Cascading effects of childhood abuse on physical health issues in later adulthood through trait anxiety and poor daily sleep quality.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the mediating roles of trait anxiety and daily sleep quality between childhood abuse and physical health issues later in adulthood by utilizing the Midlife in the United States Study (n = 281; Mage = 56.38 in wave 2 and Mage = 62.57 in wave 3). Individuals who reported a higher level of childhood abuse reported a higher level of trait anxiety and a lower level of daily sleep quality, leading to an increase in physical health issues. The results highlight the cascading effects of childhood abuse on serious health consequences over the life span.

A cross-lagged model of depressive symptoms and mobility disability among middle-aged and older Chinese adults with arthritis.

AIM: To examine the reciprocal and longitudinal associations between depressive symptoms and mobility disability in middle-aged and older Chinese adults with arthritis. METHODS: We used three waves of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study. The analytic sample included 4682 community-dwelling adults aged ≥45 years with arthritis who completed the self-report measurement of depressive symptoms and mobility disability every 2 years over a 4-year study period. Analysis involved an autoregressive cross-lagged model. RESULTS: The prevalence rates of comorbid depressive symptoms and mobility disability were 38.9%, 33.2% and 38.9%, respectively across three waves. There was a significant bidirectional and longitudinal relationship between depressive symptoms and mobility disability among middle-aged and older Chinese adults with arthritis. A higher level of depressive symptoms in previous waves was associated with a subsequent increase in mobility disability over time. A similar pattern was also shown in the opposite direction from mobility disability to depressive symptoms over time. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates that depressive symptoms and mobility disability are reciprocally related in Chinese adults with arthritis over time. In addition, it highlights the importance of early interventions aimed at reversing the downward spiral of depressive symptoms and mobility disability to improve the health of Chinese adults with arthritis. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2020; 20: 873-877.