Depression and hypertension among Chinese nonagenarians and centenarians

Purpose: In this study, we explored association between hypertension and depression in the very elderly using a sample ranged in age from 90 to 108 years. Methods: A cross-sectional study. Results: The sample included 687 unrelated Chinese nonagenarians/centenarians (67.4% women, mean age 93.51 years). The mean depression score (measured with brief 23-item geriatrics depression scale Chinese-edition (GDS-CD)) was 8.46 (standard deviation (SD) 3.33 range 0-20). There was no significant difference in depression scores between subjects with and without hypertension and there was also no significant difference in depression prevalence between subjects with and without hypertension. There was no significant difference in prevalence of hypertension between subjects with and without depression and there were also no significant differences in levels of arterial blood pressure (including SBP and DBP). Neither odd ratio (OR) of depression as a function of increased hypertension nor OR of hypertension as a function of increased depression was significant. Conclusions: In summary, we found that depression was not directly correlated with hypertension among Chinese nonagenarians and centenarians. Copyright (C) 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.