Factors Associated with Depressive Symptoms Among Community-Dwelling Older People in East-Coast Malaysia

Abstract

Older people are increasing in number globally, and they are likely to have mental health problems, including de-pression. In this population, the risk of having depressive symptoms is very high due to multidimensional factors, but these symptoms are often undertreated. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and associated factors of de-pressive symptoms among community-dwelling older people living on the East Coast of Malaysia. A cross-sectional study was conducted in several areas of the state of Terengganu based on multilayered stratified sampling. A total of 240 participants were randomly selected. Several instruments were employed, such as the Geriatric Depression Scale, University of California Los Angeles Loneliness Scale, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, Elderly Cognitive Assessment Questionnaire, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, Duke University Religion Index, Barthel Modified Index, and Instrumental Activities of Daily Living Scale. The prevalence of depressive symptoms was 24.6%. The re-sults of the multivariate logistic regression model also revealed that being a single elderly (adjusted odd ratio [aOR] = 4.42; Confidence Interval [CI] = 1.22; 15.96), poor social support (aOR = 3.06; CI = 1.18; 7.93), loneliness (aOR = 21.11; CI = 9.87; 45.18), impaired functional status (aOR = 3.39; CI = 1.22; 9.39), impaired instrumental function (aOR = 6.09; CI = 1.95; 19.0), and having asthma (aOR = 14.14; CI = 2.83; 70.5) were associated with depressive symptoms. Thus, screening older people during primary care is needed for early detection of depression and initiation of communi-ty-based interventions to address the psychological aspects of this disorder