Background: With a rapidly increasing population of older aged people, epidemiological data regarding the prevalence of mental and physical illnesses are urgently required for proper health planning. However, there is a scarcity of such data from India. Aims: To study the frequency and pattern of psychiatric morbidity present and the association of physical illness with psychiatric morbidity in an elderly urban population. Settings and Design: Cross-sectional, epidemiological study. Materials and Methods: All the consenting elderly persons in a municipal ward division (n=202) were enrolled after surveying a total adult population of 7239 people. A door to door survey was undertaken where the participants were interviewed and physically examined. General Health Questionnaire-12, Mini Mental State Examination, CAGE Questionnaire and Geriatric Depression Scale were used in the interview apart from consulting the available documents. Other family members were also interviewed to verify the information. Statistical Analysis: Chi-square test with Yates correction. Results: Psychiatric illnesses were detected in 26.7% while physical illnesses were present in 69.8% of the population surveyed. Predominant psychiatric diagnoses were depressive disorders, dementia, generalized anxiety disorder, alcohol dependence and bipolar disorder. The most common physical illness was visual impairment, followed by cardiovascular disease, rheumatic illnesses, pulmonary illnesses, hearing impairment, genitourinary diseases and neurological disorders. Presence of dementia was associated with increased age, single/widowed/separated status, nuclear family, economic dependence, low education, cardiovascular disorders, rheumatic disorders and neurological disorders. Depression was associated with female sex, single/widowed/separated status, staying in nuclear families, economic dependence on others and co-morbid physical illnesses, specifically cardiovascular disorders and visual impairment. Conclusions: This study presented a higher rate of dementia and old age depression. The interesting association with several sociodemographic factors as well as physical illnesses may have important implications for health planning.

Psychiatric and Physical Morbidity in an Urban Geriatric Population

Background: Depression is a common problem in the elderly but is often undetected and ignored as a medical problem, leading to poor quality of life. This community-based study was conducted to know the burden and risk factors of depression among the elderly. Subjects and Methods: The survey was done in 2015 in Maharashtra, India as a part of an initiative addressing community mental health needs of the elderly. Total 400 elderly, aged 60 years and above, were selected through a house-to-house survey, using probability proportional to size method, and interviewed for depression using Major Depression Inventory Scale (MDI Scale), and other potential risk factors using a pretested questionnaire. Results: A total of 16.75% elderly had depression. Increasing age (Spearman's rho = 0.112, P = 0.026), illiteracy (OR = 2.23; 95% confidence interval, CI 1.22–4.07), lack of sleep (OR = 2.97; 95% CI 1.73–5.09), and leisure time spending alone (OR = 0.57, 95% CI 0.34–0.98) were found to be associated with depression. However, on multivariate analysis, only sleep duration

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.4103/IJPSYM.IJPSYM_234_18

Prevalence of Depression in an Urban Geriatric Population in Marathwada Region of Western India.

Background: Depression is the leading cause of disease burden in most regions of the world. But depression among the elderly is usually unrecognized and they have higher morbidity and mortality than those without depression. Aims: To estimate the prevalence of depression among the elderly and identifying its determinants in selected villages of Puducherry. Materials and Methods: This is a community-based cross-sectional study conducted in three villages in Puducherry. Systematic random sampling is done to select households. Any person above the age of 60 years is considered as elderly. After obtaining informed consent, a pretested questionnaire is administered to obtain sociodemographic characteristics. Height and weight were measured. Chronic illnesses such as diabetes, hypertension, asthma, osteoarthritis, reduced vision, hard of hearing, and substance use were self-reported. Geriatric Depression Scale – Short form questionnaire was used as a screening tool for depression. Results: Among the 359 participants, 57% were females. The mean (standard deviation) age of the participants was 67.4 (5.9) years. The majority of them belonged to nuclear family (88%), had no formal education (62%), were unemployed (69%), currently married (68%), and receiving a pension (81%). The prevalence of depression among elderly age 60 years and above is 69% [95% confidence interval (CI) 63.6–73.1). Binary logistic regression showed that single/widow [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 3.9, 95% CI 2.0–7.5] and hard of hearing (aOR = 2.2, 95% CI 1.1–4.1) are significant risk factors for depression. Conclusion: Prevalence of depression among elderly in this rural area is high. All elderly persons must be screened for depression and appropriate treatment should be initiated.

Depression and its determinants among elderly in selected villages of Puducherry - A community-based cross-sectional study.

Life becomes seemingly stressful and challenging during the ageing process, and older people tend to become a liability rather than an asset to the families and communities involved. The living arrangement may influence the amount of social support that the older adults receive from their family members, and there is a close connection between family support and mental health. This study examines the urban–rural differential in depressive symptoms among older adults by their living arrangement and other background characteristics. The data for this study come from the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (LASI) conducted in 2017–18. Bivariate analyses were used to understand the rural–urban gap in depressive symptoms with socioeconomic and demographic parameters. Further, logistic regression was used to check the likelihood of depressive symptoms with living arrangements and other socioeconomic and demographic variables. Results found that rural older adults living with spouses and children were 1.52 times (OR = 1.52, C.I. = 1.25–1.85) more likely to report depressive symptoms than their counterparts living alone in rural areas. Furthermore, female older adults in rural areas had lower odds (OR = 0.81, C.I. = 0.71–0.91) of reporting depressive symptoms than male older adults living in rural areas. There is a need for interventions to ensure the mental health of older adults in India. Furthermore, in this study, the prevalence of depressive symptoms among older adults was very high. Therefore there is a strong need for interventions to ensure the mental health of this most vulnerable group.

Does Living Arrangement Predict Urban–Rural Differential in Depressive Symptoms Among Older Adults in India? A Study Based on Longitudinal Ageing Study in India Survey

Introduction: India is presently undergoing demographic transition leading significant increase in elderly population. The advent of better health services and preventive care has raised life expectancy. Presently the population of elderly in India is 9.4% in 2017 which will rise to 19.1% in 2050. Elderly form a vulnerable group as they suffer from physical, psychological, economic, social and nutritional problems. These problems there by con-tribute to various disabilities. Prevalence of depression among elderly ranges from as low as 12.7% to as high as 60.0% from literature. The depression among the elderly often goes undetected and thus untreated which results in loneliness, social isolation, cognitive impairment, and decline in their ability to carry out the functional activities and thus compromises their quality of life. Determining the burden of depression among the elderly and to study various socio-demographic factors will facilitate formulating policies to plan better health care delivery services for them. Hence present study was planned with the objective to study the magnitude of depression and its socio demographic correlates among the elderly.
Material and Methods: Present study was a cross sectional study conducted in elderly (?60 Years) residing in the field practice area of Rural Health Training Centre of one of the Government Medical College. Sample size calculated for the study was 290 and simple random sampling method was used for the data collection. Measurement was done using WHO Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) long form of 30 questions. Ethical approval was obtained from institutional ethical committee and consent was taken from participants. Data entry and analysis was done by using software Epi Info version 7.2.
Results: The Magnitude of Depression among elderly was found to be 57.66% (Mild Depression 23.91%, Moderate Depression 19.06% and Severe Depression 14.69%). The various factors associated with depression were, female sex, low Soc

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A cross sectional study on prevalence of depression and its socio-demographic correlates among elderly in rural India

Background: Depression is the most common psychiatric disorder among elderly population in India, yet, it is commonly misdiagnosed and undertreated. The exact burden of depression among the elderly population in rural India was not known. Objectives: To study the magnitude of depression among the elderly masses in rural Maharashtra and to find its correlates. Material and Methods: This is a cross sectional study, carried out among the elderly (≥60 years) population of both sexes residing in the field practice area of the department of community medicine. Geriatric depression scale was used for screening depression among the study population. Data collection was completed within 2 months using convenience sampling. Ethical approval was taken before beginning the study. Magnitude was expressed in percentage along with its 95% confidence interval (CI). Univariate and multivariate logistic regression was carried out to study associated correlates. Odds ratio and 95% CI was used to express association. Results: The magnitude of depression among the elderly population was found to be 41.7% (95% CI 36.1–47.4). We got the significant positive association of female sex, living without spouse, lacking in decision making capability, a victim of abuse or neglect, or suffering from chronic illnesses with depression among elderly population in univariate analysis that did not hold good in the multivariate logistic regression. Our study showed the prevalence of mild depression among elderly to be 26.72% and that of severe depression to be 15.17%. Conclusion: To deal with this huge social problem of depression among the elderly population, more enthusiastic steps should be undertaken.

Ramesh Pawar

Papers

Magnitude of depression and its correlates among elderly population in a rural area of Maharashtra: A cross-sectional study.