Table_1_Depressive symptoms in older adult couples: Associations with dyadic physical health, social engagement, and close friends.DOCX

ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to examine associations between level of depressive symptoms in older adult spouse/partner couples and their physical health and social factors (social activity and number of close friends).MethodsUsing data from 116 community-dwelling couples (age 76.2 ± 8.5), we simultaneously analyzed associations between depressive symptoms (Geriatric Depression Scale, range 0–11) and dyadic physical health, engagement in social activities, and connectedness with close friends.ResultsGreater engagement in social activities was associated with fewer depressive symptoms in men, whereas more close friendships were associated with fewer depressive symptoms in women, controlling for partner effects, age, education, and cognitive function, with good model fit. Additionally, more disparate physical health within the couple (latent incongruence score) was associated with greater depressive symptoms in men.DiscussionLess social activity and fewer close friends were associated with depressive symptoms in older adult couples, but may be distinctly influential depending on gender and in the context of the older adult couple's physical health.

本研究旨在探讨老年配偶/伴侣夫妇中抑郁症状水平与其身体健康及社会因素（社会活动和亲密朋友数量）之间的关联。研究方法：利用来自116对居住社区的夫妇（平均年龄76.2±8.5岁）的数据，我们同时分析了抑郁症状（老年抑郁量表，范围0-11）与伴侣间身体健康、参与社会活动以及与亲密朋友的联系之间的关联。结果：在社会活动中投入更多的时间与男性抑郁症状减少相关，而拥有更多亲密友谊的女性抑郁症状较少，在控制伴侣效应、年龄、教育程度和认知功能的情况下，模型拟合良好。此外，夫妇间身体健康差异较大（潜在不一致得分）与男性抑郁症状增加相关。讨论：在老年夫妇中，社交活动减少和亲密朋友数量较少与抑郁症状相关，但可能因性别和老年夫妇的身体健康状况而有不同的影响。