title: Bouncing back: remission from depression in a 12-year panel study of a representative Canadian community sample.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study sought to investigate time to remission from depression in a community-based sample of adults followed for 12 years.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data were derived from the National Population Health Survey (1994/5-2006/7 and 1996/7-2008/9). Fully 1,128 adults were included who were depressed at baseline according to DSM-III/CIDI-SF criteria. Kaplan-Meier and Cox proportional hazards procedures were used to determine time to remission and the demographic (e.g., gender and marital status), psychosocial (e.g., social support and adverse childhood experience) and health-related (e.g., pain, health conditions and alcohol use) factors with which it is associated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  More than three quarters of the sample (77 %) no longer screened positive for depression at 2 years, and nearly the entire sample (94 %) had remitted by 12 years. Adverse childhood experiences (i.e., childhood abuse and parental additions), lack of social support, the presence of pain and health conditions (i.e., migraines, arthritis and back pain) each predicted more time to remission. The only factor associated with time to remission in the multivariate analysis was a history of childhood physical abuse.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Most community members with depression get better after 2 years and nearly all will have remitted, at least once, by 12 years. The results of this study may help guide the development of interventions for chronic depression that focus on early prevention of childhood abuse.
authors.affiliation: Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto, 246 Bloor St. W, Toronto, ON, M5S 1V4, Canada, esme.fuller.thomson@utoronto.ca.
authors.forename: Esme
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fuller-Thomson
authors.forename: Marla
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Battiston
authors.forename: Tahany M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Gadalla
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Brennenstuhl
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000523:psychology; D002170:Canada / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D003710:Demography / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006296:Health Services; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D010146:Pain / Q000150:complications; D012075:Remission, Spontaneous; D012111:Residence Characteristics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012944:Social Support; D013997:Time Factors