Geriatric Depression

Late-life depression is common but underrecognized and undertreated leading to significant morbidity and mortality, including from suicide. The presence of comorbidities necessitates screening followed by a careful history in order to make the diagnosis of depression. Because older adults tend to take longer to respond to treatment and have higher relapse rates than younger patients , they benefit most from persistent, attentive therapy. Although both pharmacotherapy and psychosocial treatments , or a combination of the two, are considered as the first-line therapy for late-life depression, most data support a combined, biopsychosocial treatment approach provided by an interdisciplinary team.