J Agric Med Community Health.  2008 Dec;33(3):303-315.

Prevalence and Correlates of Depression among the Elderly in an Urban Community

• Lee YH
• Shin MH
• Kweon SS
• Choi SW
• Ryu SY
• Rhee JA
• Choi JS

Abstract

OBJECTIVES
The purpose of this study was to estimate the prevalence of depression and identify its related factors among an urban elderly.
METHODS
The data for this study were obtained from 333 men and 514 women, aged 65-79 years who participated in '2007 community health survey' in Donggu, Gwangju metropolitan city. Their depressive symptoms were measured by Korean version of the Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale (CES-D).
RESULTS
The mean CES-D score (mean+/-S.D) for all subjects was 7.68+/-0.31. The mean CES-D score was significantly greater in the women (9.09+/-0.43) than in the men (5.51+/-0.39) (p<0.001). The prevalence rates of possible depression (CES-D score > or =16), probable depression (CES-D score> or =21), and definite depression (CES-D score> or =25) were 8.1%, 5.4%, and 3.9% in men, respectively. The prevalence rates of possible depression, probable depression, and definite depression were 19.5%, 11.1%, and 7.2% in women, respectively. Existence of spouse (no/yes), education level (no/high school or higher), health security system (medical aid/national health insurance), self-reported health status (poor/good), vascular risk factors (present/absent) proved to be statistically significant related factors of depression.
CONCLUSIONS
This study suggests that a systematic effort and attention to support for elderly people living alone, low educational level, medical aid, poor self-reported health status and vascular risk factors should be promoted to reduce the incidence of depression.

Keyword

Depression; CES-D; Elderly; Risk factor

MeSH Terms

Aged
Depression
Female
Humans
Incidence
Male
Prevalence
Risk Factors
Spouses