TY - JOUR
T1 - Association of depression and gender with mortality in old age
T2 - Results from the Amsterdam Study of the Elderly (AMSTEL)
AU - Schoevers, R. A.
AU - Geerlings, M. I.
AU - Beekman, A. T. F.
AU - Penninx, B. W. J. H.
AU - Deeg, D. J. H.
AU - Jonker, C.
AU - van Tilburg, W.
PY - 2000/1/1
Y1 - 2000/1/1
N2 - Background: The association between depression and increased mortality risk in older persons may depend on the severity of the depressive disorder and gender. Aims: To investigate the association between major and mild depressive syndromes and excess mortality in community-living elderly men and women. Method: Depression (Geriatric Mental State AGECAT) was assessed in 4051 older persons, with a 6-year follow-up of community death registers. The mortality risk of neurotic and psychotic depression was calculated after adjustment for demographic variables, physical illness, cognitive decline and functional disabilities. Results: A total of 75% of men and 41% of women with psychotic depression had died at follow-up. Psychotic depression was associated with significant excess mortality in both men and women. Neurotic depression was associated with a 1.67-fold higher mortality risk in men only. Conclusions: In the elderly, major depressive syndromes increase the risk of death in both men and women, but mild depression increases the risk of death only in men. Declaration of interest: Grants from the Netherlands Health Research Programme and the Netherlands Fund of Mental Health (see Acknowledgements).
AB - Background: The association between depression and increased mortality risk in older persons may depend on the severity of the depressive disorder and gender. Aims: To investigate the association between major and mild depressive syndromes and excess mortality in community-living elderly men and women. Method: Depression (Geriatric Mental State AGECAT) was assessed in 4051 older persons, with a 6-year follow-up of community death registers. The mortality risk of neurotic and psychotic depression was calculated after adjustment for demographic variables, physical illness, cognitive decline and functional disabilities. Results: A total of 75% of men and 41% of women with psychotic depression had died at follow-up. Psychotic depression was associated with significant excess mortality in both men and women. Neurotic depression was associated with a 1.67-fold higher mortality risk in men only. Conclusions: In the elderly, major depressive syndromes increase the risk of death in both men and women, but mild depression increases the risk of death only in men. Declaration of interest: Grants from the Netherlands Health Research Programme and the Netherlands Fund of Mental Health (see Acknowledgements).
UR - https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?partnerID=HzOxMe3b&scp=0033794251&origin=inward
UR - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11116775
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0033794251&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - https://doi.org/10.1192/bjp.177.4.336
DO - https://doi.org/10.1192/bjp.177.4.336
M3 - Article
C2 - 11116775
SN - 0007-1250
VL - 177
SP - 336
EP - 342
JO - British journal of psychiatry
JF - British journal of psychiatry
IS - OCT.
ER -