A General Hospital-Based Model for Early Detection of Depression in the Geriatric Patients with Chronic Medical Diseases

ABSTRACT

The geriatric patients with chronic physical diseases are frequently associated with the continuous clusters of depression including nonpathological sadness, subsyndromal depression, minor depressive disorder, and major depressive disorder. Because of the complex and reciprocal relationships among depression, elderly, and chronic physical diseases, screening approaches with specific nosological methods should be needed in the realm of early detection of depression. Cognitive decline is frequently manifested in geriatric depression with medical or neurological diseases. Also, somatic symptoms of depression or emotional symptoms of physical diseases can play a role as a hampering factor in the early detection of depression. Furthermore, after-care has been regarded as an essential factor of depression screening in the geriatric patients with chronic physical diseases. We reviewed the most popular examples of integrated medicine for depression in primary care. Thus, we propose a general hospital-based model for early detection of depression which includes favorable response loop between screening and therapeutic intervention. Our model can be a basis for evidence-based detection and after-care for depression in the geriatric patients with chronic medical diseases.