Personality and risk for depression in a birth cohort of 70-year-olds followed for 15 years.
BACKGROUND
The association between personality traits and the first lifetime onset of clinically significant depression has not been studied in older adults.


METHODS
Experienced psychiatrists conducted interviews and chart reviews at baseline and throughout the 15-year follow-up period. Survival analyses were conducted on the presence/absence of a DSM-III-R mood disorder at follow-up.


RESULTS
There were 59 cases of first lifetime episodes of depression. Analyses showed that Neuroticism [hazard ratio (HR) per one point increase in the Maudsley Personality Inventory (MPI)=1.05, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.02-1.08] but not Extroversion (HR 1.02, 95% CI 0.97-1.06) amplified risk for mood disorder.


CONCLUSIONS
This prospective study on a randomly sampled birth cohort of older adults showed that Neuroticism confers risk for a first lifetime episode of clinically significant depression. Findings have implications for understanding the etiology of late-life depression (LLD) and could also aid in the identification and treatment of people at risk.
Duberstein
P R
PR
Laboratory of Personality and Development, Department of Psychiatry, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY 14642, USA. Paul_Duberstein@urmc.rochester.edu
Pálsson
S P
SP
Waern
M
M
Skoog
I
I
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002605:Character; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D005120:Extraversion, Psychological; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007406:Interview, Psychological; D008297:Male; D009497:Neurotic Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D010555:Personality Inventory / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011594:Psychometrics; D012307:Risk Factors; D013548:Sweden