Depression Linked to Arthritis Risk

Arthritis is commonly diagnosed in older adults with varying levels of depression, according to the results of a recent study.

While depression and arthritis are known comorbidities, little information on the epidemiology of arthritis in older adults with depression is available.

“Better characterization of arthritis rates among older adults with different levels of depressive symptoms is an important step toward informing mental health professionals of the need to detect and respond to arthritis and related mental health complications,” the researchers explained.

They conducted an analysis of data from 4792 participants, aged 50 years and older, in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2011 to 2014.

Overall, they found that the prevalence of arthritis was 55%, 62.9%, and 67.8% in participants with minor, moderate, and severe depression, respectively.

A significant association between moderate depression and arthritis persisted in both unadjusted and adjusted regression models.

“This study highlights the importance of screening for and treating arthritis‐related pain in older adults with depressive symptoms and the need for future geriatric psychiatry research on developing integrated biopsychosocial interventions for these common conditions.”

—Michael Potts

Reference:

Brooks JM, Titus AJ, Polenick CA, et al. Prevalence rates of arthritis among US older adults with varying degrees of depression: Findings from the 2011 to 2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey [published online September 19, 2018]. Geriatric Psychiatry. https://doi.org/10.1002/gps.4971