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Mortality and mental disorders in a Spanish elderly population
Author(s) -
Saz Pedro,
Launer Lenore J.,
Día JoséLuis,
DeLaCámara Concepción,
Marcos Guillermo,
Lobo Antonio
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
international journal of geriatric psychiatry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.28
H-Index - 129
eISSN - 1099-1166
pISSN - 0885-6230
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1099-1166(199912)14:12<1031::aid-gps59>3.0.co;2-v
Subject(s) - depression (economics) , dementia , comorbidity , logistic regression , odds ratio , medicine , psychiatry , organic mental disorders , neuroticism , demography , population , confidence interval , gerontology , psychology , delirium , disease , personality , social psychology , environmental health , sociology , economics , macroeconomics
Objective To analyse the relationship between mental disorders and mortality rates in the elderly community of Zaragoza, Spain. Methods Baseline, cross‐sectional study (two‐stage screening) of a representative, stratified sample ( N =1080) of the elderly (65+ years) living in the community. Follow‐up study (4.5 years). Instruments: Spanish versions of Geriatric Mental State, AGECAT computerized diagnostic program and Mini‐Mental Status Examination. Results Two hundred and sixteen subjects died during the follow‐up period (global mortality rate 4.8% per year). Using a logistic regression model with sex, age, educational level, physical illness and AGECAT diagnoses as explanatory variables and alive/dead as response, the following odds ratios (95% confidence intervals in parentheses) were obtained (reference group: non‐cases): ‘subcases’ 1.3 (0.9–2.0), ‘organic’ (dementia) 3.7 (2.0–6.7), global depression 3.0 (1.7–5.3), ‘psychotic’ depression (melancholic type) 3.7 (1.7–8.4), ‘neurotic’ depression 2.7 (1.4–5.3) and ‘neuroses’ 0.8 (0.2–3.6). Both pure ‘organic’ and pure ‘depressed’ cases had higher mortality when compared with comorbidity cases. Conclusion There is a significant association between psychiatric morbidity and mortality in the elderly living in a Spanish community. Mortality risk in psychiatric cases are higher than previously reported in the literature. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.