Relationship between late‐life depression and life stressors: Large‐scale cross‐sectional study of a representative sample of the Japanese general population

• Published in: Psychiatry and clinical neurosciences 2010-08, Vol.64 (4), p.426-434
• Main Authors: Kaji, Tatsuhiko, Mishima, Kazuo, Kitamura, Shingo, Enomoto, Minori, Nagase, Yukihiro, Li, Lan, Kaneita, Yoshitaka, Ohida, Takashi, Nishikawa, Toru, Uchiyama, Makoto
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult and adolescent clinical studies; affective disorder; Age Factors; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Biological and medical sciences; Cross-Sectional Studies; Depression; Depressive Disorder - epidemiology; Depressive Disorder - etiology; Depressive Disorder - psychology; epidemiology; Female; Geriatrics; Health Surveys; Humans; Interpersonal Relations; Japan - epidemiology; Life Change Events; Logistic Models; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Mood disorders; Odds Ratio; old age psychiatry; Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; public health; Risk; Sex Factors; stress; Stress, Psychological - complications; Stress, Psychological - etiology
• ISSN: 1323-1316; 1440-1819
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1440-1819.2010.02097.x

Aim:  The purpose of the present study was to clarify the relationship between late‐life depression and daily life stress in a representative sample of 10 969 Japanese subjects. Methods:  Data on 10 969 adults aged ≥50 who participated in the Active Survey of Health and Welfare in 2000, were analyzed. The self‐administered questionnaire included items on 21 reasons for life stressors and the magnitude of stress, as well as the Japanese version of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES‐D). The relationship between the incidence of life stressors and mild–moderate (D16) and severe (D26) depressive symptoms was examined using logistic regression analysis. Results:  A total of 21.9% of subjects had D16 symptoms, and 9.3% had D26 symptoms. Further, increased age and being female were associated with more severe depressive state. Logistic regression analysis indicated that the strongest relationship between both the incidence of D16 and D26 symptoms and life stressors stemmed from ‘having no one to talk to’ (odds ratio = 3.3 and 5.0, respectively). Late‐life depression was also associated with ‘loss of purpose in life’, ‘separation/divorce’, ‘having nothing to do’, ‘health/illness/care of self’, and ‘debt’. Conclusion:  There is a relationship between late‐life depression and diminished social relationships, experiences involving loss of purpose in life or human relationships, and health problems in the Japanese general population.