Coexistence of frailty and biological vulnerability increases the likelihood of depression in older people

This study aimed to identify the association between depressive symptoms and the coexistence of frailty and vulnerability in older adults. A population-based cross-sectional survey was conducted through home visits. The sample consisted of 992 participants aged 60 years and older. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Geriatric Depression Scale, frailty was classified according to Fried's criteria, and vulnerability was determined using the Vulnerable Elders Survey-13. The crude analysis revealed a significant association between depressive symptoms and the diagnoses of frailty (p < 0.001) and vulnerability (p = 0.035). The coexistence of frailty and vulnerability was also linked to the presence of depressive symptoms (p < 0.001). A multivariate logistic regression analysis, guided by a Directed Acyclic Graph and adjusted for confounding factors, indicated that the coexistence of frailty and vulnerability increases the likelihood of depressive symptoms in older adults by 3.08 times (OR = 3.08; p < 0.001).