The prevalence of depression in menopausal women in China: A meta-analysis of observational studies

Liang-Nan Zeng; Yuan Yang; Yuan Feng; Xiling Cui; Rixin Wang; Brian J Hall; Gabor S Ungvari; Ligang Chen; Yu-Tao Xiang

doi:10.1016/j.jad.2019.06.017

The prevalence of depression in menopausal women in China: A meta-analysis of observational studies

J Affect Disord. 2019 Sep 1:256:337-343. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2019.06.017. Epub 2019 Jun 5.

Authors

Liang-Nan Zeng¹, Yuan Yang², Yuan Feng³, Xiling Cui⁴, Rixin Wang⁵, Brian J Hall⁶, Gabor S Ungvari⁷, Ligang Chen⁸, Yu-Tao Xiang⁹

Affiliations

¹ Unit of Psychiatry, Institute of Translational Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, 3/F, Building E12, Macao SAR, China; Department of Neurosurgery, The Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University, Sichuan, China.
² Unit of Psychiatry, Institute of Translational Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, 3/F, Building E12, Macao SAR, China; Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, Southern Medical University Nanfang Hospital, Guangdong, China.
³ The National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders & Beijing Key Laboratory of Mental Disorders Beijing Anding Hospital & the Advanced Innovation Center for Human Brain Protection, Capital Medical University, School of Mental Health, Beijing, China.
⁴ Department of Business Administration, Hong Kong Shue Yan University, Hong Kong SRA, China.
⁵ Unit of Psychiatry, Institute of Translational Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, 3/F, Building E12, Macao SAR, China.
⁶ Global and Community Mental Health Research Group, Department of Psychology, University of Macau, Macao SAR, China; Health, Behavior, and Society, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.
⁷ Division of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia; The University of Notre Dame Australia, Fremantle, Australia.
⁸ Department of Neurosurgery, The Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University, Sichuan, China. Electronic address: chengligang.cool@163.com.
⁹ Unit of Psychiatry, Institute of Translational Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, 3/F, Building E12, Macao SAR, China. Electronic address: ytxiang@um.edu.mo.

PMID: 31202988
DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2019.06.017

Abstract

Objective: Depressive symptoms (depression thereafter) are common among menopausal women but findings across studies have been inconsistent. This meta-analysis examined the pooled prevalence of depression among Chinese menopausal women.

Methods: Two investigators independently searched both international (PubMed, EMBASE and PsycINFO) and Chinese (CNKI, WanFang, SinoMed and VIP) databases from their inception date until 9 April 2019. Studies that reported the prevalence of depression as measured by the Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD) were pooled using a random-effects model.

Results: Twenty-three cross-sectional studies were included in the meta-analysis. The pooled prevalence of depression in menopausal Chinese women was 36.3% (95% CI: 27.5-45.1%), with mild depression of 18.6% (95% CI: 13.4-23.8%), moderate depression of 15.3% (95% CI: 9.4-21.3%), and severe depression of 3.7% (95% CI: 1.9-5.5%). Meta-regression analyses revealed that older age (B = 0.12, z = 8.18, p < 0.001) and better study quality (B = 0. 24, z = 8.33, p < 0.001) was significantly associated with higher depression prevalence.

Conclusions: Depression is common among menopausal Chinese women. Due to its negative impact on health, regular screening and effective treatments should be developed for this population.

Keywords: China; Depression; Menopause; Meta-analysis.

Publication types

Meta-Analysis
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Review

MeSH terms

China / epidemiology
Depression / epidemiology*
Female
Humans
Menopause / psychology*
Observational Studies as Topic / statistics & numerical data*
Prevalence