Yonsei Institute of Health and Welfare, Yonsei University, Wonju, South Korea; Department of Health Administration, Yonsei University Graduate School, Wonju, South Korea.
Department of Health Administration, Yonsei University Graduate School, Wonju, South Korea.
Arch Gerontol Geriatr. 2021 May-Jun;94:104341. doi: 10.1016/j.archger.2021.104341. Epub 2021 Jan 19.
The study aims to understand the relationship between the living-alone period and depressive symptoms among the elderly in South Korea.
The study obtained data on the elderly over 65 years old from the 2006 to 2019 Korea Welfare Panel Study. Generalized estimating equation (GEE) analysis was performed to understand changes in depressive symptoms over periods of living alone. Additional subgroup analysis of age and gender was conducted to observe differences.
A total 568 (19% of the study samples) elderly transitioned from living with others into a living-alone state. Males and females showed a significant increase in depressive symptoms as they started to live alone, which gradually decreased with prolonged periods of living alone. The result of the GEE analysis demonstrated high odds of depressive symptoms during the first (OR = 1.857; 95% CI: 1.492-2.310), second (OR = 1.414; 95% CI: 1.127-1.774), and third (OR = 1.413; 95% CI: 1.105-1.808) years of living alone compared with living with others. Regarding additional subgroup analysis, the female and old-old groups showed high odds of depressive symptoms in the first 3 years of living alone, whereas the male and young-old groups showed high odds for the first year only.
The study provides valuable insights into the relationship between the living-alone period and depressive symptoms among the elderly. Future research using the living-alone period on various social factors are recommended.
本研究旨在了解韩国老年人独居期与抑郁症状之间的关系。
本研究从 2006 年至 2019 年的韩国福利面板研究中获取了 65 岁以上老年人的数据。采用广义估计方程（GEE）分析来了解独居期间抑郁症状的变化。进一步进行了年龄和性别亚组分析，以观察差异。
共有 568 名（研究样本的 19%）老年人从与他人同住转变为独居状态。男性和女性在开始独居时出现明显的抑郁症状增加，随着独居时间的延长逐渐减少。GEE 分析的结果表明，独居的第一年（OR=1.857；95%CI：1.492-2.310）、第二年（OR=1.414；95%CI：1.127-1.774）和第三年（OR=1.413；95%CI：1.105-1.808）发生抑郁症状的可能性明显高于与他人同住。关于进一步的亚组分析，女性和高龄组在独居的头 3 年出现抑郁症状的可能性较高，而男性和低龄组仅在第一年出现较高的可能性。
本研究提供了关于老年人独居期与抑郁症状之间关系的有价值的见解。建议未来使用独居期对各种社会因素进行研究。
