Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Observational Study
. 2018 Sep 11;73(10):1370-1376.
doi: 10.1093/gerona/glx162.

Biological Age, Not Chronological Age, Is Associated with Late-Life Depression

Affiliations
Observational Study

Biological Age, Not Chronological Age, Is Associated with Late-Life Depression

Patrick J Brown et al. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. .

Abstract

Background: The pathophysiology of late-life depression (LLD) is complex and heterogeneous, with age-related processes implicated in its pathogenesis. This study examined the cross-sectional and longitudinal association between depressive symptoms and a baseline multibiomarker algorithm of biological age (BA) that aggregates indicators of inflammatory, metabolic, cardiovascular, lung, liver, and kidney functioning.

Method: Data were analyzed from 2,776 men and women from the prospective observational Health Aging and Body Composition Study, who had both evaluable chronological age (CA) and BA. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D) scale.

Results: A covariate-adjusted regression model showed that BA (B = 0.03, p = .0471) but not CA (B = -0.01, p = .7185) is associated with baseline CES-D scores. The mean baseline BA for individuals with a CES-D ≥ 10 was 1.28 years greater than in those with a CES-D < 10. Comparatively, there is only a 0.05-year difference in mean CA between the two depression groups. A covariate-adjusted longitudinal model found that baseline BA predicts CES-D score at follow-up (B = 0.04, p = .0058), whereas CA does not (B = 0.03, p = .4125). Additionally, an older BA significantly predicted a CES-D ≥ 10 (B = 0.02, p = .032) over a 10-year period.

Conclusions: A multibiomarker index of an older adult's BA outperformed their CA in predicting subsequent increased and clinically significant depressive symptoms. This result supports the evolving view of LLD as a brain disorder resulting from deleterious age-associated changes across numerous physiological systems.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
The predicted prevalence of significant depressive symptoms and cognitive impairment at baseline as a function of baseline biological and chronological age. (a) Significant depressive symptoms (CES-D ≥ 10). (b) Significant cognitive impairment (3MS ≤ 78). Note: Depicted is the predicted prevalence of experiencing significant depressive symptoms (Figure 1a; CES-D ≥ 10) and significant cognitive impairment (Figure 1b; 3MS ≤ 78) at baseline with the 95% confidence intervals plotted against BA and CA. The regression line for CA was extended beyond the baseline age range (68–80 years; reflected as a dashed line) for ease of comparison between BA and CA. BA = Biological age; CA = Chronological age; CES-D = Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale.

References

    1. Meeks TW, Vahia IV, Lavretsky H, Kulkarni G, Jeste DV. A tune in “a minor” can “b major”: a review of epidemiology, illness course, and public health implications of subthreshold depression in older adults. J Affect Disord. 2011;129:126–142. doi:10.1016/j.jad.2010.09.015 - PMC - PubMed
    1. Rothschild AJ. The diagnosis and treatment of late-life depression. J Clin Psychiatry. 1996;57(suppl 5):5–11. - PubMed
    1. Callahan CM, Wolinsky FD, Stump TE, Nienaber NA, Hui SL, Tierney WM. Mortality, symptoms, and functional impairment in late-life depression. J Gen Intern Med. 1998;13:746–752. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Conwell Y, Lyness JM, Duberstein P et al. . Completed suicide among older patients in primary care practices: a controlled study. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2000;48:23–29. - PubMed
    1. Alexopoulos GS, Meyers BS, Young RC et al. . Recovery in geriatric depression. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 1996;53:305–312. - PubMed

Publication types