Schema-focused therapy (SFT) and transference-focused psychotherapy (TFP) for borderline personality disorder were recently compared in a randomised multicentre trial.

To assess the societal cost-effectiveness of SFT v. TFP in treating borderline personality disorder.

Costs were assessed by interview. Health-related quality of life was measured using EQ-5D. Outcomes were costs per recovered patient (recovery assessed with the Borderline Personality Disorder Severity Index) and costs per quality-adjusted life-year (QALY).

Mean 4-year bootstrapped costs were $37826 for SFT and $46 795 for TFP (95% uncertainty interval for difference −21 775 to 3546); QALYs were 2.15 for SFT and 2.27 for TFP (95% UI −0.51 to 0.28). The percentages of patients who recovered were 52% and 29% respectively. The SFT intervention was less costly and more effective than TFP (dominant), for recovery; it saved $90457 for one QALY loss.

Despite the initial slight disadvantage in QALYs, there is a high probability that compared with TFP, SFT is a cost-effective treatment for borderline personality disorder.

There are inconsistent reports as to whether people with anxiety disorders have a higher mortality risk.

To determine whether anxiety disorders predict mortality in older men and women in the community Method Longitudinal data were used from a large, community-based random sample (n=3107) of older men and women (55–85 years) in The Netherlands, with a follow-up period of 7.5 years. Anxiety disorders were assessed according to DSM–III criteria in a two-stage screening design.

In men, the adjusted mortality risk was 1.78 (95% Cl 1.01–3.13) in cases with diagnosed anxiety disorders at baseline. In women, no significant association was found with mortality.

The study revealed a gender difference in the association between anxiety and mortality. For men, but not for women, an increased mortality risk was found for anxiety disorders.

Little research has been done on the uniqueness of risk profiles for depression and anxiety in late life.

Delineating risk factors for the decline of mental health in older persons, comparing risk profiles for developing symptoms of pure depression, pure anxiety and both anxiety and depression in a prospective design.

Self-Report data on depression and anxiety were collected from community-dwelling older respondents (⩾55 years) on two occasions, 3 years apart. Data from emotionally healthy respondents (n=1810) were used to investigate the effects of long-standing vulnerability factors and stressful life events.

After 3 years 9% of the subjects had scored beyond the thresholds for symptoms. Vulnerability for depression and anxiety was quite similar, but life events differed: onset of depression was predicted by death of a partner or other relatives; onset of anxiety was best predicted by having a partner who developed a major illness. No support for moderator effects between vulnerability factors and stress was found; the effects were purely additive.

Depression and anxiety have many risk factors in common, but specific risk factors also were found, especially in subjects developing both depression and anxiety.

In previous studies, dementia was linked to a family history of dementia and Down's syndrome. This study tested the hypothesis that late-life depression accompanied by cognitive impairment in elderly individuals with no history of psychiatric illness is also associated with these family histories.

We investigated an age-stratified sample of 4051 elderly people in the community aged 65–84 (AMSTEL). The relationship between family history (CAMDEX questionnaire) and depression (GMS-AGECAT diagnosis) was studied.

A family history of mental health problems was associated with all subtypes of depression. Family history of dementia was associated with depression in subjects with a psychiatric history, but a family history of Down's syndrome was only associated with the combination of depression and cognitive impairment in subjects with no history of psychiatric illness.

The heritability pattern confirms the concept of a dementia-related subtype of late-life depression.

In previous studies cognitive impairment in depressed elderly in-patients tends to be associated with a late onset of depression. This study tests the hypothesis that cognitive impairment is associated with depression only in elderly individuals with no history of psychiatric illness.

We investigated an age-stratified sample of 4051 elderly people living in the community, aged between 65 and 84 (AMSTEL). The relationship between depression (GMS-AGECAT diagnosis) and scores on the Mini Mental State Examination was studied in subjects with and without a reported psychiatric history (CAMDEX questionnaire).

Low MMSE scores (MMSE ≤ 25) were only associated with depression in subjects with no psychiatric history (young/old: OR = 2.75, 95% CI = 1.83, 4.19; old/old: OR = 2.21, 95% CI = 1.61, 3.03).

We concluded that the combination of cognitive impairment and first-episode depression in elderly individuals may indicate cerebral deterioration. Depression as such may not be associated with cognitive impairment.