Mental Disorders in Older Adulthood More Prevalent Than Previously Reported

A new study from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found that common methods of assessing mental or physical disorders may consistently underestimate the prevalence of mental disorders among middle-aged and older adults. The analysis revealed substantial discrepancies among mid-life and late-life adults in reporting past mental health disorders. When asked to provide retrospective evaluations in six categories, participants underreported their disorders even though they had reported them one or more times in three previous assessments. The findings are said to be the first to examine retrospective evaluations versus cumulative assessments among older adults. To read more about the results of this study, click here.