![Sample our Behavioral Sciences journals, sign in here to start your access, latest two full volumes FREE to you for 14 days]({"type":"image" , "src" : "/sda/110801/TOC-Subject-Sample-2021-Behavioral-Sciences.jpg"})
Abstract
Background
Although studies have examined how depressed patients’ baseline characteristics predict depression course, still needed are studies of how depression course is associated with modifiable long-term outcomes.
Aims
This study examined six outcomes of three groups representing distinct depression courses (low baseline severity, rapid decline; moderate baseline severity, rapid decline; and high baseline severity, slow decline): medical functioning, coping patterns, family functioning, social functioning, employment, and work functioning.
Method
Adults with depression at baseline (N = 382; 56% women) were followed for 23 years on self-reported outcomes (79% response rate). Data from the baseline assessment and follow-ups (1, 4, 10, and 23 years) were used in a longitudinal analysis to examine associations between depression course and outcomes.
Results
All depression course groups declined on medical and social functioning and employment over follow-up. The high- and moderate-severity depression course groups reported poorer coping patterns than the low-severity group. The high-severity depression course group reported poorer family functioning than the moderate-severity group, and had the poorest work functioning outcome, followed by the moderate-severity and then the low-severity groups.
Conclusions
Patients with a high- or moderate-severity depression course may benefit from treatment that manages coping patterns and improves family and work functioning.
Ethical approval
Ethical approval was obtained from the Administrative Panel on Human Subjects in Non-Medical Research at Stanford University (reference #14145).
Disclosure statement
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.