Depression of Older Persons in Rural Bangladesh

The proportion of older persons in Bangladesh is gradually increasing due to declining mortality rates and increased life expectancy. Bangladesh faces significant challenges around older persons’ health and well-being. The aim of this study was to assess older persons’ depression in two southern districts of Bangladesh and the relationship between depression and several socio-demographic characteristics. Data were collected from 280 older persons using Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-10). Descriptive statistics were used to analyze demographic and depression data. One way classification of analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare different groups of older persons with different socio-demographic characteristics. A large majority (84.3%) of participants reported having depression. Being widowed, being illiterate, the presence of disease(s), living in a nuclear family, and having a low income were found to be significant factors contributing to older persons’ depression. The identification of internal and external factors that affect older persons’ depression may inform screening and intervention programs and reduce the consequences of depression.