It is estimated that about 6 million Americans over 65 suffer from depression in late life. The sad reality is that 10% are looking for and get treatment of late life depression. It is common that many illness and disabilities are accompanying late-life depression. When people reach certain age in this age, your support system begins to collapse. Family and friends, Spouses, siblings and friends die. You are about to retire or move. People with depression are likely to see a decline in quality of life. This can deprive them personal joy and productivity and he hope for the future.
It was previously noted that various depressive syndromes may be more or less common and may manifest somewhat differently in the elderly as compared with younger adults. This raises the more general question of whether depression in late life is qualitatively different from earlier-onset disorders. Three lines of evidence have fueled discussion of this issue. One concerns the unique presentation of depression among some older adults, in terms of the complex of symptoms characteristic of the disorder. A second has to do with the association between depression and cognitive impairment. The third, perhaps best summarized in terms of early versus late-onset depression, draws from studies of the neuroanatomical characteristics of late-life depression.
Older people with depression can be in the condition of getting delay and effective treatment by doctors because of the change in certain situations and the fact that they were expected to a slowdown in their daily life. The worst things are family members can not even understand them. This leads to more suffering could easily be addressed in the first phase.
Depression in older people with other physical illness increases the risk of death. For example, studies have shown that nursing home depression correlated with an increased likelihood of dying after a heart attack. In addition, depression tends to last longer in the elderly. It is therefore important to ensure that every elderly person you care about this so early symptoms of depression, even if the symptoms mild.
