Racial/Ethnic Differences in the Prevalence of Depressive Symptoms Among Middle-Aged Women: The Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation (SWAN)

• DOI: 10.2105/ajph.94.8.1378
• Publication Date: 2008-12-02T01:58:24Z
• Authors: Joyce T. Bromberger; Sioban Harlow; Nancy Avis; Howard M. Kravitz; Adriana Cordal
• Keywords: Adult; China; 610; middle-aged women; socioeconomic; socioeconomic status; 03 medical and health sciences; depressive symptoms; 0302 clinical medicine; Japan; Risk Factors; Prevalence; Humans; Longitudinal Studies; psychosocial characteristics; 10. No inequality; Hispanic and African American women; Climacteric; Health Equity; Asian; Depression; racial/ethnic differences; Hispanic or Latino; Middle Aged; Health Surveys; studies; 3. Good health; Black or African American; Logistic Models; Mental Health; Socioeconomic Factors; Population Surveillance; Multivariate Analysis; Female

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.