SES and geriatric depressive symptoms, using evidence from a longitudinal study in China. The study cohort included 8137 individuals. Childhood abuse was defined as experiences related to parental violence, sibling abuse, school violence, community violence, and parental quarrel. Results indicated poor childhood SES was associated significantly with geriatric depressive symptoms. The indirect effect of poor childhood SES to high geriatric depressive risk through community violence, sibling abuse, school violence, and parental quarrel were 0.02, 0.01, 0.02, and 0.01, respectively. Our findings shed new light on the literature regarding the impact of childhood SES on elderly depressive symptoms. Furthermore, childhood SES demonstrated a significant correlation with geriatric depressive symptoms through bullying behaviors. The findings highlight the need to promote both childhood social welfare and psychological well-being within the elderly population.

39 Relationships among Cardiovascular Risk Factors, White Matter Hyperintensities, and Depressive Symptoms in Black and White Older Adults

Objective:The vascular depression hypothesis posits that there is a relationship between vascular disease and geriatric depressive symptoms. Black Americans are at higher risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) than their White counterparts. However, it is not fully understood whether risk for CVD or potentially related neurovascular changes have a differential relationship in Black and White Americans. We investigated differences in the relationships between white matter hyperintensities, risk for CVD, and depressive symptoms in Black and White older adults.Participants and Methods:Participants were derived from the National Alzheimer Coordinating Center database. Black (N = 120) and White (N = 120) participants were matched on age, sex, and education. White matter hyperintensity (WMH) and CVD burden data (sum of vascular conditions) on 320 individuals were analyzed (mean age = 75.9; 69.4% female). Age, sex, race, and education were included as covariates in separate regression models in which WMH and CVD burden predicted scores on the 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15). Follow-up stratified analyses were conducted to explore the relationship between WMH and CVD burden on GDS scores in the Black and White samples.Results:Lower WMH volume and higher CVD burden were associated with higher GDS scores in the total sample. Analyses stratified by race showed a positive effect of CVD burden on GDS scores only for the Black sample and a trend effect of WMH on GDS scores only for the White sample, with higher WMH volume associated with lower rather than higher GDS scores.Conclusions:These findings are consistent with previous research showing that WMH and CVD burden are related to depression in older adults. Contrary to expectation, WMH had a negative trend association with GDS scores in the White sample. Findings also suggest that different etiologies may play a role in the clinical presentation of depression in Black and White Americans. Additional research is needed to further explore the relationships among CVD, its neural correlates, and depressive symptoms in diverse samples.

Can living in an age-friendly neighbourhood protect older adults’ mental health against functional decline in China?

Little is known about how and to what extent living in an age-friendly neighbourhood buffers the negative impact of older adults’ functional decline on their mental health in China. This longitudinal study advances our knowledge of the Age-Friendly Cities and Communities (AFCC) framework by unravelling the enabling and compensatory roles of age-friendly neighbourhoods from a cumulative perspective. Empirically, it examines the buffering effects of eight domains of neighbourhood environment on the relationship between functional abilities and depressive symptoms among older adults in Chinese rural and urban contexts, using data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study. Results of latent growth curve models indicate that living in an age-friendly neighbourhood environment significantly buffers the negative impacts of expected functional declines in the future. Enabling domains of neighbourhood environments play a stronger buffering role in the relationship between functional decline and depressive symptoms than compensatory domains. Cumulative effects of age-friendly neighbourhood environments reduce the rate at which depressive symptoms increase over time. It further investigates the differences between rural and urban environments in the enabling and compensatory roles of age-friendly neighbourhoods in combating geriatric depressive symptoms. Transportation and social participation are found to significantly reduce depressive symptoms in rural neighbourhoods, while infrastructure for communication and information is found to be related to rapid increase in depressive symptoms in urban neighbourhoods. Our findings inform policymakers about how to efficiently allocate public resources to improve mental health outcomes among older adults with functional decline in both rural and urban Chinese contexts.

Perceived Social Support Mediates the Relationship between Use of Greenspace and Geriatric Depression: A Cross-Sectional Study in a Sample of South-Italian Older Adults.

A growing body of evidence is suggestive for the beneficial role of contact with greenspace (e.g., use of greenspace, visual access to greenspace, etc.) on mental health (e.g., depression, anxiety, etc.). In addition, several studies have pointed out the benefits of social support and social interaction on psychological wellbeing. Even if evidence on the association between contact with greenspace and perceived social support were mixed, it was supposed that the use of greenspace could enhance social interactions and perceived social support, especially among older adults. The present study aims to explore the effect of use of greenspace on geriatric depression in a sample of South-Italian older adults and the mediating role of perceived social support in this association. A structural equation model was tested in a sample of 454 older adults (60-90 years old) residing in the Metropolitan Area of Bari, Apulia. The fit indices revealed the goodness of fit of the model (CFI = 0.934; TLI = 0.900; IFI = 0.911; NFI = 0.935; RMSEA = 0.074; SRMR = 0.056). Results showed that the use of greenspace was inversely associated with geriatric depression through perceived social support. These findings underlined the relevance of perceived social support on the pathway linking use of greenspace and geriatric depressive symptoms. This evidence may be useful to policymakers to plan interventions for promoting physical access to greenspace and social participation in an age-friendly city framework.

The mediating and moderating effects of resilience between childhood trauma and geriatric depressive symptoms among Chinese community-dwelling older adults.

This study aims to examine the association between childhood traumatic events (CTEs), childhood trauma severity, and depressive symptoms, as well as to examine the mediating and moderating roles of resilience in these associations. We conducted a cross-sectional study of 1,091 community-dwelling older adults in Jinan, China. The trauma history questionnaire (THQ) was used to measure CTEs and childhood trauma severity. CTEs were defined as the number of traumatic events before the age of 18. We calculated childhood trauma severity by multiplying the number of CTEs by the participants' self-perceived impact level of the events from the THQ. We then applied the 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale and 10-item Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale to assess participants' depressive symptoms and resilience, respectively. Linear regression models were used to examine the associations, and structural equation modeling was used to examine the mediating and moderating roles of resilience. Childhood traumatic events, childhood trauma severity, and resilience were all associated with depressive symptoms in older adults. Resilience mediated the relationship between childhood trauma severity and depressive symptoms (β = 0.082, 95% CI = 0.045-0.123), accounting for 26.6% of the overall effect (β = 0.308, 95% CI = 0.190-0.422). However, there was no evidence that resilience mediated the association between CTEs and depressive symptoms. In addition, we did not find that resilience played a moderating role in the associations of CTEs, childhood trauma severity with depressive symptoms. Resilience plays a mediating role in the relationship between childhood trauma severity and depressive symptoms. Intervention measures on improving resilience may reduce childhood trauma severity associated with depression risk in older Chinese adults.

Physical Function and Physical Activity in Older Breast Cancer Survivors: 5-Year Follow-Up from the Climb Every Mountain Study.

A decline in physical activity and the ability to perform activities of daily living (ADL) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) could interfere with independent living and quality of life in older patients, but may be prevented with tailored interventions. The aim of the current study was to assess changes in physical activity and ADL/IADL in the first 5 years after breast cancer diagnosis in a real-world cohort of older patients and to identify factors associated with physical decline. Patients aged ≥70 years with in situ or stages I-III breast cancer were included in the prospective Climb Every Mountain cohort study. Linear mixed models were used to assess physical activity (according to Metabolic Equivalent of Task (MET) hours per week) and ADL/IADL (according to the Groningen Activity Restriction Scale (GARS)) over time. Secondly, the association with geriatric characteristics, treatment, quality of life, depression, apathy, and loneliness was analyzed. A total of 239 patients were included. Physical activity and ADL/IADL changed in the first 5 years after diagnosis (mean change from baseline -11.6 and +4.2, respectively). Geriatric characteristics at baseline were strongly associated with longitudinal change in physical activity and ADL/IADL, whereas breast cancer treatment was not. A better quality of life was associated with better physical activity and preservation of ADL/IADL, while depression and loneliness were negatively associated with these outcomes. Geriatric characteristics, loneliness, and depressive symptoms were associated with physical decline in older patients with breast cancer, while breast cancer treatment was not.

Associations between objectively measured sedentary behavior patterns and depressive symptoms in older adults: A cross sectional study

BackgroundThe association between sedentary behavior and geriatric depressive symptoms remains unclear. Moreover, few studies use objective measurement to examine the relationship between comprehensive sedentary behavior patterns and geriatric depressive symptoms. AimsTo investigate the association between sedentary behavior patterns and geriatric depressive symptoms in older adults by objective measurement. MethodsA cross-sectional study was implemented in an outpatient department from September 2020 to September 2021. Participants were community-dwelling older adults aged 65 and older who could walk independently and were not at risk for cognitive dysfunction. Sedentary behavior patterns were measured by a tri-axial accelerometer for 7 consecutive days, and geriatric depressive symptoms were measured via the 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale. A binary logistic regression model and multiple linear regression model were performed to examine the relationship between sedentary behavior patterns and geriatric depressive symptoms scores. ResultsA total of 167 older Taiwanese adults (mean age: 80.2 ± 7.0 years; 50.9% male; 15.6% at risk for geriatric depressive symptoms) were included. After adjusting for potential confounders, achieving sedentary behavior time >9 h/day was not significantly associated with geriatric depressive symptoms; greater times of sedentary bouts and more sedentary breaks were also not associated with geriatric depressive symptoms. ConclusionThis study showed that the sedentary behavior patterns were not associated with geriatric depressive symptoms among older adults in the study sample. However, the important limitation in this study was that passive versus mentally active sedentary behavior were not assessed. It is suggested that further research could simultaneously use objective measurement and self-reported questionnaires to completely clarify the association between sedentary behavior patterns and geriatric depressive symptoms in older adults.

FC 104: Apathy Associates with Cognitive Dysfunction and Mortality in Older Ckd Patients

Abstract BACKGROUND AND AIMS The growing population of older patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) often faces unidentified cognitive impairments and high prevalence of depressive symptoms. Apathy is a clinical syndrome associated with both depression and cognitive decline in community-dwelling older people. Furthermore, apathy has been more often linked to vascular impairments, which are also highly prevalent in the CKD population. However, so far, prevalence and consequences of apathy in older CKD patients have not been studied. We aimed (1) to investigate the prevalence of apathy symptoms in an older population with CKD stage G4/G5 (eGFR &amp;lt; 20 mL/min/1.73 m2), and (2) to assess if apathy is associated with, frailty, cognitive and functional impairments and mood. In addition, we (3) investigated the relation between apathy at baseline and mortality during four years of follow-up. METHOD Data was used from the prospective multicenter COPE (Cognitive Decline in Older Patients with ESKD) cohort, which included CKD patients aged ≥65 years with an eGFR of ≤20 mL/min/1.73 m2. Symptoms of apathy were assessed with the 3-item subscale of the 15-item Geriatric Depression (GDS-3A score ≥2) and depressive symptoms with the remaining items of this scale (GDS-12D ≥2). Frailty, (Fried Frailty Index ≥3), functional dependence (GARS score), handgrip strength and walking speed were measured. Cognitive functioning was assessed by means of global cognition (Mini Mental State Examination), visuoconstruction (Clock drawing), memory (15-Word Verbal Learning Test and Visual Association Test), executive function (Trail Making Test-B) and psychomotor speed (Letter Digit Substitution Test, Trail Making Test -A). Cross-sectional correlations between groups were tested with t-tests, Mann–Whitney and Chi-squared tests. Hazard ratio for mortality was analysed with Cox regression adjusting for age, gender and primary vascular kidney disease. RESULTS In total n = 180 patients, 67% male, were included with a median age of 75.5 years (IQR 71.0–80.9) and mean eGFR of 16.5 (SD 4.6). Symptoms of apathy and isolated apathy (i.e. with no symptoms of depression) were seen in respectively 36% (n = 64) and 17% (n = 30) of the study population. Presence of apathy symptoms at baseline was associated with primary vascular kidney disease (P = 0.031), depression (P &amp;lt; 0.001), frailty (P &amp;lt; 0.001) and decreased physical functioning (i.e. functional dependence; P &amp;lt; 0.001, handgrip strength; P = 0.026 and walking speed; P &amp;lt; 0.001). Presence of apathy symptoms was also associated with reduced executive function (P = 0.045) and psychomotor speed (P = 0.022). Furthermore, patients with apathy symptoms had a 1.9 times higher mortality risk (P = 0.022, adjusted for age, gender and primary vascular renal disease). CONCLUSION Symptoms of apathy occurred in one third of this cohort of older advanced CKD patients. Although apathy was associated with presence of depressive symptoms, half of the cases were not. Apathy is associated with multiple functional and cognitive measures and two-fold increased mortality. Future investigations should focus on cause of apathy and its value in predicting cognitive decline in older CKD patients. Because of the relation of apathy with future outcomes, assessment of apathy might be of value in shared decision making on renal replacement therapy in older CKD patients.

Sport and Recreational Physical Activities Attenuate the Predictive Association of Multimorbidity With Increased Geriatric Depressive Symptoms: A 14-Year Follow-Up Study of Community-Dwelling Older Adults.

Multimorbidity is associated with increased depression risks. Little research examines how physical exercise moderates this association. From an existing cohort of community-dwelling older adults in Hong Kong recruited in 2001-2003, the authors included participants who were successfully interviewed after 14 years (2015-2017). Geriatric depressive symptoms were used as the primary outcome and measured by the 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale, while multimorbidity was operationalized using a list of 19 conditions. Subscores of the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly measuring light, moderate, and strenuous sport/recreational activities were included as moderators. In total, 1,056 participants were included, of whom 50.7% were multimorbid. Multimorbidity was associated with 12% more geriatric depressive symptoms, but strenuous physical activities were associated with a smaller risk elevation only among multimorbid patients (adjusted relative risk = 0.99, 95% confidence interval [0.98, 0.99]; p = .001). In conclusion, strenuous sport and recreational activities may attenuate the association between multimorbidity and geriatric depressive symptoms.

Knee Extensor Muscle Strength And The Depressive Status Among Older Japanese Women: A Cross-sectional Study

Depression is commonly regarded as a crucial public health issue because of its detrimental effect on increased mortality and its huge economic burden. Although physical function is generally related depression symptoms, it remains controversial whether lower-extremity muscle strength is a risk factor for geriatric depression symptoms among older women. PURPOSE: To investigate the cross-sectional association between knee extensor muscle strength and geriatric depressive status. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 1258 older Japanese women (mean age 71.8 years [standard deviation: 4.3]) who lived in the metropolitan area of Tokyo and were recruited from the basic resident register. They completed an isometric knee extensor muscle strength measurement (newton per kilogram of body weight) and responded to an interview-based questionnaire on their smoking and alcohol consumption habits, history of lifestyle-related diseases (hypertension, stroke, heart disease, diabetes, dyslipidemia, osteoporosis, and cancer), working conditions, hobbies or lessons, participation in volunteer work, living alone status, sleep time, and dietary pattern. Depressive symptoms were defined as a 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) score ≥ 6 points. Multivariable odds ratios (OR) and 95 percent confidence intervals (CI) for the presence of depressive symptoms were obtained using a logistic regression model after adjusting for age, body mass index, and the above-mentioned confounding factors. RESULTS: A total of 112 women (8.9%) had geriatric depressive symptoms. After adjusting for various covariates, OR (95% CI) of the depressive symptoms was 1.11 (0.66, 1.89) for the second quartile of knee extensor muscle strength per body weight, 0.38 (0.18, 0.73) for the third quartile and 0.70 (0.38, 1.29) for the fourth quartile, using the first quartile as a reference category (p for trend = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that low muscle strength is associated with geriatric depressive symptoms in older Japanese women. We need to further explore its longitudinal association in the future.

Assessment of incident frailty hazard associated with depressive symptoms in a Taiwanese longitudinal study.

To estimate the risks of depressive symptoms for developing frailty, accounting for baseline robust or pre-frailty status. An incident cohort study design. Community dwellers aged 55 years and above from urban and rural areas in seven regions in Taiwan. A total of 2,717 participants from the Healthy Aging Longitudinal Study in Taiwan (HALST) were included. Subjects with frailty at baseline were excluded. The average follow-up period was 5.9 years. Depressive symptoms were measured by the 20-item Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression (CES-D) Scale. Frailty was assessed using the Fried frailty measurement. Participants were stratified by baseline robust or pre-frailty status to reduce the confounding effects of the shared criteria between depressive symptoms and frailty. Overall and stratified survival analyses were conducted to assess risks of developing frailty as a result of baseline depressive symptoms. One hundred individuals (3.7%) had depressive symptoms at baseline. Twenty-seven individuals (27.0%) with depressive symptoms developed frailty, whereas only 305 out of the 2,617 participants (11.7%) without depressive symptoms developed frailty during the follow-up period. After adjusting for covariates, depressive symptoms were associated with a 2.6-fold (95% CI 1.6, 4.2) increased hazard of incident frailty. The patterns of increased hazard were also observed when further stratified by baseline robust or pre-frailty status. Depressive symptoms increased the risk of developing frailty among the older Asian population. The impact of late-life depressive symptoms on physical health was notable. These findings also replicated results from Western populations. Future policies on geriatric public health need to focus more on treatment and intervention against geriatric depressive symptoms to prevent incident frailty among older population.

Influence of grandparenting stress, sleep quality, and grandparenting type on depressive symptoms among Chinese older adults who care for their grandchildren: A moderated-mediation study

Depression is a serious problem among older adults who care for their grandchildren. The relationship between general stress, sleep quality and depressive symptoms has been confirmed. However, it is unclear whether this relationship can be generalized to grandparenting stress and whether sleep quality could influence the relationship between grandparenting stress and depressive symptoms remains unclear. The present study explored how grandparenting stress, sleep quality, and grandparenting type (divided by frequency of grandparenting, including primary care and supplementary care) influence depressive symptoms in Chinese older adults who care for their grandchildren. A sample of 1303 Chinese older adults (Female: 46.2%), with a mean age of 66.0 years (SD = 4.2), were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. Grandparenting stress, sleep quality, and depressive symptoms were assessed using the Chinese version of the Parenting Stress Scale (modified for grandparents), the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and the Geriatric Depressive Symptoms Scale, respectively. We found that older adults who care for grandchildren have high levels of depressive symptoms, and grandparenting stress and sleep quality were significantly positively associated with depressive symptoms. In addition, we also found that sleep quality partially mediated the relationship between grandparenting stress and depressive symptoms. Grandparenting type moderated the relationship between grandparenting stress and sleep quality but did not significantly moderate the relationship between grandparenting stress and depressive symptoms. Supplementary care (i.e., providing care while parents are temporarily unavailable) was associated with a weaker association between grandparenting stress and sleep quality when compared to primary care (providing care while parents are unavailable for long periods). These results can provide some ideas of intervention to reduce the depressive symptoms of older adults who care for their grandchildren, which had certain public health significance.

The functional and structural connectomes associated with geriatric depression and anxiety symptoms in mild cognitive impairment: Cross-syndrome overlap and generalization

Geriatric depression and anxiety disorders often manifest as neuropsychiatric symptoms among those with mild cognitive impairment. Both tend to co-occur, and overlap in symptomology and etiology. Such commonalities are likely to be reflected in the brain as common neural correlates. Using connectome-based predictive modeling (CPM), we examined the functional and structural connectomes predicting depression and anxiety symptoms, and subsequently the overlap and cross-syndrome generalization of the connectomes associated with either disorder. Ninety-one older adults completed self-reported measures of depression and anxiety, and underwent diffusion tensor imaging and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging. Functional connectivity (FC) and structural connectivity (SC) matrices were derived from these scans and, in various combinations, entered into CPM models to predict either type of symptoms. Leave-one-out cross-validation was performed. Predictive accuracy was assessed via the correlation between predicted and observed scores (ρpredicted-observed). While FC or SC features alone significantly predicted either type of symptoms, these symptoms were best predicted by models that consisted of both FC and SC features (depression: ρpredicted-observed = 0.497; anxiety: ρpredicted-observed = 0.455). The features common to depression and anxiety were identified and entered into another model which was similarly accurate in predicting either type of symptoms. Moreover, cross-syndrome generalization was observed— the depression-associated features significantly predicted anxiety symptoms (ρpredicted-observed = 0.403) and vice-versa (ρpredicted-observed = 0.378). These FC and SC features are complementary biomarkers of geriatric depression and anxiety symptoms. Both types of symptoms are largely underpinned by common patterns of altered FC and SC, alluding to the transdiagnostic neurobiological susceptibility in both disorders.

Associations between depressive symptoms and geriatric syndromes in community-dwelling older adults in Japan: A cross-sectional study.

It is estimated that 7.2% of community-dwelling older adults worldwide have major depression. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the relationship between geriatric syndromes and depressive symptoms. Data were obtained from the Kaizuka Dementia Prevention Study 2018 and 2019, which was a community-based health check conducted in collaboration with the Osaka Kawasaki Rehabilitation University (Kaizuka City Office) and Cognitive Reserve Research Center in Osaka, Japan. The participants comprised 363 older adults (mean age 73.6±6.6years; women=75.8%) who participated in a community-based health check. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15). Depressive symptoms were defined as a GDS-15 score of≥5. Furthermore, geriatric syndromes in participants-such as frailty, sarcopenia, and locomotive syndrome-were assessed. There was a 28.1% prevalence of depressive symptoms. In a logistic regression analysis with depressive symptoms as the dependent variable, both pre-frailty (odds ratio [OR] 1.85, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.09-3.01) and frailty (OR 5.45, 95% CI 2.23-13.31) were found to be significantly higher in the depressive group. There were no significant differences in sarcopenia and locomotive syndrome between the depressive groups. Our findings suggest that depressive symptoms are associated with frailty and pre-frailty in community-dwelling older adults in Japan. Physical frailty should be evaluated in depressed individuals and may contribute to the prioritization of clinical evaluation of geriatric syndromes.

Disentangling the pathologies linking white matter hyperintensity and geriatric depressive symptoms in subjects with different degrees of vascular impairment

Background: White matter hyperintensity (WMH) is closely associated with geriatric depressive symptoms, but its underlying neural mechanism is unclear. We aim to disentangle the contribution of vascular degeneration and fiber disruption to depressive symptoms in elderly subjects at different clinical status.Methods: One hundred and thirty-three normal elderly subjects, as well as 43 patients with cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD) were included. The Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD) was used to measure depressive symptoms. Based on the diffusion tensor imaging data, a free water elimination analytical model was adopted to reflect fiber tract disruption (measure: tissue fractional anisotropy, tFA) and increased white matter water content (measure: free water fraction, FW).Results: We found that WMH severity was significantly correlated with decreased tFA and increased FW in all subjects. In normal elderly subjects, the HAMD score was correlated with mean tFA, but not FW. Compared to the traditional fractional anisotropy measure, tFA showed stronger correlation with clinical symptoms. In CSVD subjects, the correlation was only significant for FW, and marginally significant for tFA.Limitations: Most subjects had only mild to moderate depressive symptoms. Further validation in patients with major depressive disorder is needed to confirm these findings.Conclusions: The neural mechanisms of depressive symptoms may be different in elderly people with or without severe vascular damage. The free water elimination model may disentangle the effects of fiber disruption and increased free water, providing sensitive imaging markers that could potentially be used on monitoring disease treatment.

Exercise And Geriatric Depression: A Scoping Review Of The Research Evidence

Geriatric depression is a common late-life mental health disorder that increases morbidity and mortality. It has been shown that exercise is effective in alleviating symptoms of geriatric depression. However, inconsistencies across studies and lack of optimal dose-response of exercise for improving geriatric depression have made it challenging to draw solid conclusions on the effectiveness of exercise in late-life depression. PURPOSE: To further investigate the moderators of the effectiveness of exercise on geriatric depression across the current body of evidence. METHODS: Based on the Arksey and O’Malley framework, an extensive search strategy was performed by exploring PubMed, Scopus, Sport Discus, PsycInfo, ERIC, and IBSS without limitations in the time frame. Eight systematic reviews with empirical results and evaluated the effect of exercise on depression among people aged 60 years and older were identified, and their individual studies were screened for inclusion. One additional study was found through the hand searching of reference lists. After full-text screening and applying inclusion and exclusion criteria, 21 studies were retained. RESULTS: The review revealed high variability in characteristics of the exercise interventions and outcome measures. Sample characteristics, nature of comparators, main outcome assessment, and baseline severity of depression also varied notably. Mind-body and aerobic exercises were found to significantly reduce geriatric depression. However, results on the relationship between resistance training and improvements in geriatric depression were inconsistent, and results of the intensity-related antidepressant effects of exercise interventions were mixed. Extensive use of self-reported questionnaires for the main outcome assessment and lack of evidence on the relationship between depression severity and observed effect were of the other important highlights of the review. CONCLUSION: Several literature gaps were found regarding the potential effect modifiers of exercise and geriatric depression. While acknowledging the complexity of establishing recommendations on the exercise variables and geriatric depression, future studies are required to understand the threshold effect of exercise for treating geriatric depression.

Depression and associated factors among geriatric population in Moshi district council, Northern Tanzania

Background Depression in the elderly population has been identified as a significant public health problem associated with adverse outcomes such as decreased quality of life, cognitive decline, and increased rates of suicide. We aimed to determine the prevalence and factors associated with depressive symptoms among geriatric population in Moshi district council, northern Tanzania. Methods This community-based cross-sectional study was conducted in Moshi rural district, northern Tanzania, between June and July 2019. A multi-stage sampling technique was used to recruit 304 elders aged 60 or more years. We used geriatric depression scale (GDS-15) to assess depression. Generalized linear model with Poisson family and log link function was used to estimate prevalence ratio (PR) and the corresponding 95% confidence intervals for factors associated with geriatric depressive symptoms. Results A total of 304 participants were enrolled, the median age (interquartile range) 67 (62-75.5 years), and about half (51%) were females. The prevalence of geriatric depressive symptoms was 44.4%. Elders with a self-reported history of cognitive impairment had higher prevalence of depressive symptoms (PR = 1.66, 95%CI 1.16, 2.38) while elders with intermediate (PR = 0.56, 95%CI 0.38, 0.82) and strong social support (PR = 0.27, 95%CI 0.17, 0.44) were less likely to have depressive symptoms compared to those with no available social support. Conclusions Nearly one in every two elders had geriatric depressive symptoms. Depressive symptoms were associated with self-reported history of cognitive impairment and availability of social support. We recommend community screening, awareness creation, and social support interventions for early identification and management of depressive symptoms in this population.