In Brief: Chronic mild depression can affect older adults' immune systems, study finds

2002 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Greengrass
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Mild Depression ◽  
Immune Systems

scholarly journals Examining variation in depressive symptoms over the life course: a latent class analysis

2012 ◽  
Vol 42 (10) ◽  
pp. 2037-2046 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Mezuk ◽  
K. S. Kendler
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Latent Class Analysis ◽  
Latent Class ◽  
Depressive Symptomatology ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Severe Depression ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Class Analysis ◽  
Mild Depression

BackgroundOlder adults have the lowest prevalence and incidence of major depressive disorder, although it has been hypothesized that this finding is due in part to differences in expression of psychopathology in later life. The aim of this study was to examine variation in depressive symptomatology in the general population across the lifespan.MethodData came from three sites of the Epidemiologic Catchment Area (ECA) Project (n=10 529). Depressive symptoms during the past 6 months were assessed using the Diagnostic Interview Schedule (DIS). Latent class analysis (LCA) was used to identify homogeneous groups of depressive symptomatology based on 16 individual symptoms, and to examine variation in the prevalence and composition of depression classes across age groups.ResultsThe DIS symptoms fit a four-class model composed of non-depressed (83.2%), mild depression (11.6%), severe depression (1.9%), and despondent (3.2%) groups. Relative to the non-depressed class, older age was inversely associated with being in the mild or severe depression class. The profile of the latent classes was similar across age groups with the exception of the despondent class, which was not well differentiated among the youngest adults and was not inversely associated with age.ConclusionsThe symptom profiles of depression are similar across age with the exception of the despondent class, which is more differentiated from severe depression among older adults. The findings demonstrate the benefit of examining individual symptoms rather than broad symptom groups for understanding the natural history of depression over the lifespan.

scholarly journals Depressive Symptoms Versus Depression in Older Adults in a Rural Community

2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 321-327
Author(s):  
Clemente Cordero Sánchez ◽  
Guillermina García Madrid ◽  
Marcela Flores Merlo ◽  
Francisco Javier Báez Hernández ◽  
Alejandro Torres Reyes ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Rural Community ◽  
Depressive Episode ◽  
Major Depressive Episode ◽  
Severe Depression ◽  
Female Gender ◽  
Geriatric Syndrome ◽  
Mild Depression ◽  
Major Depressive

Depression is a mood disorder characterized by loss of interest or pleasure in activities of daily living. Frequent and disabling geriatric syndrome that often goes unnoticed, which generates physical and functional. The objective was to know the depressive symptoms in older adults in a rural community in the state of Puebla, Mexico. Study was descriptive, correlational, cross, made of 155 seniors was an applied to Scale Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression CES-D and the Scale of Yesavage. The age range of older adults was 60 to 90 years, with a predominance of female gender in 65.2%, the CES-D reported 18.7% were found no clinical y significant symptoms, 70.3% in symptoms of sub- threshold depression, 9% in possible major depressive episode, 1.9% in probable major depressive episode. Similar results to those of Scale of Yesavage 43.2% found no evidence of depression, 32.9% with mild depression, 17.4% with moderate depression and 6.5% with severe depression. Noticing a difference by gender (Women=8482.00, Male=3608.00, p=.023). Knowing depressive symptoms in older adults can implement care interventions based on scientific evidence.

scholarly journals Depressive Symptoms Versus Depression in Older Adults in a Rural Community

2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 321-327
Author(s):  
Clemente Cordero Sánchez ◽  
Guillermina García Madrid ◽  
Marcela Flores Merlo ◽  
Francisco Javier Báez Hernández ◽  
Alejandro Torres Reyes ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Rural Community ◽  
Depressive Episode ◽  
Major Depressive Episode ◽  
Severe Depression ◽  
Female Gender ◽  
Geriatric Syndrome ◽  
Mild Depression ◽  
Major Depressive

Depression is a mood disorder characterized by loss of interest or pleasure in activities of daily living. Frequent and disabling geriatric syndrome that often goes unnoticed, which generates physical and functional. The objective was to know the depressive symptoms in older adults in a rural community in the state of Puebla, Mexico. Study was descriptive, correlational, cross, made of 155 seniors was an applied to Scale Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression CES-D and the Scale of Yesavage. The age range of older adults was 60 to 90 years, with a predominance of female gender in 65.2%, the CES-D reported 18.7% were found no clinical y significant symptoms, 70.3% in symptoms of sub- threshold depression, 9% in possible major depressive episode, 1.9% in probable major depressive episode. Similar results to those of Scale of Yesavage 43.2% found no evidence of depression, 32.9% with mild depression, 17.4% with moderate depression and 6.5% with severe depression. Noticing a difference by gender (Women=8482.00, Male=3608.00, p=.023). Knowing depressive symptoms in older adults can implement care interventions based on scientific evidence.

scholarly journals DEPRESSION SEVERITY AND OBSTRUCTIVE SLEEP APNEA IN OLDER ADULTS

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S167-S167
Author(s):  
Nicholas C Boston ◽  
Ryan Bennett ◽  
Nikolas Cirillo ◽  
Andrew Solow ◽  
Nicole Fornalski ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Obstructive Sleep Apnea ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Sleep Apnea ◽  
Muscle Tone ◽  
Univariate Analysis ◽  
Severe Depression ◽  
Depression Severity ◽  
Mild Depression ◽  
Obstructive Sleep

Abstract Objective: The connection between obstructive sleep apnea and depression in older adults is well documented; however, to date the relationship between severity of these depressive symptoms in this population remains under-explored. As such, the current analysis examined a potential relationship between varying levels of depression severity among older adults with sleep apnea. Participants and Methods: Data was derived from a de-identified database of older adults (age>=65) from the National Alzheimer’s Coordinating Center (NACC). The sample (N=90; 50% female; 97.8% Caucasian; Mage=77 years; SDage=10.4 years) was sorted into three groups using the Neuropsychiatric Inventory Questionnaire (NPI-Q): 1) Mild Depression [n=56], 2) Moderate Depression [n=29], and 3) Severe Depression [n=5]. Results: A univariate analysis revealed an overall significant omnibus effect between sleep apnea and depression severity (F[2,4041])=16.231, p<.001), while controlling for age, race, and sex. Post-hoc comparison found that those with severe depression had significantly higher levels of sleep apnea compared to those with mild (Mdif =-.499, p = .029) and moderate (Mdif =-.597, p = .009). Conclusions: These data support the possible association between depression severity and obstructive sleep apnea. Results may be attributable to two different theories: that low serotonin levels may simultaneously influence depression, respiratory muscle-tone, and sleep disturbance, and that intermittent hypoxia may create a cascade effect of neurovascular pathology resulting in depressive symptoms. Implications of the current findings suggest it may prove beneficial to keep in mind the risks associated with sleep apnea, and more severe depression, should an individual present with either.

Cognitive control constrains memory attributions

2019 ◽  
Vol 42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Colleen M. Kelley ◽  
Larry L. Jacoby
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Injury ◽  
Cognitive Control

Abstract Cognitive control constrains retrieval processing and so restricts what comes to mind as input to the attribution system. We review evidence that older adults, patients with Alzheimer's disease, and people with traumatic brain injury exert less cognitive control during retrieval, and so are susceptible to memory misattributions in the form of dramatic levels of false remembering.

Cognitive Load Affects Speech Motor Performance Differently in Older and Younger Adults

2019 ◽  
Vol 62 (5) ◽  
pp. 1258-1277 ◽  
Author(s):  
Megan K. MacPherson
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Cognitive Load ◽  
Motor Performance ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Incongruent Condition ◽  
Sentence Production ◽  
Movement Duration ◽  
Production Task ◽  
Younger Adults ◽  
Speech Motor

PurposeThe aim of this study was to determine the impact of cognitive load imposed by a speech production task on the speech motor performance of healthy older and younger adults. Response inhibition, selective attention, and working memory were the primary cognitive processes of interest.MethodTwelve healthy older and 12 healthy younger adults produced multiple repetitions of 4 sentences containing an embedded Stroop task in 2 cognitive load conditions: congruent and incongruent. The incongruent condition, which required participants to suppress orthographic information to say the font colors in which color words were written, represented an increase in cognitive load relative to the congruent condition in which word text and font color matched. Kinematic measures of articulatory coordination variability and movement duration as well as a behavioral measure of sentence production accuracy were compared between groups and conditions and across 3 sentence segments (pre-, during-, and post-Stroop).ResultsIncreased cognitive load in the incongruent condition was associated with increased articulatory coordination variability and movement duration, compared to the congruent Stroop condition, for both age groups. Overall, the effect of increased cognitive load was greater for older adults than younger adults and was greatest in the portion of the sentence in which cognitive load was manipulated (during-Stroop), followed by the pre-Stroop segment. Sentence production accuracy was reduced for older adults in the incongruent condition.ConclusionsIncreased cognitive load involving response inhibition, selective attention, and working memory processes within a speech production task disrupted both the stability and timing with which speech was produced by both age groups. Older adults' speech motor performance may have been more affected due to age-related changes in cognitive and motoric functions that result in altered motor cognition.

Effects of Aging on the Subcortical Encoding of Stop Consonants

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 391-403
Author(s):  
Dania Rishiq ◽  
Ashley Harkrider ◽  
Cary Springer ◽  
Mark Hedrick
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Mixed Model ◽  
Auditory Brainstem ◽  
Auditory Brainstem Responses ◽  
Aging Effects ◽  
Formant Frequency ◽  
Place Of Articulation ◽  
Second Formant ◽  
Effects Of Aging

Purpose The main purpose of this study was to evaluate aging effects on the predominantly subcortical (brainstem) encoding of the second-formant frequency transition, an essential acoustic cue for perceiving place of articulation. Method Synthetic consonant–vowel syllables varying in second-formant onset frequency (i.e., /ba/, /da/, and /ga/ stimuli) were used to elicit speech-evoked auditory brainstem responses (speech-ABRs) in 16 young adults ( M age = 21 years) and 11 older adults ( M age = 59 years). Repeated-measures mixed-model analyses of variance were performed on the latencies and amplitudes of the speech-ABR peaks. Fixed factors were phoneme (repeated measures on three levels: /b/ vs. /d/ vs. /g/) and age (two levels: young vs. older). Results Speech-ABR differences were observed between the two groups (young vs. older adults). Specifically, older listeners showed generalized amplitude reductions for onset and major peaks. Significant Phoneme × Group interactions were not observed. Conclusions Results showed aging effects in speech-ABR amplitudes that may reflect diminished subcortical encoding of consonants in older listeners. These aging effects were not phoneme dependent as observed using the statistical methods of this study.

Partner-Specific Communication Deficits in Individuals With Alzheimer's Disease

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Eun Jin Paek ◽  
Si On Yoon
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Referential Communication ◽  
Sorting Task ◽  
Audience Design ◽  
Healthy Older Adults ◽  
Communication Task ◽  
Design Skills ◽  
Referential Expressions

Purpose Speakers adjust referential expressions to the listeners' knowledge while communicating, a phenomenon called “audience design.” While individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD) show difficulties in discourse production, it is unclear whether they exhibit preserved partner-specific audience design. The current study examined if individuals with AD demonstrate partner-specific audience design skills. Method Ten adults with mild-to-moderate AD and 12 healthy older adults performed a referential communication task with two experimenters (E1 and E2). At first, E1 and participants completed an image-sorting task, allowing them to establish shared labels. Then, during testing, both experimenters were present in the room, and participants described images to either E1 or E2 (randomly alternating). Analyses focused on the number of words participants used to describe each image and whether they reused shared labels. Results During testing, participants in both groups produced shorter descriptions when describing familiar images versus new images, demonstrating their ability to learn novel knowledge. When they described familiar images, healthy older adults modified their expressions depending on the current partner's knowledge, producing shorter expressions and more established labels for the knowledgeable partner (E1) versus the naïve partner (E2), but individuals with AD were less likely to do so. Conclusions The current study revealed that both individuals with AD and the control participants were able to acquire novel knowledge, but individuals with AD tended not to flexibly adjust expressions depending on the partner's knowledge state. Conversational inefficiency and difficulties observed in AD may, in part, stem from disrupted audience design skills.

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