[The relationship between cognitive impairment and depression in older Colombian women]. / Relación entre deterioro cognitivo y sintomatología depresiva en mujeres mayores colombianas.

OBJECTIVE: to analyze the prevalence of depressive syndrome and cognitive impairment in elderly non-institutionalized women in Cali (Colombia). MATERIAL AND METHODS: we performed a cross-sectional descriptive study. The Yesavage depression scale (15-item version) and the Pfeiffer test were applied. A total of 416 women over the age of 60 years old living in the city of Cali and attending distinct health centres were chosen during the first semester of 2004, using non-probabilistic sampling. The association of sociodemographic and clinical variables with cognitive impairment was evaluated using a logistic regression model. RESULTS: the prevalence of depression was 19.95% (95% CI, 15.99-23.91%) and that of cognitive deterioration was 2.64% (95% CI, 0.98-4.31%). No predictive factors were found in the multivariate analysis, although a higher risk of cognitive deterioration was observed in women with depression (OR = 3.171; 95% CI, 0.833-12.081%). Among the oldest women (OR = 5.979; 95% CI, 0.990-36.131%), higher income seemed to be a protective factor (OR = 0.160; 95% CI, 0.018-1.446%). CONCLUSIONS: a moderate prevalence of depressive symptomatology and cognitive impairment was found in non-institutionalized elderly women. The prevalence of these disorders should be determined in each health centre. This would enable intervention programs aimed at improving quality of life in these women to be designed and would help to reduce the factors causing depression and cognitive impairment.

Relación entre deterioro cognitivo y sintomatología depresiva en mujeres mayores colombianas / The relationship between cognitive impairment and depression in older Colombian women

Objetivo: analizar la prevalencia de sintomatología depresiva y deterioro cognitivo en las mujeres mayores no institucionalizadas de la ciudad de Cali (Colombia). Material y métodos: para la presente investigación se llevó a cabo un estudio descriptivo de corte transversal, donde se aplicaron 2 instrumentos: la escala de depresión de Yesavage (versión de 15 ítems) y la prueba de Pfeiffer. Se seleccionó a 416 mujeres mayores de 60 años de la ciudad de Cali (Colombia) que asistían a diferentes centros de día de la ciudad. La selección se realizó durante el primer semestre del 2004 mediante un muestreo no probabilístico. La asociación de las variables sociodemográficas y clínicas con deterioro cognitivo se evaluó mediante un modelo de regresión logística. Resultados: la prevalencia encontrada de sintomatología depresiva fue del 19,95% (intervalo de confianza [IC] del 95%, 15,99-23,91%) y de deterioro cognitivo del 2,64% (IC del 95%, 0,98-4,31%). En el análisis multivariante no se apreciaron factores predictores, aunque sí existe un mayor riesgo de sufrir deterioro cognitivo entre las mujeres que presentan sintomatología depresiva (odds ratio [OR] = 3,171; IC del 95%, 0,833-12,081%) y entre las más mayores (OR = 5,979; IC del 95%, 0,990-36,131%); parece que disponer de mayores ingresos es un factor protector (OR = 0,160; IC del 95%, 0,018-1,446%). Conclusiones: la sintomatología depresiva y el deterioro cognitivo presentan una moderada prevalencia en las mujeres no institucionalizadas. Es importante conocer la prevalencia de estos trastornos en cada centro de atención, con el objetivo de diseñar programas de intervención que contribuyan a mejorar la calidad de vida de las mujeres adultas mayores y disminuyan los factores causales de depresión y del deterioro cognitivo

Objective: to analyze the prevalence of depressive syndrome and cognitive impairment in elderly non-institutionalized women in Cali (Colombia). Material and methods: we performed a cross-sectional descriptive study. The Yesavage depression scale (15-item version) and the Pfeiffer test were applied. A total of 416 women over the age of 60 years old living in the city of Cali and attending distinct health centres were chosen during the first semester of 2004, using non-probabilistic sampling. The association of sociodemographic and clinical variables with cognitive impairment was evaluated using a logistic regression model. Results: the prevalence of depression was 19.95% (95% CI, 15.99-23.91%) and that of cognitive deterioration was 2.64% (95% CI, 0.98-4.31%). No predictive factors were found in the multivariate analysis, although a higher risk of cognitive deterioration was observed in women with depression (OR = 3.171; 95% CI, 0.833-12.081%). Among the oldest women (OR = 5.979; 95% CI, 0.990-36.131%), higher income seemed to be a protective factor (OR = 0.160; 95% CI, 0.018-1.446%). Conclusions: a moderate prevalence of depressive symptomatology and cognitive impairment was found in non-institutionalized elderly women. The prevalence of these disorders should be determined in each health centre. This would enable intervention programs aimed at improving quality of life in these women to be designed and would help to reduce the factors causing depression and cognitive impairment