Time Trends in Mortality Associated with Depression: Findings from the Stirling County Study

Abstract

Objective The question addressed is whether a mortality risk associated with depression in a 1952 representative sample of Stirling County adults changed in a new sample of 1970 and whether there was a change in relationships to cigarette smoking and alcoholism. Method Sample members were interviewed about depression and cigarette smoking. General physicians were interviewed by psychiatrists regarding alcoholism. Information about death as of December 31, 1992 was provided by Statistics Canada. Proportional hazards models were fitted in the two samples to assess the mortality risks associated with depression among men and women over 20 years of follow-up, and additionally among men with heavy smoking and alcoholism. Specific causes of death were investigated. Results Hazard ratios representing the association between depression and premature death among men were 2.6 (95%CI 1.4 to 4.9) and 2.8 (95%CI 1.5 to 5.1) respectively in the 1952 and 1970 samples for the first 10 years of follow-up. Hazard ratios for women were 1.4 (95%CI 0.6 to 3.2) and 1.2 (95%CI 0.5 to 2.9). The risk associated with depression among men was independent of alcoholism and heavy smoking. Depression and alcoholism were significantly associated with death due to external causes and to circulatory disease; heavy smoking with malignant neoplasms. Conclusion The mortality associated with depression did not change over the period of 1952 to 1970. Depressed men experienced a significant mortality risk that was not matched among depressed women and also was not due to alcoholism and heavy smoking.

Depression and mortality in a longitudinal study: 1952–2011

“…The first linkage covered deaths that occurred through Dec. 31, 1992 (1047 deaths observed). 16 The second is a newly completed linkage of the Stirling County Study 1992 survivors (n = 2586) to the mortality database that covers deaths that occurred through Dec. 31, 2011 (1014 deaths observed). The database linkage was implemented using the Generalized Iterative Record Linkage System, 29,30 which generates probability ratios for each potential match between records in the study cohort and the Canadian Mortality Database based on participants' names, parents' names, date of birth, sex and postal code.…”

“…Previous reports from the Stirling County Study showed increased risk of mortality among participants with depression in the 1952 sample who were followed through 1968 [17][18][19] and through 1992, 16 and increased mortality risk associated with depression among participants in the 1970 sample followed through 1992. 20 Here, we…”

“…7,16 Addressing these gaps requires populationbased data on depression and subsequent mortality over a long period.…”

Guideline-Recommended Medications: Variation Across Medicare Advantage Plans and Associated Mortality

“…A steadily increasing body of literature continues to document an association between depression and mortality in elderly populations. 31,32 We cannot state that higher use of antidepressant medications was the cause of higher mortality across plans. It may be that the use of antidepressants is a marker for worse depression.…”

Antidepressants: Can't Live With Them, Can't Live Without Them

“…For MDD, take away the stress and the depression persists. Furthermore, MDD is usually accompanied by other psychiatric disorders, especially anxiety and other medical disorders, 5 -6 with an increased risk of death from all causes, 7 especially cardiovascular diseases. In fact, MDD is associated with decreased heart rate variability and for those who are postmyocardial infarction, MDD is as potent a predictor of poor outcomes.…”