title: Depression among elderly persons in a primary health centre area in Ahmednagar, Maharastra.
abstract: Elderly people are prone to psychiatric disorders through vicissitudes such as social isolation, malnutrition, economic and emotional depression. A cross sectional study was conducted in a Primary Health Centre Area in Ahmednagar district of Maharastra during 2003-2005 to assess prevalence of depression among elderly persons & to study social factors influencing depression. Goldberg and Bridges' scale was used to diagnose depression among 494 randomly selected study subjects. 31.4% of elderly persons were having depression. It was more commori among females (37.4%), illiterates (37.9%), class V socioeconomic status (55.8%), divorced & unmarried.
authors.affiliation: Community Medicine, Rural Medical College, Loni, Ahmednagar. drsuchit@rediffmail.com
authors.forename: S V
authors.initials: SV
authors.lastname: Kamble
authors.forename: G B
authors.initials: GB
authors.lastname: Dhumale
authors.forename: R C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: goyal
authors.forename: D B
authors.initials: DB
authors.lastname: Phalke
authors.forename: Y D
authors.initials: YD
authors.lastname: Ghodke
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000523:psychology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D011320:Primary Health Care; D012423:Rural Health