Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Depression is a mood disorder that is can affect daily physical and psychological well-being. Depression among elderly is common but often not recognised or treated. Many previous studies have reported prevalence of depression among Malaysian elderly between 6% to more than 50%. This study aims to evaluate the prevalence of depression among elderly living in urban areas in Malaysia and the factors that are associated with it. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was done among elderlies living in urban areas of Malaysia aged 60 and above. The validated Geriatric Depression Scale-14 questionnaire was used to screen for depression. A total score of 6 and above is classified as depression. Chi square analysis was done to analyse all factors associated. RESULTS: Out of 1690 urban elderlies interviewed, 169 were found to have depression giving a prevalence rate of 10.1%. Elderlies who were female (10.7%), Bumiputra Sarawak (26.9%), without spouse (15.6%), no formal education (22.1%), unemployed (11.8%) and had an income of less than rm1000 (14.7%) were more likely to be depressed. It was also found that marital status, education level, employment status and income level were found to be significantly associated with depression among urban elderly (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Depression is common among urban elderlies in Malaysia. Recognising these associated factors may indicate that low economic and educational status can contribute to depression among urban elderlies. Creating specialised programs and guidelines for detecting and treating depression can ensure successful management of this common but serious condition among our urban elderly population.
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@proceedings{APCPH-2019-148,
title = {Depression Among the Urban Elderly Living in Malaysia: Findings from NHMS 2018},
author = {Fazila Haryati Ahmad},
year = {2019},
date = {2019-07-22},
urldate = {2019-07-22},
journal = {6th Asia-Pacific Conference on Public Health 2019 Proceedings},
issue = {6},
abstract = {INTRODUCTION: Depression is a mood disorder that is can affect daily physical and psychological well-being. Depression among elderly is common but often not recognised or treated. Many previous studies have reported prevalence of depression among Malaysian elderly between 6% to more than 50%. This study aims to evaluate the prevalence of depression among elderly living in urban areas in Malaysia and the factors that are associated with it. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was done among elderlies living in urban areas of Malaysia aged 60 and above. The validated Geriatric Depression Scale-14 questionnaire was used to screen for depression. A total score of 6 and above is classified as depression. Chi square analysis was done to analyse all factors associated. RESULTS: Out of 1690 urban elderlies interviewed, 169 were found to have depression giving a prevalence rate of 10.1%. Elderlies who were female (10.7%), Bumiputra Sarawak (26.9%), without spouse (15.6%), no formal education (22.1%), unemployed (11.8%) and had an income of less than rm1000 (14.7%) were more likely to be depressed. It was also found that marital status, education level, employment status and income level were found to be significantly associated with depression among urban elderly (p\<0.05). CONCLUSION: Depression is common among urban elderlies in Malaysia. Recognising these associated factors may indicate that low economic and educational status can contribute to depression among urban elderlies. Creating specialised programs and guidelines for detecting and treating depression can ensure successful management of this common but serious condition among our urban elderly population.},
note = {Type: POSTER PRESENTATION; Organisation: Institute for Public Health, National Institutes of Health, Ministry of Health Malaysia, Setia Alam, Malaysia},
keywords = {Depression, Elderly, Malaysia},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {proceedings}
}