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Depression in Older AdultsAka: Geriatric Depression

See Also
1. Major Depression
2. Depression in Dementia
Epidemiology
1. Prevalence: One third of hospitalized elderly
Screening
1. See Geriatric Depression Scale
Signs
1. May present with many physical complaints
Differential Diagnosis
1. See Medication Causes of Depression
2. See Major Depression Differential Diagnosis
3. Dementia
  1. Insidious onset and long duration
  2. Progressive worsening
  3. Often associated with neurologic deficits
  4. Patient tries to conceal Disability
Management
1. See Depression Management
2. See Depression Medical Management
3. SSRI Agents (Highly responsive: 60-80% of cases)
  1. Avoid Fluoxetine (due to drug interactions)
  2. Avoid Paroxetine (due to anticholinergic effects)
  3. Mirtazapine promotes weight gain
  4. Observe for Hyponatremia while on SSRI

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This page was written by Scott Moses, MD. This page was last revised before 5/10/08, prior to consistent tracking of revision date. This page was last published on 6/1/2008. Please send comments and questions to the editor. Contact information may be found on the page About the Family Practice Notebook. These pages are best viewed with Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0.