Depression in adulthood threatens to backfire with senile dementia
A new study has found a strong link between depression and dementia. A diagnosis of depression in adulthood can more than double the risk of developing dementia in older age, according to the scientists' findings. class=»article__picture-image» alt=»Depression in adulthood threatens to backfire with senile dementia» />
The study, published Monday in the journal JAMA Neurology, used data from more than 1.4 million Danish citizens who were followed from 1977 to 2018, says study lead author Dr. Holly Elser, an epidemiologist and neuroscience resident at the University of Pennsylvania.
The study said people were diagnosed with depression or not and were followed for years to see who developed dementia later in life. The researchers controlled for factors such as education, income, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, substance use disorders and bipolar disorder, CNN reports.
The large dataset and multiple analyzes the researchers used made their findings strong and reliable, but the study is limited by the inaccessibility of information such as genetic data, said Dr Natalie Marchant, assistant professor of psychiatry at University College London.
According to Dr. Holly Elser, depression in adulthood is often considered an early symptom of dementia, and many previous studies have linked the two. But the latest study also shows an association between the risk of developing dementia and diagnoses of depression in early and middle age.
“So our results provide strong evidence that depression is not only an early symptom of dementia, but that depression increases the risk of developing dementia”, she said.
Although the link between depression and dementia has been shown to be strong, there are still questions that the study does not address. gives an answer, emphasizes CNN.
«For example, there may be common risk factors for depression and dementia that occur early in life, depression may increase the risk of dementia due to altered levels of key neurotransmitters, or depression may lead to changes in health behavior that in turn increase the risk of dementia,» added Dr. Holly Elser.
«There is a clear need for future research that explores the potential mechanisms linking depression in early adulthood to the subsequent development of dementia,» notes Elser.
Another piece of findings that might warrant further study, according to Natalie Marchant, is the stronger association found in men than in women.
“This is an interesting finding that I hope will be explored further,» added and she. – This supports the idea that we need to regularly review the risk factors for dementia in men and women separately, as different mechanisms may be involved.
According to Dr. Elser, the latest study looked at antidepressant treatment up to six months after diagnosis and found no difference in risk between treated and untreated groups.
She added that more research into whether medication and cognitive behavioral therapy at different times and durations are effective in reducing risk would be important to move forward.
Preliminary results from other observational studies show that older adults who took part in therapy that reduced their symptoms of depression and/or anxiety also had a reduced risk of developing dementia in the future, Natalie Marchant added. However, because the studies were observational, researchers can't say whether the treatment resulted in a reduction in dementia, she added.
“However, taking care of your mental health is certainly still important for your well-being in the present,» Marchant emphasizes.
Holly Elser agrees that regardless of the risk of developing dementia, treating depression should be a priority.
“ Because depression is extremely common and comes with significant individual and societal costs, effective treatment of depressive symptoms should be a priority whether or not they increase the risk of dementia later in life,” she said.