Sociodemographic correlates of unipolar major depression among the Chinese elderly in Klang Valley, Malaysia: an epidemiological study.

BACKGROUND

Depression, as one of the most disabling diseases around the world, had caught the global concern with its rising prevalence rate. There is a growing need of detecting depression, particularly in the old age population which is often left being overlooked.

METHODS

We conducted a cross-sectional community-based study which included 150 Chinese elderly aged 60 and above within Klang Valley area. We obtained the sociodemographic profiles and assessed the status of well-being, depression, and cognitive function of the participants with the help of instruments: WHO Five-Item Well-Being Index, Major (ICD-10) Depression Inventory, and 6-Item Cognitive Impairment Test.

RESULTS

We found that the prevalence of depression among the Chinese elderly within Klang Valley region was 10.7%. With multiple logistic regression, decision to consult doctor on depressed mood or memory problem and presence of cognitive impairment were shown to be significantly associated with unipolar major depression, whereas wellbeing status was also found to be statistically correlated with depression in univariate analysis.

CONCLUSION

The prevalence of unipolar depression among Chinese elderly within Klang Valley, Malaysia presented that there was an increased trend compared to the previous studies.