Diabetes and Depression

Diabetes and Depression Can Be a Lethal Combination News Author: Caroline Cassels
Author: Désirée Lie, MD, MSEd

October 9, 2008 — The combination of diabetes and depression in the elderly population is linked to higher all-cause mortality vs diabetes alone, a new study suggests.

In a prospective 2-year follow-up study, investigators at the University of Washington in Seattle found that individuals older than 65 years with both diabetes and depression had approximately a 38% increased risk for all-cause mortality vs their counterparts who had diabetes but who were not depressed.

Previous research has linked depression in young and middle-aged patients with diabetes to increased mortality risk. However, this most recent study is the first to show that this risk also applies to older individuals.
"The findings of this study correlate with our earlier findings in younger populations with diabetes that depression is a major risk factor for mortality and again highlights the importance of screening for, and effectively treating, depression because it is a major risk factor for mortality in these folks," principal investigator Wayne Katon, MD, told Medscape Psychiatry.

The study is published in the October issue of the Journal of General Internal Medicine.