How have older adults reacted to coronavirus disease 2019?

Abstract

AimOutbreaks have a wide spectrum of psychosocial impact on individuals. This study aimed to investigate the psychosocial effects of measures to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus disease on older adults in Turkey.MethodsA survey was conducted of 104 adults who had to stay at home during the pandemic. Participants’ depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, nutritional status, health‐related quality of life, and sleep quality were assessed.ResultsThe frequency of depressive and anxiety symptoms was 37.5% and 29.8%, respectively. The frequency of depressive symptoms was higher in women, individuals age ≥85 years, and those with less education and low monthly income. Anxiety symptom frequency was also higher in women and those with less education and low monthly income. Quality of life and sleep were worse in those with depressive symptoms and anxiety symptoms.ConclusionTo our knowledge, this is the first published study to investigate the effect of a pandemic on the mood, anxiety symptoms, nutrition status, quality of life, and sleep of older adults during the pandemic period. Our findings indicate the importance of psychosocial support in older individuals during and after the pandemic period.

Factors Associated with Depression and Anxiety in Adults ≥60 Years Old during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review

“…Ten papers were cross-sectional studies [21][22][23][24][25][26][27][29][30][31], and one was a retrospective longitudinal study [28].…”

“…Ten of the included studies investigated factors associated with depression [21-30], six with anxiety [21,23,24,26,27,30], and one unified both psychological outcomes in a single variable expressed as "depression or anxiety" [31]. Additionally, one of the studies analysed the associations with comorbid depression and anxiety [26].…”

“…Among the included studies, five were from Europe [21][22][23][24]31], four were from Asia [25][26][27]30], one was from North America [28], and the last was from Latin America [29]. Specifically, the countries where the patients were recruited were: Italy [22,24], Spain [21], United Kingdom [23], France [31], Japan [27], Turkey [30], Vietnam [25], China [26], Canada [28] and various Spanish speaking countries of Latin America [29].…”

“…The majority of studies were conducted among the general population [21,23,28,30,31]. However, some of the papers included participants with specific characteristics: adults with mild cognitive impairment [22,24], psychiatric disorders [26], Parkinson's disease [27], cardiometabolic disorders [29] and COVID-19 [25].…”

The Differential Impact of COVID-19 Lockdown on Sleep Quality, Insomnia, Depression, Stress, and Anxiety among Late Adolescents and Elderly in Italy

“…During home confinement, the younger population reported lower sleep quality [13], increased occurrence of sleep problems [14,15], and worsening of existing sleep problems [14] compared to older people. Conversely, other investigations identified advanced age as a risk factor for sleep disturbances [16], being associated with a decline of sleep quality [17], especially in older individuals with depressive and anxiety symptoms [18]. A recent study also showed that older age represented a significant predictor of a higher association between sleep problems and psychological distress [19].…”