Increases in depressive symptomatology in the rural elderly: Results from a cross-sectional and longitudinal study.

Abstract

Depressive symptomatology was examined in a large sample of noninstitutionalized older adults using the Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression scale (CES-D). Both cross-sectional and longitudinal data showed age-related increases in mean CES-D scores and increases in the percentage of respondents scoring at or above the cutoff score of 16. Variables collected at baseline in the longitudinal study from 2,032 participants 65 years of age and older were significant predictors of depressive symptomatology 3 and 6 years later. Baseline CES-D scores accounted for the largest proportion of the variance.

What matters, and what matters most, for change in life satisfaction in the oldest-old? A study over 6 years among individuals 80+

“…In a followup-study, level of depressive symptoms at baseline correlated highly with life satisfaction 3 years later in women (Chou & Chi, 1999 (Dent et al, 1999;Haynie, Berg, Johansson, Gatz, & Zarit, 2001), even though an increase was identified in a 6-year follow-up study (Wallace & O'Hara, 1992). Taken together, depressive symptoms appear to be related to life satisfaction, but the pattern of associations and the direction over time is still uncertain.…”

Enrichment Effects on Adult Cognitive Development

“…Yet longitudinal studies do not suggest a systematic increase in depressive symptoms (Barefoot, Mortensen, Helms, Avlund, & Schroll, 2001;Davey, Halverson, Zonderman, & Costa, 2004;Haynie, Berg, Johansson, Gatz, & Zarit, 2001;Pitkala, Kahonen-Valvanne, Strandberg, & Tilvis, 2003;Skarupski et al, 2005;Wallace & O'Hara, 1992) or neuroticism (Mroczek & Spiro, 2003;Small et al, 2003;Steunenberg et al, 2005;Terracciano et al, 2006) in old age. Admittedly, selective survival for those low in psychological distress could attenuate the effects that have been observed.…”

Neurological Factors in Cognitive Aging

“…One interpretation of these data is that depressive symptoms are an early sign of the pathology associated with dementia. Yet longitudinal studies do not suggest that depressive symptoms worsen in old age (Barefoot, Mortensen, Helms, Avlund, & Schroll, 2001;Davey, Halverson, Zonderman, & Costa, 2004;Haynie, Berg, Johansson, Gatz, & Zarit, 2001;Pitkälä, Kähönen-Väre, Valvanne, Strandberg, & Tilvis, 2003;Skarupski et al, 2005;Wallace & O'Hara, 1992) when neuropathology is accumulating in the brain, unlike other established signs that predict cognitive decline (i.e., olfactory identification, body mass, gait). Furthermore, in the Religious Orders Study, the level of depressive symptoms was not related to cerebral infarction or composite measures of amyloid load, tangle density, or Lewy bodies and did not modify the relation of pathology to cognition.…”