Multimorbidity in a Mexican Community: Secondary Analysis of Chronic Illness and Depression Outcomes

The aims of this article are: 1) to examine the associations between health provider-diagnosed depression and multimorbidity, the condition of suffering from more than two chronic illnesses; 2) to assess the unique contribution of chronic illness in the prediction of depression; and 3) to suggest practice changes that would address risk of depression among individuals with chronic illnesses. Data collected in a cross-sectional community health study among adult Mexicans ( n = 274) living in a low income neighborhood ( colonia ) in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico, were examined. We tested the hypotheses that individuals who reported suffering chronic illnesses would also report higher rates of depression than healthy individuals; and having that two or more chronic illnesses further increased the risk of depression.