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QuickStats: Percentage of Persons Aged >12 Years with Depression,*
by Race/Ethnicity and Poverty
Status -- National Health and
Nutrition Examination Survey, United States, 2005 -- 2006
* Depression was measured using the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), a nine-item screening instrument that asks questions about the frequency of
symptoms of depression during the preceding 2 weeks. Response categories "not at
all," "several days," "more than half the days," and "nearly every day" were given a
score ranging from 0 to 3. Depression was defined as a total score of 10 or higher on the PHQ-9. This cut point has been well validated and is commonly used in
clinical studies that measure depression with the PHQ-9.
Poverty status was defined using the poverty income ratio (PIR), an index calculated by dividing the family income by a poverty threshold that is based on the
size of the family. A PIR of less than 1 was used as the cut point for below the poverty level.
§ 95% confidence interval.
During 2005 -- 2006, overall, non-Hispanic blacks had higher rates of depression (8.0%) than non-Hispanic whites
(4.8%). Among persons living below the poverty level, non-Hispanic whites had higher rates of depression (18.0%) than
Mexican-Americans (7.6%). Non-Hispanic blacks and non-Hispanic whites living below the poverty level had higher rates
of depression than those with higher incomes, whereas rates of depression in Mexican-Americans did not vary by poverty status.
Pratt LA, Brody DJ. Depression in the United States household population, 2005 -- 2006. NCHS data brief no. 7.
Hyattsville, MD: US Department of Health and Human Services, CDC, National Center for Health Statistics; 2008. Available at
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db07.htm.
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