Pharmacologic response to a diagnosis of late-life depression: A population study in Quebec

Perceived Need for Mental Health Care and Associated Factors and Outcomes in Older Adults Consulting in Primary Care

OBJECTIVE

To assess the individual and health system factors and health-related outcomes associated with perceived need for mental health care in older adults consulting in primary care.

METHOD

This longitudinal cohort study was conducted among 771 cognitively intact older adults aged ≥65 years recruited in primary care practices in Quebec between 2011 and 2013 and followed 4 years later. Predisposing, enabling and need factors were based on Andersen's framework on help-seeking behaviors. Health-related outcomes included course of common mental disorders (CMDs), change in quality of life and societal costs. Perceived need for care (PNC) was categorized as no need, met and unmet need. Multinomial regression analyses were conducted to assess the association between study variables and PNC in the overall and the subsample of participants with a CMD at baseline.

RESULTS

As compared with individuals reporting no need, those with an unmet need were more likely to have cognitive decline and lower continuity of care; while those with a met need were more likely to report decreased health-related quality of life. As compared with individuals with an unmet need, those reporting a met need were more likely to report ≥ 3 physical diseases and an incident and persistent CMD, and less likely to show cognitive decline. In participants with a CMD, individuals reporting a met as compared with no need were more likely to be categorized as receiving minimally adequate care and a persistent CMD. Need for care was not associated with societal costs related to health service use.

CONCLUSIONS

Overall, physicians should focus on individuals with cognitive impairment and lower continuity of care which was associated with unmet mental health need. Improved follow-up in these populations may improve health care needs and outcomes.

Health care system and patient costs associated with receipt of minimally adequate treatment for depression and anxiety disorders in older adults

BACKGROUND

Depression and anxiety disorders in older adults are associated with a great burden. Research has shown that less than 50% of adults receive adequate treatment in primary care settings for these disorders. Rare are the studies however assessing adequate treatment in older adults and associated costs from the societal perspective. Given the episodic nature of common mental disorders, this study aims to assess the three-year costs from a restricted societal perspective (including health system and patient perspectives) associated with receipt of minimally adequate treatment for depression and anxiety disorders in older adults consulting in primary care.

METHODS

This primary care cohort study included 358 older adults aged 65 years and older with either a self-reported or physician diagnosis of depression or an anxiety disorder covered under Quebec's public drug plan. Receipt of minimally adequate treatment was assessed according to Canadian guidelines and relevant reports. Outpatient and inpatient service use, medication costs and physician billing fees were obtained from provincial administrative databases. Unit costs were calculated using provincial financial and activity reports and relevant literature. A propensity score was created to estimate the probability of receiving minimally adequate treatment and the inverse probability was used as a weight in analyses. Generalized linear models, with gamma distribution and log link, were conducted to assess the association between receipt of minimally adequate treatment and costs.

RESULTS

Overall, receipt of minimally adequate treatment was associated with increased three-year costs averaging $5752, $536, $6266 for the health system, patient and societal perspectives, respectively, compared to those not receiving minimally adequate treatment. From the health system perspective, participants receiving minimally adequate treatment had higher costs related to emergency department (ED) (difference: $457, p = 0.001) and outpatient visits (difference: $620, p < 0.001), inpatient stays (difference: $2564, p = 0.025), drug prescriptions (difference: $1243, p = 0.002) and physician fees (difference: $1224, p < 0.001). From the patient perspective, receipt of minimally adequate treatment was associated with higher costs related to loss of productivity related to ED (difference: $213, p < 0.001) and outpatient visits (difference: $89, p < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Older adults receiving minimally adequate treatment for depression and anxiety disorders incurred higher societal costs reaching $2089 annually compared to older adults not receiving minimally adequate treatment. The main cost drivers were attributable to hospitalizations and prescription drug costs.

Treatment adequacy and remission of depression and anxiety disorders and quality of life in primary care older adults

BACKGROUND

Studies on the long-term outcomes of receiving adequate treatment for depression and anxiety disorders are scarce. The aims of this study were to assess the association between adequacy of care and remission of common mental disorders (CMD) and change in quality of life among a population of older adults consulting in primary care.

METHODS

The study was conducted among 225 older adults with a CMD who participated in the longitudinal ESA-Services study. Adequacy of care was assessed using administrative and self-reported data and was based on Canadian guidelines and relevant literature. CMD were measured at baseline and follow-up using self-reported measures (DSM-5 criteria) and physician diagnostic codes (International Classification of Diseases, 9^th and 10^th revisions) for depression and anxiety disorders. The remission of CMD was defined by the presence of at least one disorder at baseline and absence at follow-up. Quality of life was measured at baseline and follow-up using a visual analog scale and the Satisfaction With Life Scale. To estimate the probability to receive adequate/inadequate care, a propensity score was calculated, and analyses were weighted by the inverse probability. Weighted multivariable analyses were carried out to assess the remission of CMD and change in quality of life as a function of adequacy of care controlling for individual and health system factors.

RESULTS

Results showed that 40% of older adults received adequate care for CMD and 55% were in remission at follow-up. Adequacy of care was associated with remission of CMD (AOR: 0.66; CI 0.45-0.97; p-value: 0.032). Participants receiving adequate care had an improvement between baseline and follow-up of 0.7 (beta: 0.69, CI 0.18; 1.20, p = 0.008) point on the Satisfaction With Life Scale, while a marginal association was observed with improvement in HRQOL (beta: 2.83, CI 0.12; 5.79, p = 0.060).

CONCLUSION

The findings contribute to the rare observational studies on the association between adequacy of care for CMD and long-term treatment effects. Future studies on population effectiveness should focus on patient indicators of quality of care which may better predict long-term outcomes for patients with depression and anxiety.

Determinants of follow-up care associated with incident antidepressant use in older adults

Objectives

To determine the proportion of older adults receiving guideline concordant antidepressant therapy and to determine patient, prescriber and organizational factors associated with adequate antidepressant therapy.

Methods

The study included secondary analyses of data collected in the Étude sur la Santé des Aînés (ESA) Services study on older adults recruited while consulting in primary care clinics in one of the largest health regions of the province of Québec. Antidepressant users (n = 349) were identified from information collected from the Régie de l’Assurance Maladie du Québec (RAMQ) pharmaceutical database which holds information on all drugs dispensed to all residents covered under the public drug plan. Adequacy of antidepressant treatment was measured using three criteria: adequacy of daily dose; length of prescription (≥455 days); and ≥3 visits to the antidepressant-prescribing physician in the first 3 months after initiation of therapy. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to study antidepressant treatment adequacy as a function of individual, provider and healthcare system factors.

Results

Among the antidepressant users, 44% received an adequate antidepressant treatment filling all three criteria. None of the factors studied were associated with the probability of receiving adequate treatment filling all three criteria. Psychological distress was associated with having an adequate number of visits in the 3 months following initiation. Males and those living in a metropolitan and urban area were less likely to receive an adequate dose.

Conclusions

Future research should consider factors associated with perceived effectiveness and patient treatment preferences that may explain receipt of adequate antidepressant treatment in older adults.

Utilization of healthcare services among elderly with cognitive impairment no dementia and influence of depression and anxiety: a longitudinal study

OBJECTIVES

Little objective and nationally representative data are available concerning the influence of cognitive impairment no dementia (CIND) on utilization of healthcare services. The main objective was to compare the use of healthcare services over three years, between elders with current or incident CIND and those without CIND. A second objective was to evaluate the effect of depression and anxiety.

METHODS

Cross-sectional and longitudinal data from a population-based survey of 2265 older adults living in Quebec (Canada) were used. CIND was identified using normative data for the Mini-Mental State Examination and was linked with medical records from public health insurance plan. Multinomial logistic regressions adjusted for relevant socio-demographic, social network and health-related confounders were conducted for each service. Interaction between CIND and depression/anxiety was also examined.

MAIN RESULTS

Current CIND was a predictor of longer anxiolytic/sedative/hypnotic medication use. Incident CIND led to longer hospital stay. Depression raised the likelihood of frequenting geriatricians, psychiatrists or neurologists and emergency department, but lessened the likelihood of visiting general practitioners. The addition of the psychiatric conditions to the incident CIND did not increase the likelihood of consuming antidepressants, while the incident CIND cases without psychiatric conditions increased this likelihood.

DISCUSSION

Compared to older adults without CIND, older adults with CIND have a distinct utilization of healthcare services. Multiple evaluations over many years may help to better understand the utilization of healthcare services in individuals with CIND. In the meantime, evaluations of these conditions at key moments could allow a more efficient use of health resources.

Chronic physical comorbidity burden and the quality of depression treatment in primary care: a systematic review

OBJECTIVE

We examined whether the treatment and follow-up care for depression in routine primary care differs between adults with higher chronic physical comorbidity burden compared to adults with lower chronic physical comorbidity burden and explored factors leading to divergent results across studies.

METHODS

We conducted a systematic review of English and French articles using Medline, Embase, PsycINFO, CINAHL and Cochrane Controlled Trials Register from inception to July 2013. Reference list and reverse citation searches were also conducted. Search terms included depression, primary care, general practitioner, chronic disease and comorbidity. Study eligibility required inclusion of relevant quality indicators and data contrasting participants with higher and lower chronic physical comorbidity burden. Study selection and quality appraisal were carried out independently by two review authors. A narrative synthesis of results was performed.

RESULTS

Our search yielded 5817 unique citations and 46 studies met inclusion criteria. Studies provided data on quality of pharmacotherapy (n=28), psychotherapy (n=4), combined measures of treatment quality (n=14), and follow-up care (n=9). Across studies, evidence that higher chronic physical comorbidity burden was associated with lower depression treatment or follow-up care quality was reported in 13 studies whereas evidence for the opposite relationship was reported in 15 studies. Four studies reported mixed results and 14 studies observed no relationships between comorbidity burden and depression treatment or follow-up care quality.

CONCLUSION

Review findings suggest that chronic physical comorbidity does not consistently lead to lower quality of depression treatment or follow-up care in primary care.

Medication use and nonadherence to psychoactive medication for mental health problems by community-living Canadian seniors with depression

OBJECTIVES

To determine the relation between level of depression and psychoactive medication use and nonadherence in Canadian seniors, given that late-life depression is a common, serious mental health problem in Canada.

METHODS

Canadian Community Health Survey-Mental Health and Well-Being respondents aged 65 years and older (n = 7,736) comprised the study sample. Using the Composite International Diagnostic Interview to assess depressive symptoms, we created 4 depression levels to capture a spectrum of depressive disorders and (or) symptoms: major depression, comorbid major depression, depressive symptoms, and no depressive symptoms. Psychoactive medications assessed included sleep aids, anxiolytics, and mood stabilizers and (or) antidepressants (AD). Nonadherence was defined as either not taking medication as recommended or taking medication at a lower dosage than prescribed.

RESULTS

In total, 22.5% of respondents took psychoactive medication for a mental health problem in the previous 12 months. Psychoactive medication use was 46.8% for major depression, 43.1% for comorbid major depression, 34.0% for depressive symptoms, and 17.6% for no depressive symptoms. Rates of psychoactive medication use ranged from 46.5% of those with major depression, to 17.6% of those with no depressive symptoms. Overall, the rate of nonadherence to psychoactive medication was 31%; rates were highest among those with depressive symptoms (37.4%) and lowest among those with no depressive symptoms (27.4%). All 3 depressive categories were associated with greater odds of use and nonadherence.

CONCLUSION

All 3 depression categories were associated with increased use of and nonadherence to psychoactive medication; however, rates of AD and (or) mood stabilizer use for clinically significant depression were low.

Recognition of depression in older medical inpatients discharged to ambulatory care settings: a longitudinal study

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to examine the recognition of depression in older medical inpatients by nonpsychiatric physicians over a 2-year period.

METHODS

A cohort of medical inpatients aged 65 and above was recruited at two university-affiliated hospitals, with oversampling of depressed patients. Participants were assessed with research diagnoses of major or minor depression (DSM-IV) at admission and at 3, 6 and 12 months. Indicators of recognition during the 12 months before and the 12 months after admission, derived from administrative databases, included the following: depression diagnosis, antidepressant prescription and psychiatric referral. Multiple logistic regression analyses were used to identify factors associated with recognition.

RESULTS

Among 185 patients with at least one research diagnosis of depression during the study, recognition rates ranged up to 56% during the 12 months before admission among patients with major depression lasting at least 6 months and up to 61% during the 12 months after admission among patients with persistent major depression. In both study periods, a greater number of physician visits and prescription of a psychotropic medication (non-antidepressant) were independently associated with recognition.

CONCLUSIONS

A longitudinal approach to measuring recognition of late-life depression in ambulatory care settings indicates that persistent major depression is more likely to be recognized than previously reported.