- 2,029studies in the library match, of 29,780
- 490name it in the title
- 1960–2026years published
- 1,965peer-reviewed articles
The query: title or abstract mentions "depression", "depressive", "depressed" or "antidepressant", matched case-insensitively against each record's title and abstract (its summary field) in alzhub's library of 29,780 study records, as of 2026-11-09. Every count on this page comes from that match. The matched list as JSON.
Three questions run through this research. Whether depression earlier in life raises the risk of dementia decades later. Whether late-life depression is an early symptom of a dementia already under way rather than a cause. And how to treat depression in people who already have dementia, where antidepressant trials have had mixed results and non-drug approaches are often preferred.
Caregivers are part of this literature too: depression is one of the most common and best-studied effects of caring for a person with dementia.
This page describes what published research in alzhub's library reports. It is not medical advice and does not apply to any one person: a doctor who knows the person's history is the only one who can say what a result or a treatment means for them.
What the studies report, in their own words
Whole sentences copied from the abstract or key findings of the highest-scoring matched studies, chosen because they mention the subject and give a figure. 8 of the 2,029 matched records are quoted; each links to its study page and from there to the paper.
“Eligible participants (n = 6,104, 64% female) were randomized 1:1 to a personalized schedule of online coaching in two to four modules (targeting physical activity, nutrition, cognitive activity and depression or anxiety) or a control group that received module-eligible information only.”
“Decreased social life and fewer in-person social interactions reported during the COVID-19 pandemic were occasionally associated with reduced quality of life and increased depression.”
“Pooling data on more than 600,000 people, this meta-analysis found that people who reported feeling lonely had about a 30% higher risk of developing dementia overall, and even higher risk for vascular dementia specifically, even after accounting for depression and objective social isolation.”
“Word list delayed recall and Clinical Dementia Rating sum of boxes improved modestly as well, whereas word list total immediate recall, digit symbol coding, verbal fluency, Beck depression score, and Medical Outcomes 36-Item Short-Form physical and mental component summaries did not change significantly.”
“Importance Previous estimates suggested that 1 in 3 cases of Alzheimer disease and related dementia (ADRDs) in the US are associated with modifiable risk factors, the most prominent being physical inactivity, depression, and smoking.”
“Higher MD adherence was associated with reduced risk or prevalence of Alzheimer's disease (odds ratios = 0.92), mild cognitive impairment (RR = 0.93), depression (RR = 0.96), and Parkinson's disease (RR = 0.90), with moderate certainty of evidence.”
“Results The pilot study showed significant cognitive improvement (P<.001), reduced depression (P=.002), and decreased state anxiety (P=.001) post intervention.”
“The primary outcome is the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II) score at 6 months (as a continuous variable).”
What kind of evidence it is
By study design
| Design (as recorded) | Studies |
|---|---|
| Systematic review or meta-analysis | 159 |
| Randomised controlled trial | 72 |
| Other clinical trial | 12 |
| Cohort or longitudinal study | 274 |
| Case-control study | 20 |
| Cross-sectional study | 111 |
| Other recorded design | 15 |
| No design recorded | 1,366 |
The design is the one named in alzhub's record for the study; a record with none is counted as "no design recorded".
By year
| Year | Studies | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 106 | |
| 2025 | 230 | |
| 2024 | 52 | |
| 2023 | 68 | |
| 2022 | 106 | |
| 2021 | 88 | |
| 2020 | 97 | |
| 2019 | 81 | |
| 2018 | 84 | |
| 2017 | 68 | |
| 2016 and earlier | 1,048 |
Other counts within the matched set
| Peer-reviewed articles | 1,965 |
| Marked open access in the record | 552 |
| Rated "high" evidence strength in alzhub's summary | 356 |
| Rated "moderate" evidence strength in alzhub's summary | 399 |
| Rated "low" evidence strength in alzhub's summary | 1,264 |
| No evidence-strength rating | 10 |
| Records stating a participant count | 801 |
| Median participants (those records) | 261 |
| Largest participant count | 3,142,673 |
Within the 2,029 matched studies
| Studies… | Count | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| …that mention an antidepressant | 198 | the abstract also contains "antidepressant", "SSRI", "sertraline", "citalopram" or "mirtazapine" |
| …about late-life depression | 111 | the abstract also contains "late-life depression" |
| …that mention caregivers | 325 | the abstract also contains "caregiver" or "carer" |
| …that report a hazard ratio | 97 | the abstract also contains "hazard ratio" or "HR" |
The 10 highest-scoring matched studies
Title matches first, then by alzhub's usefulness score, which rates a study's design, journal, evidence and recency, not whether its result is good news.
- Integrated therapist and online CBT for depression in primary care (INTERACT): study protocol for a multi-centre randomised controlled trial
- Cerebral small vessel disease and risk of incident stroke, dementia and depression, and all-cause mortality: A systematic review and meta-analysis
- Effect of computerized cognitive training on mood, cognition, and serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor level in late-life depression - a pilot randomized controlled trial
- Cognitive training interventions and depression in mild cognitive impairment and dementia: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials
- Hippocampal atrophy in first episode depression: a meta-analysis of magnetic resonance imaging studies
- Mediterranean diet, stroke, cognitive impairment, and depression: A meta-analysis
- Treatment-resistant late-life depression prevalence and clinical/sociodemographic correlates: An electronic health records study
- Late-life depression and risk of vascular dementia and Alzheimer's disease: systematic review and meta-analysis of community-based cohort studies
- Meta-Analysis of 89 Structural MRI Studies in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Comparison With Major Depressive Disorder
- Prevalence of Depression in Patients With Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
Systematic reviews and meta-analyses in the set
159 of the matched records are recorded as a systematic review, meta-analysis or umbrella review; the highest-scoring not already listed above:
- Risk factors for mortality in elderly patients with hip fractures: a meta-analysis of 18 studies
- Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Older Adults: Rapid Review
- A Meta-analysis of Loneliness and Risk of Dementia using Longitudinal Data from >600,000 Individuals
- Risk Factors Associated With Alzheimer Disease and Related Dementias by Sex and Race and Ethnicity in the US
- The ENIGMA Consortium: large-scale collaborative analyses of neuroimaging and genetic data
Newest matched studies
- Repetitive negative thinking is associated with amyloid accumulation over 3 years in cognitively healthy adults
- Network Localization of Anxiety as an Early Manifestation of Alzheimer’s Disease-related Neurodegeneration
- Interacting Role of Social Determinants of Health and Hearing Loss on Cognitive Decline: An ACTIVE Longitudinal Study
- Proteomic Signatures of Vulnerability Across Late-Life Depression, Frailty, and Neurodegeneration
- The Role of Cortisol in CNS Disease –11β-HSD1 Inhibition as a Potential New Therapeutic Strategy for Alzheimer’s Disease and Major Depressive Disorder
Journals with the most matched studies
| Journal | Studies |
|---|---|
| The American journal of geriatric psychiatry : official journal of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry | 54 |
| Journal of the American Geriatrics Society | 50 |
| Neurology | 50 |
| International journal of geriatric psychiatry | 44 |
| Journal of Alzheimer's disease : JAD | 41 |
Questions
- Does depression cause dementia?
- Depression is associated with a higher risk of later dementia in many cohort studies, but it is also an early symptom of dementia, and the two share causes such as vascular disease and inflammation. The studies here report the size of the association and how it changes with the timing of depression.
- How many studies on depression and dementia does alzhub hold?
- 2,029 of the 29,780 study records in alzhub's library match the query "title or abstract mentions "depression", "depressive", "depressed" or "antidepressant""; 490 of them name it in the title. Counted from the records when this page was built.
- What kinds of study are they?
- 159 systematic review or meta-analysis, 72 randomised controlled trials, 12 other clinical trials, 274 cohort or longitudinal studys, 20 case-control studys, 111 cross-sectional studys; 1,366 record no design.
- What is the most recent study in the set?
- "Repetitive negative thinking is associated with amyloid accumulation over 3 years in cognitively healthy adults" (medRxiv, 2026), the newest by publication date among the matched records.
- Which journals publish most on it?
- The American journal of geriatric psychiatry : official journal of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry (54); Journal of the American Geriatrics Society (50); Neurology (50), counted across the matched records.
Read on
- Looking after yourself as a caregiverDepression and burnout in carers.
- Agitation in dementiaThe other common behavioural symptom and its trials.
- Risk factors, rankedDepression among the modifiable risks.