What is the odds ratio for death comparing depressed vs non-depressed?

What is the odds ratio for death comparing depressed vs non-depressed?

• A. 0.90
• B. 2.50
• C. 1.80
• D. 1.10

Answer: (C)

The odds ratio tells you how the odds of death change with being depressed versus not depressed. If the odds ratio is 1.80, that means the depressed group has 1.8 times the odds of dying compared with the non-depressed group — an 80% higher odds. To get a feel, think in terms of odds: if non-depressed have odds of death of about 0.11 (roughly a 10% risk), multiplying by 1.80 gives about 0.20 odds for the depressed group, which translates to a risk around 16–17%. So the effect is a clear increase in death odds, but not an extremely large jump. Values below 1 would indicate lower odds with depression, while a much larger number (like 2.50) would indicate a stronger association.

The odds ratio tells you how the odds of death change with being depressed versus not depressed. If the odds ratio is 1.80, that means the depressed group has 1.8 times the odds of dying compared with the non-depressed group — an 80% higher odds. To get a feel, think in terms of odds: if non-depressed have odds of death of about 0.11 (roughly a 10% risk), multiplying by 1.80 gives about 0.20 odds for the depressed group, which translates to a risk around 16–17%. So the effect is a clear increase in death odds, but not an extremely large jump. Values below 1 would indicate lower odds with depression, while a much larger number (like 2.50) would indicate a stronger association.