The impact of depression in old age on close social relationships.

Changes in the ratings of intimacy of personal relationships in depressed elderly patients were studied over a 1-year period. Those patients who had recovered by the end of the year were significantly more likely to report an improvement in the quality of their close relationships then were patients who had a poor clinical outcome. Changes in reports of intimacy were due not only to the effect of depression on the quality of relationships but also to independent life events occurring in the follow-up period.