Prevalence of depression and outcome on the geriatric rehabilitation unit

Although numerous studies have examined the prevalence of depression after stroke and its relationship to functional outcome, minimal research attention has been focused on depression in the acute inpatient rehabilitation setting. Fifty-one consecutive admissions to a geriatric rehabilitation unit were screened for depression using the Geriatric Depression Scale at both admission and discharge. Depressed v nondepressed patients were compared on the following variables: age, length of stay (days), admission Functional Independence Measure (FIM) score, discharge FIM score, change in FIM score, Mini-Mental State Exam score, and discharge to nursing home v home. Depression was prevalent in 29.4% at admission. Depression at admission was not associated with any significant differences in the above variables, but patients classified as depressed at discharge had lower FIM scores at both admission and discharge. Clinical implications and recommendations for future research are discussed.