Association between depression and dementia in older adults
Valkanova V., Ebmeier KP., Allan CL.
Depression and dementia are common in older people, and frequently occur together. Large-scale community surveys in the United States using structured interviews based on DSM-IV-TR found that the 12-month point prevalence of major depressive disorder in community-living adults aged 65 and older is 3.0-4.3%. Depression affects up to 20% of patients with Alzheimer’s disease and up to 45% of patients with vascular dementia. The comorbidity of depression and dementia is more than that simply expected by chance, implying that they are related. Their interrelationship, however, is not well understood. Depression can be an independent risk factor, a prodromal symptom or a consequence of dementia.