The impact of family depression history and childhood adversities on the risk of depression in adulthood among 1,461,034 individuals

• Published in: Journal of affective disorders Vol. 377; pp. 168 - 174
• Main Authors: Gronemann, Frederikke Hørdam, Rozing, Maarten Pieter, Jørgensen, Martin Balslev, Osler, Merete, Jørgensen, Terese Sara Høj
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier B.V 15.05.2025
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Adult Survivors of Child Adverse Events - statistics & numerical data; Adverse Childhood Experiences - statistics & numerical data; Child; Child of Impaired Parents - psychology; Child of Impaired Parents - statistics & numerical data; Childhood adversities; Denmark - epidemiology; Depressive Disorder, Major - epidemiology; Depressive Disorder, Major - psychology; Epidemiology; Family history; Female; Humans; Major depression; Male; Middle Aged; Psychiatric/Mental Health; Register-based study; Registries; Risk Factors; Young Adult; Denmark; Childhood adversities; Major depression; Family history; Epidemiology; Register-based study
• ISSN: 0165-0327; 1573-2517; 1573-2517
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2025.02.075

To investigate the separate and combined impact of family major depression (MD) history and ten childhood adversities (CA) on the risk of adult MD. All Danish citizens born 1977–2000 with known parental identity were followed from their 18th birthday until diagnosis of MD, migration, death, or December 31, 2022, in nationwide registers. Exposures were family MD history and ten selected CAs. Family MD history was operationalized using the ICD 8th Revision codes 296.09, 296.29, 298.09, and 300.49 or 10th Revision codes F32.0-F33.9. CAs were; relative family poverty, long-term parental unemployment, foster care, parental alcohol abuse, parental drug abuse, parental and sibling somatic illness, parental long-term unemployment, parental separation, and parental and sibling death. Multivariable Poisson regression was applied to estimate the incidence rate ratio (IRR) with 95 % CI of first-time MD. The study included 1,461,034 individuals (Male: 51.5 %). During a mean follow-up of 14.5 years (SD ± 7.2), 50,231 (3.5 %) of cohort members were diagnosed with first-time MD in adulthood. Family MD history was associated with an IRR of 1.94 (95 % CI [1.88–2.00]) for MD. In all models, both CAs and family MD, separately and combined, were associated with an increased IRR for MD. The IRRs for individuals with a family MD history with or without CA, respectively, were generally relatively comparable. Individuals exposed to family MD history and CAs are at increased risk of MD. However, the associations between family MD and onset of MD in adulthood remain largely unchanged regardless of the presence of any of the ten CAs. •Family MD history and childhood adversities increase the risk of MD.•Family MD history posed the greatest MD risk, except being placed in foster care.•Family MD history's link to adult MD is mostly unchanged by childhood adversities.