Shared Risk Factors for Depressive Disorder Among Older Adult Couples in Korea

Abstract

ImportanceAlthough couples may share many risk factors for depressive disorders in their lifetime, whether these factors mediate the shared risk of depressive disorders has rarely been investigated.ObjectivesTo identify the shared risk factors for depressive disorder in couples and investigate their mediating roles in the shared risk of depressive disorders among older adult couples.Design, Setting, and ParticipantsThis nationwide, multicenter, community-based cohort study assessed 956 older adults from the Korean Longitudinal Study on Cognitive Aging and Dementia (KLOSCAD) and a cohort of their spouses (KLOSCAD-S) between January 1, 2019, to February 28, 2021.ExposuresDepressive disorders of the KLOSCAD participants.Main Outcomes and MeasuresThe mediating roles of shared factors in couples on the association between one spouse’s depressive disorder and the other’s risk of depressive disorders was examined using structural equation modeling.ResultsA total of 956 KLOSCAD participants (385 women [40.3%] and 571 men [59.7%]; mean [SD] age, 75.1 [5.0] years) and their spouses (571 women [59.7%] and 385 men [40.3%]; mean [SD] age, 73.9 [6.1] years) were included. The depressive disorders of the KLOSCAD participants were associated with an almost 4-fold higher risk of depressive disorders in their spouses in the KLOSCAD-S cohort (odds ratio, 3.89; 95% CI, 2.06-7.19; P < .001). Social-emotional support mediated the association between depressive disorders in the KLOSCAD participants and their spouses’ risk of depressive disorders by itself (β = 0.012; 95% CI, 0.001-0.024; P = .04; mediation proportion [MP] = 6.1%) and through chronic illness burden (β = 0.003; 95% CI, 0.000-0.006; P = .04; MP = 1.5%). Chronic medical illness burden (β = 0.025; 95% CI, 0.001-0.050; P = .04; MP = 12.6%) and presence of a cognitive disorder (β = 0.027; 95% CI, 0.003-0.051; P = .03; MP = 13.6%) mediated the association.Conclusions and RelevanceThe risk factors shared by older adult couples may mediate approximately one-third of the spousal risk of depressive disorders. Identification of and intervention in the shared risk factors of depression among older adult couples may reduce the risk of depressive disorders in the spouses of older adults with depression.

Factors associated with depressive symptoms among cancer patients: a nationwide cross-sectional study

“…Depression is affected by many comorbidities, such as hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, bone diseases, injury, organ related diseases [ 19 , 38 ]. Among the comorbidities included in this study, only arthritis was found to be positively associated with depressive symptoms in cancer patients.…”