Prevalence of psychiatric illnesses in older ethnic minority adults.
OBJECTIVE
To compare lifetime and 12-month prevalence of psychiatric disorders in a nationally representative sample of older Latino, Asian, African-American, and Afro-Caribbean adults with that of older non-Latino white adults.


METHODS
Cross-sectional study conducted in 2001 through 2004.


METHODS
Urban and rural households in the contiguous United States.


METHODS
Two thousand three hundred seventy-five community-dwelling residents aged 60 and older living in noninstitutional settings. Data are from the National Institutes of Mental Health Collaborative Psychiatric Epidemiological Studies.


METHODS
The World Mental Health Composite International Diagnostic Interview assessed lifetime and 12-month psychiatric disorders. Bayesian estimates compared psychiatric disorder prevalence rates of ethnic and racial groups.


RESULTS
Older non-Latino whites exhibited a greater prevalence on several lifetime diagnoses than older Asian, African-American, and Afro-Caribbean respondents. Older Latinos did not differ from older non-Latino whites on any lifetime diagnosis and had higher 12-month rates of any depressive disorder. No differences were observed in the 12-month diagnoses between older non-Latino whites and the other racial and ethnic minority groups. Older immigrant Latinos had higher lifetime rates of dysthymia and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) than U.S.-born Latinos. Older immigrant Asians had higher lifetime rates of GAD than U.S.-born Asians. Older immigrant Latinos had higher 12-month rates of dysthymia than older U.S.-born Latinos.


CONCLUSIONS
Caution should be taken when generalizing the protective effects of ethnicity into old age. Older Asians and African-Americans exhibited lower prevalence rates of some psychiatric disorders, whereas older Latinos exhibited rates equal to those of older non-Latino whites. Also, the protective effect of nativity seems to vary according to age, psychiatric disorder, and ethnicity.
Jimenez
Daniel E
DE
Dartmouth Psychiatric Research Center, Dartmouth Medical School, Lebanon, New Hampshire, USA. daniel.e.jimenez@dartmouth.edu
Alegría
Margarita
M
Chen
Chih-Nan
CN
Chan
Domin
D
Laderman
Mara
M
D001741:Black or African American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000368:Aged; D001213:Asian / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D054242:Emigrants and Immigrants / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000208:ethnology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012306:Risk; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D044465:White People / Q000706:statistics & numerical data