von Känel Roland, Weilenmann Sonja, Spiller Tobias R
Department of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry and Psychosomatic Medicine, University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, CH-8006 Zurich, Switzerland.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Mar 1;18(5):2408. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18052408.
There is a strong relationship between loneliness and depression, but depression is a heterogeneous disorder. We examined the profile of depressive symptoms most strongly related to loneliness. Study participants were 2007 community-dwelling individuals (median age 31 years, 70.4% women) who completed an online survey on loneliness (single-item question: "never", "sometimes", "often"), depressive symptoms (Patient Health Questionnaire-9) and demographics. The relationship between loneliness and depressive symptoms was evaluated with linear regression and network analyses. The prevalence of loneliness (sometimes or often) and of moderate depression was 47.1% and 24.0%, respectively. Loneliness explained 26% of the variance in the total depressive symptom score ( < 0.001), independent of covariates. This result was almost exclusively explained by the relationship with a single depression symptom ("feeling down, depressed, or hopeless"), irrespective of whether loneliness was treated as a nominal or continuous variable. The findings of our study suggest that the role of loneliness in depression should not only be investigated at the syndrome level, but also at the symptom level. Studies are warranted to test whether targeted treatment of depressive affect is particularly effective against loneliness.
孤独与抑郁之间存在着紧密的联系，但抑郁是一种异质性疾病。我们研究了与孤独最为相关的抑郁症状特征。研究参与者为2007名社区居民（年龄中位数31岁，女性占70.4%），他们完成了一项关于孤独感（单项问题：“从不”“有时”“经常”）、抑郁症状（患者健康问卷-9）及人口统计学信息的在线调查。通过线性回归和网络分析评估孤独感与抑郁症状之间的关系。孤独感（有时或经常）和中度抑郁的患病率分别为47.1%和24.0%。孤独感独立于协变量，解释了总抑郁症状评分中26%的方差（<0.001）。这一结果几乎完全由与单一抑郁症状（“情绪低落、沮丧或绝望”）的关系所解释，无论孤独感被视为名义变量还是连续变量。我们的研究结果表明，孤独在抑郁中的作用不仅应在综合征层面进行研究，还应在症状层面进行研究。有必要开展研究以检验针对抑郁情绪的靶向治疗对孤独感是否特别有效。
