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The following is a summary of “A cross-sectional study of the association between depression and serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) among U.S. males: national health and nutrition examination survey (NHANES), 2005–2010,” published in the December 2024 issue of Psychiatry by Huang et al. 

The association between depression and serum total prostate-specific antigen (PSA) concentrations remains unclear. 

Researchers conducted a retrospective study to examine the link between depression and PSA in American men without prostate cancer (PCa) using National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data. 

They used 3 biennial cycles of NHANES data from 2005 to 2010. Multivariate adjusted regression, stratified analysis, trend testing, smooth curve fitting, and multiple imputation (MI) were employed. Depression was assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). 

The results showed that depression, whether continuous [β = -0.038; 95% CI: -0.059, -0.017; P < 0.001] or categorical (P for trend = 0.001), was associated with lower serum PSA concentrations. Mild depression [β = -0.239; 95% CI: -0.473, -0.006; P = 0.044] and moderate depression [β = -0.499; 95% CI: -0.907, -0.092; P = 0.016] showed significant decreases in PSA. Smoothing curve fitting revealed a linear relationship, with PSA decreasing by 0.038 ng/ml or 0.026 ng/ml (log-2 transformed PSA) for each additional depression unit. Similar results were observed after MI or categorizing by depressive symptoms. 

They found an inverse correlation between depression scores and PSA levels, with an interaction between depression and myocardial infarction.

Source: bmcpsychiatry.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12888-024-06302-0