Depression in older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Depression affected 5.7% of people aged 60 years and over prior to the pandemic and has increased by approximately 28%. The aim of this study is to identify and describe factors associated with depressive symptoms, the diagnostic assessment instruments and interventions used to evaluate and treat depression in adults aged 60 years and older since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: Four electronic databases were systematically searched to identify eligible studies published since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 832 articles were screened, of which 53 met the inclusion criteria. RESULTS: Factors contributing to depressive symptoms in older adults prior to the pandemic were grouped into the following categories: sociodemographic characteristics (i.e., being female); loneliness and weak social support; limitations in daily functioning, physical activity and neurocognitive impairment; and clinical factors. The following groups of factors directly related to the pandemic were found: stress-related factors and feelings or worries related to the pandemic; information access (e.g., receiving news about COVID-19 through the media); factors directly related to COVID-19 (e.g., having infected acquaintances); and factors related to the measures that were taken to reduce the spread of COVID-19 (e.g., confinement measures). The most frequently used instrument to assess depressive symptoms was the Geriatric Depression Scale Short Form (GDS-SF). Four studies implemented interventions during the pandemic that led to significant reductions in depressive symptoms and feelings of loneliness. CONCLUSIONS: Improved understanding of pandemic-associated risk factors for depression can inform person-cantered care. It is important continued mental healthcare for depression for older adults throughout crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Remote delivery of mental healthcare represents an important alternative during such times. It is crucial to address depression in older adults (which often causes disability), since the pandemic situation has increased depressive symptoms in this population.

Factors Associated with Symptoms of Depression among People with Obesity: Analysis of a 3-Year-Peruvian National Survey.

INTRODUCTION: Obesity and depression contribute to the global burden of economic cost, morbidity, and mortality. Nevertheless, not all people with obesity develop depression. OBJECTIVE: To determine the factors associated with depressive symptoms among people aged 15 or older with obesity from the National Demographic and Family Health Survey (ENDES in Spanish 2019-2021). METHODS: Cross-sectional analytical study. The outcome of interest was the presence of depressive symptoms, assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). Crude (cPR) and adjusted (aPR) prevalence ratios were estimated using GLM Poisson distribution with robust variance estimates. RESULTS: The prevalence of depression symptoms was 6.97%. In the multivariate analysis, a statistically significant association was found between depressive symptoms and female sex (PRa: 2.59; 95% CI 1.95-3.43); mountain region (PRa: 1.51; 95% CI 1.18-1.92); wealth index poor (PRa: 1.37; 95% CI 1.05-1.79, medium (PRa: 1.49; 95% CI 1.11-2.02), and rich (PRa: 1.65; 95% CI 1.21-2.26); daily tobacco use (PRa: 2.05, 95% CI 1.09-3.87); physical disability (PRa: 1.96, 95% CI 1.07-3.57); and a history of arterial hypertension (PRa: 2.05; 95% CI 1.63-2.55). CONCLUSION: There are several sociodemographic factors (such as being female and living in the Andean region) and individual factors (daily use of tobacco and history of hypertension) associated with depressive symptoms in Peruvian inhabitants aged 15 or older with obesity. In this study, the COVID-19 pandemic was associated with an increase in depressive symptoms.

Measuring the Impact of Future Outbreaks? A Secondary Analysis of Routinely Available Data in Spain.

Background: As of 7 January 2022, it is estimated that 5.5 million people worldwide have died from COVID-19. Although the full impact of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) on healthcare systems worldwide is still unknown, we must consider the socio-economic impact. For instance, it has resulted in an 11% decrease in the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) in the European Union. We aim to provide valuable information for policymakers by analysing widely available epidemiological and socioeconomic indicators using Spanish data. Methods: Secondary analysis of routinely available data from various official data sources covering the period from 1 March 2020 to 31 March 2021. To measure the impact of COVID-19 in the population, a set of epidemiological and socioeconomic indicators were used. The interrelationships between these socioeconomic and epidemiological indicators were analysed using Pearson's correlation. Their behaviour was grouped according to their greater capacity to measure the impact of the pandemic and was compared to identify those that are more appropriate to monitor future health crises (primary outcome) using multivariate analysis of canonical correlation for estimating the correlation between indicators using different units of analysis. Results: Data from different time points were analysed. The excess of mortality was negatively correlated with the number of new companies created during the pandemic. The increase in COVID-19 cases was associated with the rise of unemployed workers. Neither GDP nor per capita debt was related to any epidemiological indicators considered in the annual analysis. The canonical models of socioeconomic and epidemiological indicators of each of the time periods analysed were statistically significant (0.80-0.91 p < 0.05). Conclusions: In conclusion, during the COVID-19 pandemic in Spain, excess mortality, incidence, lethality, and unemployment constituted the best group of indicators to measure the impact of the pandemic. These indicators, widely available, could provide valuable information to policymakers and higher management in future outbreaks.

Effect of Omicron on the prevalence of COVID-19 in international travelers at the Mexico city international airport. December 16th, 2021 to January 31st, 2022.

INTRODUCTION: SARS-CoV-2 continues to have a high rate of contagion worldwide. The new variant of concern, Omicron, has mutations that decrease the effectiveness of vaccines and evade antibodies from previous infections resulting in a fourth wave of the pandemic. It was identified in Mexico in December 2021. METHODS: The Traveler's Preventive Care Clinic from the Faculty of Medicine UNAM at Mexico City International Airport has performed rapid antigen and PCR SARS CoV2 tests since January 2021 to comply with the new travel requirements. Demographic and clinical characteristics were collected from each passenger and the fourth wave of the pandemic in Mexico mainly caused by Omicron was analyzed in the travelers. RESULTS: A total of 5176 travelers attended the clinic between the second half of December 2021 and January 2022. Ten percent of all the tests performed were positive (13% of PCR and 9.3% of antigens, p = 0.001). Most of the SARS CoV2 positive cases were asymptomatic (78%), with a ratio of 3.5:1 over the symptomatic. By age groups, this ratio was higher for those under 20 years old (8.7:1). DISCUSSION: This study shows the rapid escalation of positivity that occurred in Mexico, detected in travelers, from the second half of December 2020 and throughout the month of January 2021. The incidence of COVID-19 was extremely high in travelers who were mostly asymptomatic for the period under study.

Clinical and epidemiologic characteristics of COVID-19 patients in telemonitoring at the first level of care

Objective: to describe the clinical and epidemiologic characteristics of COVID-19 patients in telemonitoring at the first level of care. Materials and methods: descriptive, cross-sectional, retrospective research, with a non-probabilistic convenience sample of 332 records of patients suspected of SARS-CoV-2 from a primary health care center. The data was collected from the SISCOVID 19 platform, with prior permission from the institution, and the personal identification data was protected with codes. Results: of the population studied, they were women (58.73%), mean age 39 years, 31.02% worked in service activities, 22.89% were housewives and 8.73% were health personnel. Hypertension (5.72%), obesity (3.31%) and cardiovascular disease (2.71%) were the most frequent comorbidities. 100.00% diagnosed with rapid test, 86.61% reported having home contact. Symptoms at the start of telemonitoring included: cough (56.02%) and sore throat (50.00%);100% of cases received telephone follow-up, 25.00% longer than 16 days;the symptoms that lasted an average of 6 days were: headache (6.39%) and sore throat (5.92%);and the one that persisted the most was headache (6,385 +/- 4,555 days). Most of the patients presented mild symptoms (67.77%). Conclusions: telemonitoring has great potential for the follow-up of patients in epidemic contexts, because it allows early detection of cases. Therefore, it reduces hospitalizations, reduces the risk of infection for health personnel and families, reduces follow-up operating costs, improves referral of complicated cases and allows education on preventive measures and treatment at home.

Treatment satisfaction and its association with anxiety, depression and fear of COVID-19 among Lebanese inpatients with schizophrenia.

BACKGROUND: The patient's evaluation of treatment and its associated outcomes define the treatment satisfaction. The quality of treatment satisfaction and healthcare service has been affected by depression, anxiety and fear of the current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. OBJECTIVE: Therefore, this study aimed to assess factors associated with treatment satisfaction among Lebanese inpatients with schizophrenia, namely depression, anxiety and fear of COVID-19. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted between September and November 2020, enrolled 118 patients with chronic schizophrenia consecutively admitted to Psychiatric Hospital of the Cross, Lebanon. The Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Treatment Satisfaction-Patient Satisfaction Scale (FACIT-TS-PS) was used to assess treatment satisfaction, the Lebanese Anxiety Scale -10 (LAS-10) was used to assess anxiety, Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) to assess depression and the Fear of COVID-19 Scale to assess the level of fear of the COVID-19 pandemic. RESULTS: The mean scores of the scales were as follows: treatment satisfaction (65.20; SD 16.11; median=71), LAS-10 (13.65; SD 6.02), MADRS (9.09; SD 6.69) and fear of COVID-19 (18.59; SD 6.78). Higher depression (r= -0.46, p<0.001) was significantly associated with lower treatment satisfaction. Female gender (beta=7.51, p=0.029) was significantly associated with higher treatment satisfaction score. Fear of COVID-19 did not show any significant association with the treatment satisfaction score. CONCLUSIONS: Results of this study found that depression and gender were associated with treatment satisfaction among inpatients with schizophrenia. No association has been found between fear of COVID-19 and treatment satisfaction among those patients. More research is warranted to evaluate treatment satisfaction and associated factors among chronic inpatients with schizophrenia, specifically during the COVID-19 pandemic, in order to improve treatment satisfaction and subjective well-being of patients.

Relationship between BCG vaccination and increased mortality from COVID-19. An ecological fallacy? / Relación entre la vacunación BCG y el incremento de la mortalidad por COVID-19. ¿Falacia ecológica?

Ecological studies are one of the most common study designs used to establish the association between certain factors and disease development. However, they have limitations mainly on how to measure the variables, so their results must be verified in studies with greater validity. Therefore, the study that links the possible relationship between higher mortality from COVID-19 and non-vaccination by bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) that was recently published, remains in doubt due to the lack of rigor in the methodology used.

Los estudios ecológicos son uno de los diseños más frecuentemente empleados para tratar de establecer la asociación de ciertos factores con el desarrollo de enfermedades. Sin embargo, tienen limitaciones principalmente en la forma de realizar las mediciones de las variables, por lo que sus resultados tienen que ser comprobados con estudios de mayor calidad. Por lo tanto, el estudio recientemente publicado que vincula la posible relación entre una mayor mortalidad por COVID-19 y la no vacunación con el bacilo de Calmette-Guérin (BCG) queda en duda debido a la falta de rigurosidad en la metodología empleada.