Common mental disorders in middle-aged and older women
a network analysis
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15448/1980-8623.2025.1.47066Keywords:
mental health, aging, anxiety, depressionAbstract
Common Mental Disorders (CMDs) are characterized by diffuse symptoms without a specific organic cause and have a higher prevalence in women. This study adopted a network approach to identify the clustering of CMD symptoms in middle-aged and older women. The SRQ-20 for CMD screening was answered online by 545 women aged 40 and over. The analysis indicated that “nervousness” and “loss of interest” were central symptoms in the network. There were five clusters of CMD symptoms: C1 with predominantly anxiety symptoms; C2 included only gastrointestinal symptoms; C3 encompassed depressive symptoms; C4 was characterized by sadness; and C5 consisted of fatigue symptoms. The results are useful for considering more targeted and specific interventions for promoting the mental health of older women, based on the profiles identified.
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