ArticleBMC psychiatry2018
Time trends in depression prevalence and health-related correlates: results from population-based surveys in Germany 1997-1999 vs. 2009-2012.
Article in BMC psychiatry, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 41 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
41 citing papers in PubMed, 86 citations in OpenAlex.
- Prevalence and associated factors of depressive and anxiety symptoms in two birth cohorts born 20 years apart.Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology · 2026Article
- Bilateral theta burst stimulation as an add-on to schema therapy in major depression: methods and design of a randomized, sham-controlled study.European archives of psychiatry and clinical neuroscience · 2026Article
- Comorbid Depression in Hospitalised Youth With Anorexia Nervosa: Characteristics, Correlates, and Impact on Weight Gain and Treatment Duration.European eating disorders review : the journal of the Eating Disorders Association · 2026Article
- Fasting ghrelin as mediator between obesity and depressive symptoms: a pre-registered study.Npj mental health research · 2026Article
- Trends in depressive symptoms in Germany's adult population 2008-2023.Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology · 2026Article
- Applying the illness-death model to estimate the incidence and remission of severe anxiety and depressive symptoms in the German National Cohort (NAKO).European psychiatry : the journal of the Association of European Psychiatrists · 2026Article
- Impact of antidiabetic medication type on a new episode of depression: a retrospective cohort study in Texas, USA.BMJ open · 2025Article
- Prevalence of Antidepressant Prescription in Adolescents Newly Diagnosed with Depression in Germany.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- [The Relationship between Social and Family Structures and Behavioral Problems in Preschool Children].Gesundheitswesen (Bundesverband der Arzte des Offentlichen Gesundheitsdienstes (Germany)) · 2024Article
- Associations between depressive symptoms and 5-year subsequent work nonparticipation due to long-term sickness absence, unemployment and early retirement in a cohort of 2,413 employees in Germany.BMC public health · 2023Article
- Differential network interactions between psychosocial factors, mental health, and health-related quality of life in women and men.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- Networks of pandemic-specific stressors, risk factors, and clinical symptoms: A comparison between women and men during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic.Journal of psychiatric research · 2023Article
- Profiles of risk factors for depressive and anxiety symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic: A latent class analysis.Psychiatry research · 2023Article
- [Mental health surveillance at the Robert Koch Institute - strategies for monitoring the mental health of the population].Bundesgesundheitsblatt, Gesundheitsforschung, Gesundheitsschutz · 2023Review
- Risk of antidepressant initiation among users of cardiovascular agents and metformin. Findings from the Trøndelag Health Study (HUNT) and Norwegian Prescription Database (NorPD), Norway: Findings from the Trøndelag Health Study (HUNT) and Norwegian Prescription Database (NorPD), Norway.Pharmacology research & perspectives · 2023Article
- The trend in quality of life of Chinese population: analysis based on population health surveys from 2008 to 2020.BMC public health · 2023Article
- The interplay of family history of depression and early trauma: associations with lifetime and current depression in the German national cohort (NAKO).Frontiers in epidemiology · 2023Article
- Recurrent lower urinary tract infections: more than an infection for older women.Turkish journal of medical sciences · 2023Article
- Changes in continuum beliefs for depression and schizophrenia in the general population 2011-2020: a widening gap.Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology · 2023Article
- More Treatment, but Not Less Anxiety and Mood Disorders: Why? Seven Hypotheses and Their Evaluation.Psychotherapy and psychosomatics · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundAlthough an "epidemic" of depression is frequently claimed, empirical evidence is inconsistent, depending on country, study design and depression assessment. Little is known about changes in depression over time in Germany, although health insurance companies report frequency increases. Here we examined time trends in depression prevalence, severity and health-related correlates in the general population.
methodsData were obtained from the mental health module of the "German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Adults" (2009-2012, n = 3265) and the mental health supplement of the "German National Health Interview and Examination Survey 1998" (1997-1999, n = 4176), excluding respondents older than 65. 12-month major depressive disorder (MDD), severity and symptoms were assessed based on the WHO Composite International Diagnostic Interview. Health-related quality of life (SF-36), self-reported sick days or days with limitations in normal daily life activities were examined, too. Calculations were carried out population-weighted. Additional age-standardized analyses were conducted to account for demographic changes.
resultsOverall, MDD 12-month prevalence remained stable at 7.4%. Women showed a shifted age distribution with increased prevalence at younger ages, and increasing MDD severity. Time trends in health-related correlates occurred both in participants with and without MDD. Mental health disability increased over time, particularly among men with MDD, reflected by the mental component score of the SF-36 and days with activity limitation due to mental health problems. Demographic changes had a marginal impact on the time trends.
conclusionsIn contrast to the ongoing international debate regarding increased depression rates in western countries, we found no increase in overall MDD prevalence in Germany over a long period. In conclusion, increased depression frequencies in national health insurance data and growing health care costs associated with depression are not attributable to overall prevalence changes at a population level. However, shifted age distribution and increased severity among women may reflect a rising depression risk within this specific subgroup, and changes in health-related correlates indicate a growing mental health care need for depression, particularly among men.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.