Personality disorder symptoms and functioning in elderly depressed patients.

The authors evaluated the relationship of personality disorder symptoms to disability and social and interpersonal functioning in geriatric depression. Measures of personality disorder and cognitive, affective, social, interpersonal, medical, socioeconomic factors, and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) status were administered to 47 elderly patients at various levels of remission from major depression. Total personality disorder scores were inversely associated with IADL, sociability, and presence of a satisfying relationship, both alone and in interaction with depression. The associations between personality disorder and functioning were most prominent in subjects with low residual depression. Symptoms of personality disorder in elderly patients may be associated with disability and impaired social and interpersonal functioning after an acute depressive episode; personality disorder symptoms may also have treatment implications for geriatric depression.