Physical Comorbidity and Health Literacy Mediate the Relationship Between Social Support and Depression Among Patients With Hypertension

Depression is a common comorbidity among patients with hypertension. Patients with hypertension and depression have worse health outcomes compared to those without depression. The combined effects of social support, physical comorbidity, and health literacy on depression among individuals with hypertension remain unclear. A survey was conducted between December 2017 and May 2018 to investigate the relationships among social support, physical comorbidity, health literacy, and depression in a population of patients with hypertension in rural areas of Sichuan province, China. Multiple linear regression was used to examine factors that influenced depression, and structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to examine the relationships among the four study variables. The mean scores of 549 patients with hypertension were 37.17 ± 6.84 for social support, 14.62 ± 6.26 for health literacy, and 3.56 ± 3.05 for depression; furthermore, 34.2% of participants had physical comorbidity. Gender and per capita annual family income were significantly associated with depression. Physical comorbidity was directly positively related to depression while health literacy was directly negatively related to depression. Social support had an indirect negative association with depression by the mediating effects of health literacy and physical comorbidity. Adequate social support and health literacy, and less physical comorbidity could potentially contribute to reducing depression. The study highlights the importance of social support in maintaining mental health among patients with hypertension. Strategies that target the enhancement of social support and health literacy should be prioritized to relieve depression among patients with hypertension. More attention should be paid to women, low-income individuals, and patients with physical comorbidities.