某三甲综合医院住院医师抑郁状况调查及相关因素

目的:了解住院医师的抑郁状况,为改善其心理健康状况提供参考。方法:采用自制的心理卫生调查问卷及抑郁自评量表(SDS),对某三甲综合医院工作时间小于两年的109名住院医师进行调查测试。结果:住院医师的抑郁发生率为34.95%,高于正常群体(P0.001);住院医师的SDS总分(49.63±10.29)高于国家常模(P0.001);Logistic回归分析显示:感到工作累(P0.001,OR=9.076,95%CI=4.077~20.107)、不喜欢医生职业(P0.001,OR=6.569,95%CI=2.330~14.981)、未通过执业医师资格考试(P=0.001,OR=4.993,95%CI=1.679~10.106)为住院医师抑郁的显著危险因子。结论:住院医师的抑郁状况不容乐观,其抑郁危险因素为:感到工作累、不喜欢医生职业及未通过执业医师资格考试。     

江苏盐城地区留守儿童抑郁状况及相关因素

目的:了解江苏盐城地区留守儿童的抑郁状况及相关的影响因素。方法:采用自制的一般资料问卷及儿童抑郁问卷(Children's Depression Inventory,CDI)对盐城地区3所农村中心小学356名留守儿童进行调查。结果:留守儿童的抑郁检出率为25.6%。Logistic回归分析显示,与父母交流频率为每半年(P0.001,OR=7.321,95%CI=2.876~15.128)、双亲缺失型留守儿童(P=0.021,OR=2.134,95%CI=1.654~6.980)、交流中谈论日常琐事(P=0.006,OR=4.321,95%CI=1.908~9.978)、家庭年收入为0~2000元(P=0.012,OR=3.223,95%CI=2.011~8.830)、5~6年级(P=0.003,OR=8.342,95%CI=2.113~19.232)、11~13岁(P=0.015,OR=5.299,95%CI=1.809~15.098)为留守儿童抑郁发生的危险因子,而交流内容为自我感受(P=0.001,OR=0.342,95%CI=0.190~0.799)、1~2年级(P0.001,OR=0.543,95%CI=0.221~0.879)、7~8岁(P0.001,OR=0.655,95%CI=0.207~0.911)为留守儿童抑郁的抗性因素。结论:盐城地区留守儿童的抑郁发生率较高,危险因素和抗性因素应当给予关注。     

新冠肺炎疫情期间医务人员与非医务人员焦虑抑郁水平及相关因素

目的:探索新冠肺炎疫情暴发期间医务人员与非医务人员焦虑抑郁水平及相关因素。方法:通过微信公众号方式发放在线问卷,共调查医务人员170名,非医务人员217名。内容包括一般情况调查表、广泛性焦虑量表(GAD-7)、患者健康问卷(PHQ-9)和心理弹性量表(CD-RISC-10),采用logistic回归分析焦虑、抑郁情绪的相关因素。结果:医务人员中抑郁情绪检出率42.9%,焦虑情绪检出率46.5%。非医务人员抑郁情绪检出率62.7%,焦虑情绪检出率52.5%。在所有被调查者中,非医务人员(OR=0.58,95%CI:0.36～0.93,P<0.05)是抑郁情绪的危险因素,接触(疑似)感染者(OR=2.63,95%CI:1.43～4.85,P<0.01)是焦虑情绪的危险因素。心理弹性差是抑郁情绪(医务人员：OR=10.36,95%CI:3.46～31.05,P<0.001,非医务人员：OR=17.14,95%CI:6.39～45.97,P<0.001)和焦虑情绪(医务人员：OR=14.30,95%CI:4.68～43.69,P<0.001,非医务人员：OR=11...     

HIV阳性男男性行为者的抑郁焦虑状况

目的:了解我国HIV阳性男男性行为人群(MSM)的抑郁、焦虑状况,探讨抑郁、焦虑的相关因素。方法:在MSM社区HIV感染者小组的帮助下,在HIV阳性MSM中采用"滚雪球"的方法,共招募HIV阳性MSM 600人,采用电子调查问卷进行调查,获有效问卷541份。使用自编HIV阳性MSM人群健康状况调查表调查研究对象的社会人口学特征及健康行为等,流调中心用抑郁量表(CES-D)和焦虑自评量表(SAS)调查抑郁(CES-D评分≥16分者为有抑郁症状)、焦虑(SAS评分≥50分者为有焦虑症状)状况。结果:研究对象抑郁、焦虑症状检出率分别为44.7%(242/541)和25.1%(136/541)。多因素非条件logistic回归分析表明,抑郁症状的危险因素包括最近1年考虑过自杀(OR=3.31,95%CI:1.73~5.34)、未将HIV感染状况告知男性固定性伴(OR=0.47,95%CI:0.30~0.73)和被歧视经历评分高(OR=1.19,95%CI:1.11~1.29);与月收入≤1500元者相比,月收入为5000元者有抑郁症状的可能性降低(OR=0.34,95%CI:0.17~0.71)。焦虑症状危险因素包括最近1年考虑过自杀(OR=2.43,95%CI:1.40~4.21)、接受抗病毒治疗(OR=1.74,95%CI:1.06~2.84)和被歧视经历评分高(OR=1.12,95%CI:1.05~1.20);与月收入≤1500元者相比,月收入为5000元者检出焦虑症状的可能性降低(OR=0.44,95%CI:0.20~0.94)。结论:本研究提示HIV阳性MSM人群抑郁或焦虑症状检出率高,需要引起重视;降低社会歧视、促进性伴交流与支持、改善经济状况可能有助于提高HIV阳性MSM的心理健康水平。     

外伤住院患者创伤后应激障碍症状的相关因素

目的:探讨外伤住院患者创伤后应激障碍症状(PTSD)的相关因素。方法:选取武汉市两家医院外伤住院患者426例,采集一般人口学资料,采用社会支持评定量表评估社会支持情况,采用抑郁自评问卷(BDI)评估抑郁症状,采用PTSD自评量表评定(PTSD)症状。结果:PTSD症状的检出率为24.2%(103/426),家人关心减少(OR=2.47,95%CI:1.35~4.53)、入院时意识昏迷(OR=3.02,95%CI:1.39~6.54)、交通伤(OR=2.31,95%CI:1.31~4.05)、院内感染(OR=3.38,95%CI:1.31~8.74)、焦虑(OR=4.31,95%CI:1.11~16.74)、噩梦(OR=25.34,95%CI:5.30~121.31)、有些担心/很担心/非常担心死亡(OR=3.89/3.61/2.43,95%CI:1.59~9.53/1.32~9.92/0.86~6.84)和抑郁症状(OR=7.24,95%CI:3.38~15.49)是PTSD的危险因素。结论:家人关心减少、入院时意识昏迷、交通伤、院内感染、焦虑、噩梦、担心死亡和出现抑郁症状的外伤患者可能更容易出现PTSD。     

灼口综合征与焦虑抑郁症状的病例对照研究

目的:分析灼口综合征(BMS)患者的焦虑及抑郁症状,探讨BMS的危险因素。方法:以口腔医院黏膜科诊断为BMS的147名患者作为病例组;以性别及年龄匹配的正常人群140人作为对照组,进行病例对照研究。采用自制的BMS危险因素问卷收集病例组和对照组的全身情况和药物史;采用焦虑自评量表和抑郁自评量表评价试验组和对照组的焦虑抑郁症状。统计方法包括t检验,χ2检验和logistic回归分析。结果:病例组焦虑症状评分高于对照组[(44.4±9.9)vs.(35.7±6.2)],病例组抑郁症状评分高于对照组[(48.1±11.6)vs.(37.5±8.9)],差异有统计学意义(P0.001)。BMS的危险因素为受教育程度低(OR=1.91,95%CI:1.04~3.49)、缺血性脑卒中史(OR=4.46,95%CI:1.87~10.95)、焦虑症状(OR=8.12,95%CI:2.60~25.37)及抑郁症状(OR=2.57 95%CI:1.26~5.27)。结论:BMS是多因素导致的疾病,其中较低的受教育水平、缺血性脑卒中史、焦虑及抑郁症状是BMS的主要危险因素,对BMS的治疗应联合精神科,加强心理治疗手段。     

大学生抑郁症与社会资本的关系

目的 了解安徽省不同特征大学生抑郁症状的现况与影响因素,探讨抑郁症状和社会资本之间的相关性。方法 应用便利抽样法选取在校大学生作为研究对象,选择一般资料调查表、社会资本量表和流调中心抑郁量表进行问卷调查,应用问卷星发放问卷,共回收有效问卷439份。结果 本研究中大学生抑郁症状的发生率为19.4%(85/439),与常模18.4%(187/1 015)之间差异无统计学意义(χ²=0.178,P=0.674);二元Logistic回归分析显示,非独生子女(OR=2.153,95%CI:1.065,4.349)、农村户籍(OR=2.137,95%CI:1.070,4.267)、理工科(OR=0.271,95%CI:0.124,0.596)、未参加过社会实践(OR=2.261,95%CI:1.136,4.502)、社会资本量表得分较低(OR=0.759,95%CI:0.670,0.859)是大学生抑郁症状的影响因素。结论 非独生子女、农村户籍、文科类专业学生、未参加过社会实践、社会资本量表得分较低的大学生易出现抑郁症状,高校应对此类大学生的心理健康积极关注。     

某部新兵睡眠质量及影响因素调查

目的了解某部新兵的睡眠质量状况。方法整群抽取某部495名新兵采用自制的新兵心理卫生调查问卷及匹兹堡睡眠质量指数(PSQI)量表进行测试。结果新兵的睡眠质量异常检出率为13.54%,高于正常男性群体(χ2=7.96,P=0.005);新兵的主观睡眠质量(SSQ)、入睡潜伏时间(SL)、睡眠干扰因素(Sdi)、应用催眠药物(USM)、白天功能障碍(DD)分值及PSQI总分均高于正常男性群体(U=2.76~39.01,P0.01);Logistic回归分析显示:非自愿入伍(P0.001,OR=9.987,95%CI=4.609-22.866)、认为不适应部队生活(P0.001,OR=7.001,95%CI=3.018-16.981)及认为部队管理方式严格(P0.001,OR=3.096,95%CI=1.887-9.087)为新兵睡眠质量异常的显著危险因子。结论新兵的睡眠质量状况不容乐观,应当给予持续关注;乐观向上的心态有助于新兵睡眠质量的提升。     

孕妇产前抑郁焦虑的危险因素

目的:探讨孕妇产前抑郁、焦虑的相关危险因素,为产前抑郁、焦虑的早期筛查及临床干预提供理论支持。方法:选取昆明市妇幼保健院产前检查的孕妇2112人,采用爱丁堡产后抑郁量表(EPDS)、焦虑自评量表(SAS)于孕28周对其进行问卷调查。采用非条件logistic回归分析探讨产前抑郁、焦虑症状的相关危险因素。结果:孕28周抑郁症状检出率为25.4%,焦虑症状检出率为6.6%。Logistic回归分析显示,抑郁症状的危险因素为低年龄(OR=0.80,95%CI:0.68~0.94)、孕期非坚持工作(OR=1.18,95%CI:1.02~1.36)、对居住环境不满意(OR=1.50,95%CI:1.23~1.83)、期望生男孩(OR=0.86,95%CI:0.77~0.96)、非独子(OR=1.37,95%CI:1.06~1.76)、非计划内怀孕(OR=1.38,95%CI:1.10~1.72);焦虑症状的危险因素为不满意居住环境(OR=1.64,95%CI:1.19~2.26)、与丈夫关系不融洽(OR=2.01,95%CI:1.20~3.37)、非计划内怀孕(OR=1.50,95%CI:1.05~2.14)。结论:本研究提示,年龄越小、孕期未坚持工作、对居住环境不满意、期望生男孩、孕妇非独子、非计划内怀孕的孕妇,越易患产前抑郁症;对居住环境不满意、与丈夫关系不融洽、非计划内怀孕的孕妇,越易患产前焦虑症。     

车祸颅脑损伤患者康复治疗期抑郁心理发生的危险因素

目的:探讨车祸颅脑损伤患者康复治疗期抑郁心理发生的危险因素。方法:以2015年11月-2016年10月我院收治的130例车祸颅脑损伤康复治疗期患者为对象,采用汉密尔顿抑郁量表17项(HAMD-17)对纳入患者康复治疗期抑郁心理状况进行评估诊断,观察纳入患者治疗前、康复治疗期HAMD评分变化,依据评估结果将患者分为抑郁组(HAMD-177分)及无抑郁组(HAMD-17≤7分),分析比较两组一般资料及社会支持评定量表(SSRS)评分,采用单因素和多因素Logistic回归分析法分析车祸颅脑损伤患者康复治疗期抑郁心理发生的危险因素。结果:纳入患者康复治疗期HAMD评分较治疗前及国内常模明显高,差异显著(t=11.697,27.837;P0.001);纳入研究130例患者共有80例存在抑郁症,抑郁症发生率为61.54%(80/150);经单因素和多因素Logistic回归分析显示年龄小(OR=-0.321,P=0.012,95%CI=1.017～1.282)、文化程度高(OR=-0.519,P=0.007,95%CI=1.011～2.208)、经济状况差(OR=-0.605,P=0.016,95%CI=1.154～3.430)、无经济赔偿(OR=-0.552,P=0.013,95%CI=1.213～3.983)、颅脑损伤程度高(OR=-0.712,P=0.016,95%CI=1.301～3.992)、有昏迷(OR=-0.313,P=0.014,95%CI=1.001～2.128)和SSRS评分低(OR=-0.449,P=0.005,95%CI=1.009～2.198)是车祸颅脑损伤患者康复治疗期抑郁心理发生的独立危险因素。结论:车祸颅脑损伤患者康复治疗期存在抑郁心理发生风险较高,其危险因素主要包含年龄小、文化程度高、社会支持性差、颅脑损伤程度高等,临床工作中应高度重视其高危因素,对指导合理干预措施有重要参考价值。     

癌症患者的睡眠质量及相关因素

目的:了解癌症患者的睡眠质量状况及相关影响因素。方法:采用自制的一般资料调查表及匹兹堡睡眠质量指数(PSQI)量表对187例癌症患者进行测评。结果:癌症患者睡眠质量异常检出率为49.7%。Logistic回归分析显示,美国东部肿瘤协作组(ECOG)评分为3分(P0.001,OR=5.566,95%CI=3.112~12.451)、癌症类型为肺癌(P0.01,OR=3.234,95%CI=2.342~10.642)、转移类型为骨和内脏转移(P0.01,OR=2.443,95%CI=1.965~8.963)为癌症患者睡眠质量异常的显著危险因子,ECOG评分为0分(P0.01,OR=0.236,95%CI=0.122~0.879)为癌症患者睡眠质量异常的显著保护因子。结论:睡眠质量异常在癌症患者中表现较为突出,其睡眠质量异常的危险因素为ECOG评分为3分、肺癌骨和内脏转移,保护因素为ECOG评分为0分。     

The impact of depression on the physical health of family members.

BACKGROUND: Depressive illness is common. Depression in one family member is associated with an increased incidence of psychopathology in other family members. There are no data on the physical well being of the families of depressed individuals. AIM: To compare physical morbidity of family members of depressed patients with that of family members of comparison patients. METHOD: A comparative follow-up study from case notes. Two hundred and one subjects from 88 families with an index family member diagnosed with depression ('depression families') were compared with 200 subjects from 88 families with a matched index subject without depression ('comparison families'), using the Duke University Illness Severity Scores (ISS) to assess burden of illness experienced by both groups. RESULTS: The cumulative incidence of depression over 11 months in depression families was 8.9% compared to 1.4% in the Family Practice Unit as a whole. Members of depression families had significantly greater ISS than members of comparison families (difference in means = 0.164; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.113-0.215; P < 0.001). Excluding family members with depression (in addition to the index subject), ISS of members of depression families remained significantly greater than the comparison group (difference in means = 0.136; 95% CI 0.083-0.189; P < 0.001). Among depression families, mean ISS was significantly higher after presentation of depression in index subjects compared with before (difference in means = 0.155; 95% CI 0.115-0.194; P < 0.0001). No significant difference was seen between ISS of depression and comparison families before presentation of depression (difference in means = 0.008; 95% CI -0.004-0.058; P = 0.74). CONCLUSION: Depression in patients is associated with increased physical morbidity in their families.     

医学高职生手机成瘾影响因素的配比病例对照

目的:探讨医学高职生手机成瘾影响因素,为制订手机成瘾干预措施提供理论依据。方法:将120名医学高职生手机成瘾者与同期非手机成瘾者进行1:1对照研究,运用条件logistic回归方法分析数据。结果:多因素条件logistic回归分析显示,对医学高职生手机成瘾有统计学意义的影响因素是每天使用手机时间(OR=1.290,95%CI=1.821~7.246,P0.01)、交往焦虑(OR=2.144,95%CI=1.227~3.748,P0.01)、自尊(OR=0.289,95%CI=0.122~0.686,P0.01)、孤独(OR=3.597,95%CI=1.843~7.019,P0.01)。结论:每天使用手机时间、交往焦虑、孤独、自尊是医学高职生手机成瘾影响因素。     

Vulnerability and resiliency to suicidal behaviours in young people

BACKGROUND: We aimed to examine factors that influence vulnerability/resiliency of depressed young people to suicidal ideation and suicide attempt. METHOD: Data were gathered during a 21-year longitudinal study of a birth cohort of 1,265 New Zealand young people. Measures included: suicide attempt; suicidal ideation; major depression; childhood, family, individual and peer factors. RESULTS: Young people who developed major depression had increased rates of suicidal ideation (OR = 54: 95% CI 4.5-6.6) and suicide attempt (OR = 12.1; 95% CI 7.9-18.5). However, the majority of depressed young people did not develop suicidal ideation or make suicide attempts, suggesting that additional factors influence vulnerability or resiliency to suicidal responses. Factors influencing resiliency/vulnerability to suicidal responses included: family history of suicide; childhood sexual abuse; neuroticism; novelty seeking; self-esteem; peer affiliations; and school achievement. These factors operated in the same way to influence vulnerability/resiliency among those depressed and those not depressed. CONCLUSIONS: Vulnerability/resiliency to suicidal responses among those depressed (and those not depressed) is influenced by an accumulation of factors including: family history of suicide, childhood sexual abuse, personality factors, peer affiliations and school success. Positive configurations of these factors confer increased resiliency, whereas negative configurations increase vulnerability.     

Apolipoprotein E genotypes and the risk of Parkinson disease

We examined apolipoprotein E (ApoE) genotypes in relation to Parkinson's disease (PD) among 786 cases and 1537 controls, all non-Hispanic Caucasians. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were derived from multivariate logistic regression models, adjusting for year of birth, sex, smoking status, daily caffeine intake, and family history of PD. Compared with participants with ApoE ε33, ε4 carriers (ε34/ε44) had significantly lower odds for having PD (OR, 0.75; 95% CI, 0.59-0.94; p = 0.01), whereas ε2 carriers (ε23/ε22) did not (OR, 0.95; 95% CI, 0.73-1.24; p = 0.71). Subgroup analyses showed similar results. In addition, we conducted a meta-analysis which confirmed our primary findings (ε34/ε44 vs. ε33: OR, 0.90; 95% CI, 0.81-0.99; p = 0.024 and ε23/ε22 vs. ε33: OR, 1.10; 95% CI, 0.97-1.23; p = 0.13). In PD patients, the prevalence of dementia appeared to be higher among ε4 carriers (compared with ε33: OR, 1.59; 95% CI, 0.98-2.58; p = 0.06), but lower among ε2 carriers (OR, 0.75; 95% CI, 0.40-1.42; p = 0.38), although neither test was statistically significant. Our study suggested that the ApoE ε4 allele may be associated with a lower PD risk among non-Hispanic Caucasians.     

Patient depression and caregiver attitudes: results from The AgeD in HOme Care study

BACKGROUND: The present cross-sectional study was aimed to evaluate the association between care recipient depression and caregiver attitudes. METHODS: Data were from The AgeD in HOme Care project, a study enrolling subjects aged >or=65 years receiving home care in Europe. Depression was diagnosed as a score >or=3 on the MDS Depression Rating Scale. Caregiver attitudes were assessed using two measures: 1) caregiver dissatisfaction (the caregiver was dissatisfied with the support received from family and friends); and 2) caregiver distress (the caregiver expressed feelings of distress, anger, or depression). RESULTS: Mean age of 3415 participants was 82.4 years, 2503 (73.3%) were women and 430 (12.6%) were depressed. Dissatisfaction was significantly more common among caregivers of depressed, compared with those of non depressed patients (32/430, 7.4% vs. 78/2985, 2.6%; p=<0.001). After adjusting for potential confounders, patient depression was still significantly associated with caregiver dissatisfaction (OR: 1.84; 95% CI: 1.12-3.03). Similarly, distress was significantly more common among caregivers of depressed patients, compared with those of non depressed patients (81/430, 18.8% vs. 175/2985, 5.9%; p<0.001). After adjusting for potential confounders, patient depression was still significantly associated with caregiver distress (OR: 2.41; 95% CI: 1.72-3.39). LIMITATIONS: The cross-sectional design of the study cannot provide the cause-effect relationship between depression and caregiver attitude; no data were collected on caregiver characteristics. CONCLUSIONS: Among older adults depression is associated with increased caregiver dissatisfaction and distress. Knowledge of factors influencing caregiver attitudes may be valuable to study interventions aimed to promote patient and caregiver well being.     

Hospital characteristics associated with post-discharge suicide of severely depressed patients

PURPOSE: To explore risk factors, such as characteristics of psychiatrist, patient and hospital at index hospitalization, associated with depressed patients who committed suicide within 3 months of discharge using a case-control design. METHODS: By linking the Taiwanese nationwide mortality database and the National Health Insurance dataset, all hospitalized patients with major depression who committed suicide within a 90-day period post-discharge during the years 2002-2004 were selected as a study cohort (n=85). We randomly selected 425 cases (five for every case in the study cohort) that were matched with the study cohort in terms of age, gender and date of discharge as a control cohort. Cox proportional hazard regression was carried out to compute the adjusted 90-day survival rate after adjusting for other factors. RESULTS: The majority of suicide occurred 30 days after discharge from hospitals, with a mean of 29.9 days. The adjusted hazard for committing suicide after hospital discharge for patients who left on their own initiative was 2.85 times (95% CI=1.387-5.856, p=0.004) greater than for those who were discharged with doctors' approval. Furthermore, the adjusted hazard for patients who were discharged from medical centers was higher than for patients discharged from regional hospitals, by a multiple of 3.38 (95% CI=1.421-8.055, p=0.006). LIMITATIONS: Some patient-specific predictors of post-discharge suicide, such as suicidal ideation prior to admission, recent life events and social relationships with close relatives were not available. CONCLUSION: We conclude that, in addition to patient characteristics, hospital characteristics also constitute important risk factors for suicide within 90 days of discharge for depressed patients.     

Psychosocial variables are associated with atherosclerosis risk factors among women with chest pain: the WISE study

OBJECTIVE: We investigated associations between atherosclerosis risk factors (smoking behavior, serum cholesterol, hypertension, body mass index, and functional capacity) and psychological characteristics with suspected linkages to coronary disease (depression, hostility, and anger expression) in an exclusively female cohort. METHODS: Six hundred eighty-eight middle-aged women with chest pain warranting clinical investigation completed a comprehensive diagnostic protocol that included quantitative coronary angiography to assess coronary artery disease (CAD). Primary analyses controlled for menopausal status, age, and socioeconomic status variables (income and education). RESULTS: High depression scores were associated with a nearly three-fold risk of smoking (odds ratio (OR) = 2.8, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.4-5.7) after covariate adjustment, and women reporting higher depression symptoms were approximately four times more likely to describe themselves in the lowest category of functional capacity (OR = 3.7, 95% CI = 1.7-7.8). High anger-out scores were associated with a four-fold or greater risk of low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol concentration (<50 mg/dl; OR = 4.0, 95% CI = 1.4-11.1) and high low-density lipoprotein cholesterol concentration (>160 mg/dl; OR = 4.8, 95% CI = 1.5-15.7) and a larger body mass index (OR = 3.5, 95% CI = 1.1-10.8) after covariate adjustment. CONCLUSIONS: These results demonstrate consistent and clinically relevant relationships between psychosocial factors and atherosclerosis risk factors among women and may aid our understanding of the increased mortality risk among women reporting high levels of psychological distress.     

Association of a dopamine beta-hydroxylase gene variant with depression in elderly women possibly reflecting noradrenergic dysfunction

BACKGROUND: Depression has a multifactorial etiology which involves genetic factors and comorbid diseases. METHODS: A cross-sectional sample of 1371 elderly women (mean age=69.2 years) was examined. Detailed information on their health was obtained. Cognitive functions were assessed by the Short Blessed Test and the Animal Naming Task. A 19 bp insertion/deletion polymorphism in the dopamine beta-hydroxylase (DBH) gene, the apolipoprotein (APOE) epsilon2/epsilon3/epsilon4 variation and 5-HTTLPR in the serotonin transporter gene were genotyped. RESULTS: Depression was univariately associated with homozygosity for the DBH gene 19 bp deletion allele (odds ratio [OR]=1.96, 95% confidence intervals [95% CI]=1.17-3.29, p=0.01), family history of depression (OR=3.86, 95% CI=1.85-8.06, p=0.0003), a composite measure of cardiovascular diseases (OR=1.96, 95% CI=1.11-3.47, p=0.02), cognitive impairment assessed by the Short Blessed Test (OR=3.88, 95% CI=1.29-11.64, p=0.02) and performance on the Animal Naming Task (OR=0.74, 95% CI=0.59-0.93, p=0.01). The strength of the association of DBH genotype with depression essentially remained unchanged after correction for other variables in a multivariate model. This association may reflect noradrenaline dysfunction in the brain.