Are socioeconomic, social and built neighbourhood characteristics associated with persistence of depression over 2 years?

Cross-sectional studies show that individuals diagnosed with depression are likely to reside in deprived neighbourhoods. However, whether social and physical neighbourhood characteristics contribute to the persistence of depression in understudied. The associations between 11 socioeconomic, social and physical neighbourhood characteristics, and persistence of depression were examined in a pooled sample of the Netherlands Study of Depression and Anxiety and the Netherlands Study of Depression in Older Persons cohorts. Participants (18-90 years) diagnosed with major depressive disorder (MDD), dysthymia or both at baseline were included (n = 1001). Using the Composite International Diagnostic Interview, persistent depression was defined as being diagnosed with MDD, dysthymia, or both at the 2-year follow-up. First, logistic regression models tested the association between each standardized neighbourhood characteristic and persistent depression, adjusting for individual-level characteristics. Second, age moderation between neighbourhood characteristics and persistent depression was tested. At 2-year follow-up, 466 (46%) had persistent depression. Neighbourhood socioeconomic position (NSEP) index (odds ratio (OR), 95% confidence interval ([95%CI]) = 0.86 [0.75-0.97]), percentage residents of non-Dutch origin (OR [95%CI]) = 1.24 [1.08-1.45]), social security beneficiaries [95%CI] = 1.14 [1.00-1.30], safety score (OR [95%CI] = 0.85 [0.75-0.97]) and green space (OR [95%CI] = 0.87 [0.76-1.03]), were associated with persistence of depression. Associations were not modified by age. These findings suggest that neighbourhood socioeconomic and environmental contexts may contribute to the persistence of depression beyond individual-level factors.