title: Comorbid anxiety disorders in late-life depression: results of a cohort study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Comorbid anxiety disorders are common in late-life depression and negatively impact treatment outcome. This study aimed to examine personality characteristics as well as early and recent life-events as possible determinants of comorbid anxiety disorders in late-life depression, taking previously examined determinants into account.
  
  
  METHODS
  Using the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI 2.0), we established comorbid anxiety disorders (social phobia (SP), panic disorder (PD), generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), and agoraphobia (AGO)) in 350 patients (aged ≥60 years) suffering from a major depressive disorder according to DSM-IV-TR criteria within the past six months. Adjusted for age, sex, and level of education, we first examined previously identified determinants of anxious depression: depression severity, suicidality, partner status, loneliness, chronic diseases, and gait speed in multiple logistic regression models. Subsequently, associations were explored with the big five personality characteristics as well as early and recent life-events. First, multiple logistic regression analyses were conducted with the presence of any anxiety disorder (yes/no) as dependent variable, where after analyses were repeated for each anxiety disorder, separately.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In our sample, the prevalence rate of comorbid anxiety disorders in late-life depression was 38.6%. Determinants of comorbid anxiety disorders were a lower age, female sex, less education, higher depression severity, early traumatization, neuroticism, extraversion, and conscientiousness. Nonetheless, determinants differed across the specific anxiety disorders and lumping all anxiety disorder together masked some determinants (education, personality).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our findings stress the need to examine determinants of comorbid anxiety disorder for specific anxiety disorders separately, enabling the development of targeted interventions within subgroups of depressed patients.
authors.affiliation: University of Groningen,University Medical Center Groningen,Center for Psychiatry & Interdisciplinary Center of Psychiatric Epidemiology,Groningen,the Netherlands.
authors.forename: D C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: van der Veen
authors.affiliation: University of Groningen,University Medical Center Groningen,Center for Psychiatry & Interdisciplinary Center of Psychiatric Epidemiology,Groningen,the Netherlands.
authors.forename: W H
authors.initials: WH
authors.lastname: van Zelst
authors.affiliation: University of Groningen,University Medical Center Groningen,Center for Psychiatry & Interdisciplinary Center of Psychiatric Epidemiology,Groningen,the Netherlands.
authors.forename: R A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Schoevers
authors.affiliation: Department for Psychiatry,EMGO Institute for Health and Care Research / Institute for Neurosciences,VU University,Amsterdam,the Netherlands.
authors.forename: H C
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Comijs
authors.affiliation: University of Groningen,University Medical Center Groningen,Center for Psychiatry & Interdisciplinary Center of Psychiatric Epidemiology,Groningen,the Netherlands.
authors.forename: R C Oude
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Voshaar
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D015897:Comorbidity; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008132:Loneliness / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010551:Personality / Q000145:classification*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales
keywords: anxiety disorders; anxious depression; comorbidity; determinants; late-life depression; mixed anxiety depression