Invited commentary: toward a more comprehensive social epidemiology of marital trajectories and mortality.

Invited Commentary Invited Commentary: Toward a More Comprehensive Social Epidemiology of Marital Trajectories and Mortality

In this issue of the Journal, Dupre et al. (Am J Epidemiol. 2009;170(5):546–555) use data from a nationally representative cohort of older US adults to examine the association of current marital status, timing of first marriage, number and kind of transitions out of marriage, and durations spent in various marital statuses with the risk of all-cause mortality. Their study offers a wealth of emp...

Commentary: Lithium in Drinking Water and Suicide Mortality

Incidence and prognosis of ischaemic heart disease with respect to marital status and social class. A national record linkage study.

Increased mortality from ischaemic heart disease (IHD) has been found in previous studies among divorced, widowed, and unskilled middle-aged Finnish men. In this study all cases of IHD in men aged 40-64 during 1972 were analysed by linking death certificates and hospital records (7499 cases with 3136 deaths). Age-adjusted incidence, mortality, and survival rates of the first and third year were...

Invited Commentary: The Life Course Epidemiology of Depression.

Lifetime trajectories of risk for major depression appear to be established early in childhood. Within the broader frameworks of life course epidemiology and developmental psychopathology, Pesonen et al. (Am J Epidemiol 2007;166:1126–1133) provide new evidence that traumatic experiences in childhood increase the risk of depressive symptoms in adulthood. They reported on a follow-up study of 1,6...

Invited commentary: Paths and pathologies of social epidemiology.

The article by professors Galea and Link in this issue of the Journal (Am J Epidemiol. 2013;178(6):843-849) is an important contribution to the field of social epidemiology. Their 6 paths provide ample fodder for reflection, debate, and advancement. Although I agree with the thrust and spirit of their recommendations, I argue that if social epidemiology is to advance and become not just more po...