Depression May Worsen Memory Decline In Older Adults

Adults aged 50 years and older with greater depressive symptoms experienced accelerated memory loss compared to people with fewer depressive symptoms. Similarly, significant memory loss resulted in a higher level of depressive symptoms for this population. These findings suggest that assessment and treatment approaches in clinical practice should integrate interventions for both symptoms to slow or delay both depression and memory decline in later life.

While higher verbal fluency scores at the study baseline were associated with less depressive symptoms at the study baseline, there was no association between verbal fluency and a change in depressive symptoms over time. Outside . . .