Major depression and associated factors in institutionalized older adults.

This quantitative epidemiological study aimed to analyze the prevalence of major depression in 237 older adults aged 60 to 104 years living in long-term care facilities in a large city in the state of Ceará, Northeastern Brazil. A sociodemographic questionnaire (age, gender, education, duration of institutionalization) was administered and the DSM-IV-TR was used as a reference for the clinical assessment of major depression. The Katz scale was used to classify dependence in activities of daily living and the Pfeffer scale was used to classify dependence in instrumental activities of daily living. The Mini Mental State Examination and the Category Fluency Test were used to assess cognitive function. Data underwent descriptive and analytical statistics with a significance level of 5%. The participants' mean age was 75.3 ± 8.6 years. Of these, 82 older adults (34.6%) presented a diagnosis of major depression. Major depression was significantly associated family visits (p = 0.036). The prevalence of major depression in institutionalized older adults is high. The assessment of the prevalence of major depression should be carried out based on internationally accepted clinical criteria rather than on depressive symptoms screening tests since the diagnosis itself is what will determine the non-drug or drug therapy.

Nutritional assessment of older adults with diabetes mellitus.

AIMS: We aimed to screen the nutritional status of older adults with diabetes mellitus, seeking to outline the needs of this population group considering their socioeconomic status. METHODS: Cross-sectional study of 246 diabetic people aged 65-94 years in Northeastern Brazil. Semi-structured questionnaires were used to collect sociodemographic, general health and lifestyle data. The Mini Nutritional Assessment was used to screen nutritional status. RESULTS: Participants' mean age was 73 ±â€¯6.4 years, and there was a predominance of women (56.5%). The mean duration of diabetes was 14.1 years (±9.6 years). Patients aged 80 years or older presented a 3.7-fold higher risk of malnutrition (p < 0.001), and those who were uneducated exhibited a 5.8-fold higher risk of malnutrition (p = 0.040). Patients with BMI of 18.6-24.9 km/m2 presented a 2.2-fold higher risk of malnutrition than overweight or obese patients (p < 0.001). Nutritional status was significantly associated with coronary artery disease (p = 0.010) and stroke (p < 0.001). Malnourished patients exhibited a 2.2-fold higher occurrence of infection in the past 6 months (p = 0.017) and 2-fold higher occurrence of foot injuries (p = 0.028) than their well-nourished peers. CONCLUSION: Malnutrition in older diabetic patients exacerbates underlying diseases and contributes to unfavorable prognosis, particularly in the oldest old and in individuals with low levels of education.