In the rural sample, widowed elders, stroke history, and problems with toileting and shopping were significantly associated with a higher risk of depressive disorders. For rural elderly with a stroke history, there was a 7.39 increase in likelihood of suffering from depression. | ||||||
Friedman B. et al., 2007 | To determine whether factors associated with depression differ between elderly residents of rural and urban areas. | Cross-sectional observational study with multiple logistic regression analysis. | Urban: MSA Rural: Non-MSA (Based on the U.S. Office of Management and Budget) | 926 elderly people (age ≥ 65 years); 650 in urban areas and 276 in rural areas. | Sociodemographic characteristics: age, gender, education, annual household income, financial strain, and site. Social support: marital status, living arrangement, number of friends, and number of relatives. Supplemental health insurance Prior health services use Health status: self-related health status, number of 13 chronic conditions, SF-36 Physical Component Summary (PCS) score, anxiety, body mass index (BMI), number of ADL dependencies, number of IADL dependencies | Major depression (SF-36 PCS score >30) significantly differed between urban and rural areas (p = 0.007); urban elderly had major depression significantly more often than rural elderly. For urban elderly, major depression was associated with dependence in five or six ADLs (OR: 2.33) and in three or more instrumental ADLs (OR: 8.85). Having very few close friends (OR: 6.86, 95% confidence interval [Cl]: 2.18 - 21.58), 2+ emergency room visits in the past 6 months (OR: 4.00, 95% Cl: 1.19 - 13.43), and more financial strain (OR: 1.50, 95% Cl: 1.01 - 2.23) were associated with a significantly higher likelihood of major depression in rural areas as compared with urban areas. |
Lee C. et al., 2009 | To identify and compare Health Promotion Behaviors (HPBs) of older rural and urban community-dwelling female spousal caregivers. | Exploratory, descriptive survey design. | Urban: Centralized area with a population density of 1000 per square mile and at least 10,000 total. Rural: Outside the urbanized cluster or areas with rural status designation. | 72 female elderly people (age ≥60 years) who are provided with care for at least 6 months at home; 39 in urban areas and 33 in rural areas. | HPLP-II: 52 health-related behaviors and six subscales; health responsibility, nutrition, physical activity, spiritual growth, interpersonal relations, and stress management. PI-developed questionnaire: demographics, caregiving responsibilities, length of time in caregiving role, and amount of personal time. | No significant differences existed in mean scores of the six subscales and overall HPLP-II between rural and urban sample populations. |
Apidechkul T., 2011 | To assess quality of life and mental and physical health among people aged 60 years and over in urban and rural areas of northern Thailand. | Cross-sectional study. | (Not written clearly) Urban: 11 villages in the Pa Kaw Dum sub-district, and the Mae Lao district were used as suburban areas. | 225 elderly people (age ≥ 60 years); 116 in urban areas and 109 in rural areas. | WHOQOL-BREF-THAI: 26 questions/ physical health, mental health, social relationships, and environment health. | Subjects who lived in suburban areas had a higher quality of life than those who lived in rural areas in terms of physical health (p = 0.011), mental health (p = 0.025), and social relationships (p = 0.012). |