Assessing the impact of COVID-19 on self-reported levels of depression during the pandemic relative to pre-pandemic among Canadian adults.

OBJECTIVES: This study aims to assess the impact of COVID-19 related risk factors on self-reported increases in depression among Canadian adults during the pandemic compared to pre-pandemic levels. We aim to investigate the interactive effects of stressors, including social isolation, financial stress, and fear of catching COVID-19, on mental health outcomes. Our study aims to provide insights for the development of prevention and intervention strategies to address the mental health effects of the pandemic by examining the psychological changes attributable to the pandemic and its impact. METHODS: This study used data collected from the Mental Health Research Canada online survey during the third wave of COVID-19 (April 20-28, 2021). The study examined the impact of COVID-19 related factors, including social isolation, financial concerns, fear of catching COVID-19, and concerns about paying bills, on self-reported increases in depression. Multivariable logistic regression models were utilized to examine these associations, with adjustments made for potential confounding variables. All statistical analysis was performed using SAS V9.4 (SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC, USA). RESULTS: Participants reporting social isolation, financial concerns, and fear of catching COVID-19 were more likely to report increased depression. An interaction was observed between concerns for paying bills and catching COVID-19 in relation to depression (p = 0.0085). In other words, the effect of concerns about paying bills on depression was stronger for individuals who also had a fear of catching COVID-19, and vice versa. Young adults, females, patients with pre-existing depression, and residents of certain provinces reported higher levels of depression during COVID-19. CONCLUSION: Our study underscores the significant impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health, particularly among certain demographic groups. It emphasizes the need for depression screening and increased support for mental health during the pandemic, with a focus on mitigating financial burdens and reducing negative psychological impacts of social isolation. Our findings highlight the complex interplay between different stressors and the need to consider this when designing interventions to support mental health during times of crisis.

Examining the association between diabetes, depressive symptoms, and suicidal ideation among Aboriginal Canadian peoples living off-reserve: a cross-sectional, population-based study.

BACKGROUND: Diabetes is a prevalent chronic condition that has been linked to depression and suicidal behavior. The Aboriginal peoples of Canada are known to suffer from significant health disparities and higher burden of physical and mental illnesses. The purpose of this study was to assess whether diabetes is associated with higher depressive symptoms and lifetime suicidal ideation among Aboriginal Canadian peoples living off-reserve. METHODS: Data were obtained from the Aboriginal Peoples Survey, 2012. Depressive symptoms were evaluated by a modified version of the previously validated K-10 scale, while diabetes and suicidal ideation were self-reported. A secondary analysis was conducted on a weighted sample of 689,860 participants for depressive symptoms (9.25% diabetics) and 694,960 for suicidal ideation (9.39% diabetics). Descriptive statistics and multiple logistic regression analysis were conducted. RESULTS: Our study found that the prevalence of depressive symptoms was higher among diabetics (17.53%) compared with nondiabetics (11.12%; OR =1.70, 95% CI: 1.22-1.61). After adjusting for sociodemographic variables, smoking/alcohol use/drug use, anxiety disorders, and other chronic illnesses, diabetes was still significantly associated with depressive symptoms (aOR =1.46, 95% CI: 1.03-2.07). Additionally, diabetics (23.86%) were more likely to report suicidal ideation compared with nondiabetics (18.71%; OR =1.36, 95% CI: 1.05-1.77). Controlling for the effect of sociodemographics and health-related behaviors, diabetes was still associated with higher risk of reporting suicidal ideation (aOR =1.40, 95% CI: 1.05-1.88). CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that the Aboriginal Canadian diabetic patients living off-reserve are at higher risk of depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation. Culturally appropriate co-screening strategies need to be implemented in primary health care settings to provide the supports necessary for this vulnerable population. Further research is needed to fully elucidate the nature of these associations in order to develop effective intervention and treatment approaches.

Risk of Depression and Suicidality among Diabetic Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

The purpose of this study is to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the risk of depression and suicidality among diabetic patients. METHODS: Medline, PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane library, and Psych INFO were searched for studies published from 2008 onwards. Meta-analysis was conducted to estimate the pooled effect size. Sources of heterogeneity were investigated by subgroup analysis and meta-regression. RESULTS: In total, 5750 articles were identified and of those, 17 studies on suicidality and 36 on depression were included in this study. Our analysis suggests a positive relationship between diabetes and depression (cohort studies odds ratio (OR) 1.49, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.36⁻1.64 and cross-sectional studies OR 2.04, 95% CI, 1.73⁻2.42). Pooled OR values for suicidal ideation, attempted suicide, and completed suicide were 1.89 (95% CI: 1.36⁻2.63), 1.45 (95% CI: 1.07⁻1.96), and 1.85 (95% CI: 0.97⁻3.52), respectively. All findings were statistically significant except for completed suicide. CONCLUSIONS: The increased risk of depression and suicidality in diabetic patients highlights the importance of integrating the evaluation and treatment of depression with diabetes management in primary healthcare settings. Further research in this area is needed.

Suicidal Ideation and Healthy Immigrant Effect in the Canadian Population: A Cross-Sectional Population Based Study.

Understanding suicidal ideation is crucial for preventing suicide. Although “healthy immigrant effect” is a phenomenon that has been well documented across a multitude of epidemiological and social studies—where immigrants are, on average, healthier than the native-born, little research has examined the presence of such effect on suicidal ideation. The objective of this study is to investigate if there is a differential effect of immigration identity on suicidal ideation and how the effect varies by socio-demographic characteristics in the Canadian population. Data from the Canadian Community Health Survey in year 2014 were used. Multivariate logistic regression was employed. Our findings indicated that recent immigrants (lived in Canada for 9 or less years) were significantly less likely to report suicidal ideation compared with non-immigrants. However, for established immigrants (10 years and above of living in Canada), the risk of suicidal ideation converged to Canadian-born population. Moreover, male immigrants were at significantly lower risk of having suicidal ideation than Canadian-born counterparts; whereas, female immigrants did not benefit from the “healthy immigrant effect”. Our findings suggest the need for targeted intervention strategies on suicidal ideation among established immigrants and female immigrants.