Association between consultations for depression and for other conditions in patients aged 45 years and over

There is little evidence of any association, either positive or negative, between the occurrence of depression and other clinical conditions. It would be particularly useful in general practice to identify any positive association between depression and other illness as this would make depression less likely to be missed in the consultation. Morbidity data recorded in the UK second national morbidity study were analysed, attention being confined to patients aged 45 years and over, who would be more likely to be suffering from chronic illness. During the year December 1971 to November 1972, there were 4 911 patients recorded as having depression who also consulted with other conditions. Morbidity codings were analysed to discover whether any of these conditions was recorded more or less frequently than might have happened by chance in the depressed group. Examples of conditions both positively and negatively associated with depression were revealed, the former being the more highly significant statistically. Validation of these findings should be sought in a similar analysis of the data from the UK third national morbidity survey, soon to be published.