Depression and Dementia?

The Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA) Network, JAMA Psychiatry ran an article about a study looking at depression and dementia.  Trajectories of Depressive Symptoms in Older Adults and Risk of Dementia   considers  that “[d]epression has been identified as a risk factor for dementia. However, most studies have measured depressive symptoms at only one time point, and older adults may show different patterns of depressive symptoms over time.”    The study came to the conclusion that a time line of consideration of  a patient’s depression may give a better picture of the patient’s future potential for dementia (“Older adults with a longitudinal pattern of high and increasing depressive symptoms are at high risk for dementia. Individuals’ trajectory of depressive symptoms may inform dementia risk more accurately than one-time assessment of depressive symptoms.”)