Association of lower hemoglobin levels with depression, though not with cognitive performance, in healthy elderly men.

Lower hemoglobin (Hb) levels are a common feature in the elderly. The present study recruited 180 healthy elderly men. Participants were assessed using the Geriatric Depression Scale, the Cognitive Abilities Screening Instrument Chinese version, and the Wechsler Digit Span Task test. The mean age of the participants was 85.8 years (SD = 10.5). Pearson's correlation tests demonstrated that Hb concentrations negatively correlated with Geriatric Depression Scale (r = -0.245, P = 0.001), but did not correlate with Cognitive Abilities Screening Instrument, Forward or Backward Digit Span tests. Lower Hb levels, therefore, were associated with depression in the elderly men.