Objectives. To determine whether older couples are more likely to be concordant for depressive symptoms. Methods. 4328 older couples were interviewed as part of wave 1 of the Health and Retirement Survey. Couples were sampled if at least one spouse or partner was between the ages of 51 and 61 years. A shortened version of the Center for Epidemiologic Surveys Depression Scale was used to measure depressive symptoms. A cut-off score of 9 or above on the 33-point scale was used to determine clinical significance. Results. 4.4% of couples were concordant for depressive symptoms, which was higher than expected (chi-square=141.1, p<.001). Multivariate logistic regression indicated that in either partner poor health (woman’s OR=7.3, p<.001; man’s OR=3.5, p=.002), marital dissatisfaction (woman’s OR=2.1, p=.001; man’s OR=14.6, p=.001), or job dissatisfaction (woman’s OR=2.7, p=.001; man’s OR=2.4, p=.004), were associated with greater odds of concordance. Higher woman’s age (OR=0.9, p<.001), but not man’s, was associated with lower odds of concordance, as was the woman’s (but not the man’s) attendance at religious services (OR=0.4, p=.01). Compared with European Americans, couples including a Native American man were more likely to be concordant for depressive symptoms (OR=4.3, p=.007); the woman’s ethnicity was not related to concordance. Poor memory (OR=9.5, p<.001) and dissatisfaction with financial situation (OR=2.6, p=.008) in the man were associated with greater odds of concordance. Conclusions. Physical health, ethnicity, age, job satisfaction and relationship quality were associated with depression concordance in mature couples. Longitudinal analysis is necessary to evaluate the directionality of these associations.
Learning Objectives: At the end of this session, the participant will be able to: 1. Understand the concept of depressive symptom comorbidity between spouses 2. Identify factors associated with depressive symptom comorbidity 3. Describe how male and female partners contribute differentially to the risk of comorbidity
Keywords: Depression, Elderly
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.