Gender Differences in Depression's Impact on Health in Older Adults
Author Information
Author(s): Ahn Seoyeon, Visaria Abhijit, Malhotra Rahul, Chan Angelique
Primary Institution: Duke-NUS Medical School
Hypothesis
How do depressive symptoms influence chronic diseases, functional limitations, and mortality in older adults?
Conclusion
Men and women experience different health trajectories, with depressive symptoms accelerating health decline in both genders.
Supporting Evidence
- Men had higher mortality rates but slower progression in chronic pain and physical decline.
- Women lived longer but had earlier onset and faster progression of chronic pain and functional decline.
- Depressive symptoms were linked with faster onset of chronic diseases and functional limitations in both genders.
Takeaway
This study shows that men and women age differently when it comes to health problems, and feeling sad can make these problems worse.
Methodology
The study used multichannel sequence analysis and random-effects logistic regression on data from three waves of the Panel on Health and Aging of Singaporean Elderly.
Potential Biases
Selection bias due to loss to follow-up was addressed using inverse probability of attrition weights.
Limitations
The study may be limited by the specific demographic of Singaporean elderly and potential biases in self-reported data.
Participant Demographics
Participants were aged 60-69 years, with 386 men and 471 women.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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