24-Hour Rest-Activity Rhythm in Middle-Aged and Older Persons with Depression

Changes in rest or active states were clinically observed in persons with depression. However, the association between symptoms of depression and 24 h rest-activity rhythm (RAR) components that can be measured using wearable devices was not clarified. This preliminary cross-sectional study aimed to clarify the 24 h RAR components associated with symptoms of depression in middle-aged and older persons. Participants were recruited from among inpatients and outpatients requiring medical treatment at Akita University Hospital for the group with depression and from among healthy volunteers living in Akita prefecture, Japan, for the healthy control group. To assess RAR parameters including inter-daily stability (IS), intra-daily variability (IV), relative amplitude (RA), and average physical activity level for the most active 10 h span (M10) or for the least active 5 h span (L5), all the participants were instructed to wear an Actiwatch Spectrum Plus device on their non-dominant wrist for seven days. Twenty-nine persons with depression and 30 controls were included in the analysis. The results of a binomial regression analysis showed that symptoms of depression were significantly associated with a high IS value (odds ratio [OR], 1.20; 95% confidence interval [95% CI], 1.01–1.44; p = 0.04) and a low M10 value (OR, 0.85; 95% CI, 0.74–0.96; p = 0.01). Our findings suggest potential components of 24 h RAR are associated with depression.