Source
University of Pittsburgh, Graduate School of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology, 3811 O'Hara St, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA. brombergerjt@upmc.edu
Abstract
OBJECTIVES:
We examined racial/ethnic differences in significant depressive symptoms among middle-aged women before and after adjustment for socioeconomic, health-related, and psychosocial characteristics.
METHODS:
Racial/ethnic differences in unadjusted and adjusted prevalence of significant depressive symptoms (score >/= 16 on the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression [CES-D] Scale) were assessed with univariate and multiple logistic regressions.
RESULTS:
Twenty-four percent of the sample had a CES-D score of 16 or higher. Unadjusted prevalence varied by race/ethnicity (P <.0001). After adjustment for covariates, racial/ethnic differences overall were no longer significant.
CONCLUSIONS:
Hispanic and African American women had the highest odds, and Chinese and Japanese women had the lowest odds, for a CES-D score of 16 or higher. This variation is in part because of health-related and psychosocial factors that are linked to socioeconomic status.