Local area deprivation and urban-rural differences in anxiety and depression among people older than 75 years in Britain.
Walters, Kate;
Breeze, Elizabeth;
Wilkinson, Paul;
Price, Gill M;
Bulpitt, Chris J;
Fletcher, Astrid;
(2004)
Local area deprivation and urban-rural differences in anxiety and depression among people older than 75 years in Britain.
American journal of public health, 94 (10).
pp. 1768-1774.
ISSN 0090-0036
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2105/ajph.94.10.1768
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OBJECTIVES: We sought to determine the association of depression and anxiety with "area deprivation" (neighborhood socioeconomic deprivation) and population density among people older than 75 years in Britain. METHODS: Postal codes were used to link census area information to individual data on depression and anxiety in 13349 people aged 75 years and older taking part in a trial of health screening. RESULTS: Living in the most socioeconomically deprived areas was associated with depression (OR=1.4), but this relation disappeared after adjusting for individual deprivation characteristics. There was no association with anxiety. Living in the highest density and intermediate low-density areas was associated with depression (OR=1.6 and 1.5) and anxiety (OR=1.5 and 1.3) compared with the lowest density areas. CONCLUSIONS: An association between area deprivation and depression in older people was explained by individual health, demographic, and socioeconomic factors. Higher population density was consistently associated with increased depression and anxiety.
