Association of uric acid/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio (UHR) with depression risk in US adults: A cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND

The uric acid/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio (UHR) is a new indicator of inflammation and metabolism that has been found to be strongly associated with several chronic diseases. However, the relationship between the UHR and depression has not been studied to date.

METHODS

The study included a total of 16,920 participants aged 20 years and older from NHANES 2005-2018. Logistic regression models with weights were used to evaluate the association between quintile levels of UHR and depression risk.

RESULTS

Elevated UHR levels were significantly associated with a 52 % increased risk of depression after multivariable adjustment (Q5 OR: 1.52, 95 % CI: 1.26, 1.83, P-trend <0.001). We found a significant interaction between UHR level and sex (P = 0.018), but no significant interaction between UHR and other factors, including age, smoking, alcohol consumption, education level, marital status, household income poverty ratio and physical activity. Stratified analyses of these factors showed that high levels of UHR were significantly associated with risk of depression in groups who were female, younger, had never smoked, were alcohol drinkers, had higher levels of education, were cohabiters, had the highest and lowest household incomes, and were physically active.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, UHR was positively associated with an increased risk of depression, suggesting that UHR levels can be used as a comprehensive indicator for the early identification of depression risk.