Psychosocial determinants of depression in the community of the elderly with cardiovascular disease

The co-morbidity of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and depression is quite frequent in old people, and some potential biological and behavioural mechanisms linking them have been reported. Yet the impact of psychosocial factors on depression in the elderly with CVD remains unclear. This study aimed to analyze the psychosocial determinants of depression in the elderly with CVD. Using the Geriatric Mental Status-Automated Geriatric Examination for Computer Assisted Taxonomy, a community-based household survey was performed in 2,199 elderly people from the Anhui cohort third-wave survey from 2007 to 2009 and an extended study in Hubei from 2010 to 2011. Multiple logistic regression analyses were employed to assess the influence of psychosocial factors on depression. Among them, the prevalence of depression was 4.77%. Three factors were associated with depression in elderly in the community: self-assessed physical health status, anything else severely upsetting and unpleasantness with relatives, friends, or neighbors. In particular, associations of psychosocial factors with depression were more evident in individuals with CVD. This study confirms several psychosocial determinants of depression and the impact of CVD on the associations among the elderly, which provides some clues for interventional strategies of late-life depression.