Psychosocial Predictors of Cognitive Impairment in the Elderly: A Cross-Sectional Study

Electronic physician, 2018

Age associated cognitive decline or normal cognitive aging is related with lower levels of functioning in real life, and may interfere with maintaining independence and health related quality of life (HRQL). In this study, health related quality of life and cognitive function in community-dwelling older adults were evaluated with the aim of exploring the association between them by adjusting for potential confounders. This cross-sectional study, was implemented on 425 community-dwelling older adults aged 60 and over, between August 2016 and October 2016 in health centers of the municipality of Tehran, Iran, using Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) to assess cognitive function and Short Form-36 scales (SF-36) to assess HRQL. The relation between HRQL and cognitive function was evaluated by Pearson's correlation coefficient, and the impact of cognitive function on HRQL adjusted for potential confounders was estimated by linear regression model. All analyses were done using SPSS,...

Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences, 2015

Background/aim: The increased rate of elderly individuals in the general population leads to functional decline because of cognitive impairment (CImp). We aimed to detect the prevalence of CImp and related risk factors in community-dwelling elders living in an urban area (Kayseri, Turkey). : This is a cross-sectional, population-based study conducted in a sample of 900 community-dwelling elders aged 60 years and older. Cognitive status and depressive symptoms were assessed by standardized Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS), respectively. The mean age of the participants was 71.6 ± 0.18 years, of whom 47.9% were female. Prevalences of CImp and depressive symptoms were 26.1% and 24.9%, respectively. Female sex, illiteracy, low income, increased age, being a housewife, being a nonsmoker, being depressive, being single, and having more than four children were significantly related with CImp based on univariate logistic regression analysis. However, in multivariate logistic regression analysis, it was found that being illiterate, being depressive, and having an increased number of children were determinants of CImp in the elderly. Self-reported chronic diseases were not detected as risk factors for CImp.

Archives of Iranian medicine, 2016

BACKGROUND The prevalence of cognitive impairment and dementia is increasing in Iran and the world. There is no study available on the prevalence of dementia at the national level in Iran. This study aimed to report the rate of dementia at the national level in Iran. METHODS The National Elderly Health Survey (NEHS) was a cross-sectional study with multistage cluster random sampling on people aged ≥ 60 years in Iran. Dementia was diagnosed by trained general practitioners using Brief Cognitive Assessment Tool (BCAT). In this study, the dementia diagnosis rate was considered as the ratio of individuals previously diagnosed with dementia to individuals considered as dementia. Analyses were carried out using survey analysis method. The provincial rates were standardized based on the Iranian population in 2011 and the national rate was standardized based on WHO standard populations. Association between risk factors and dementia was assessed using a multivariable logistic regression mode...

International Journal of Gerontology, 2013

Background: The purpose of this study was to determine the influential factors of cognitive function in older adults. Methods: In this study, 377 older adults (mean age: 74.71 AE 6.15 years) were examined. The Hodkinson Abbreviated Mental Test (HAMT) was used to describe cognitive function of the individuals. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQOL-4) survey tool was used to measure the quality of life. Possible influential factors of cognitive function were also detected. The following independent variables were included in the logistic regression analysis: age, gender, education level, residency, smoking habit, musculoskeletal pain, medication use, number of unhealthy mental days, number of unhealthy physical days, and activity limitation days. Results: The results indicated that the elderly with cognitive impairment showed low scores in terms of the three parameters of the CDC HRQOL-4. The findings also indicate that the following variables were found to significantly affect cognitive function: (1) age, (2) residency (rest home), (3) smoking (yes or quit), and (4) number of unhealthy mental days. Conclusion: Older adults should be assessed in terms of factors related to cognition, such as age, residency, smoking, and mood in order to plan the most suitable geriatric care.

Shiraz E-Medical Journal

Objectives: This study aimed at evaluating the prevalence of the Alzheimer disease, and its risk and protective factors in the elderly people referred to health centers in Shiraz, Iran. Methods: The current descriptive, analytical study was conducted on 2000 elderly by the randomly selection method. Mini-mental state exam (MMSE) and geriatric depression scales (GDS) were applied to gather the data. Afterwards, the cases with cognitive deficit went through the psychological and neurological examinations. All statistical computations were conducted by SPSS software, version 22. Results: Of the total number of studied people, 7.85% were identified with cognitive impairment. However, the prevalence of Alzheimer disease was 2.3%. The results indicated that listening to music daily, weekly visits by friends, and the daily consumption of vitamin E were the protective factors, while depression was one of the risk factors in developing the Alzheimer disease. Conclusions: The findings suggested a unique opportunity for early diagnosis and preventive interventions.

2019

Background : Dementia and cognitive decline mainly affect older people. Several instruments have been developed for screening and detection of cognitive impairments, among them is the short form of the Informant Questionnaire on Cognitive Decline in the Elderly (IQCODE-S).; however, there was no instrument to assess it in Persian language speakers. The purpose of the present study was to validate the Persian version of the Informant Questionnaire on Cognitive Decline in the Elderly-Short Form (IQCODE-S). Methods: In this study, WHO's standard 'forward-backward' translation procedure was performed. The validity and reliability of the questionnaire were evaluated and it was administered in a sample of 373 inpatient Iranian elderlies. The convenient sampling was performed to include participants from family members caregiving older patients with long diagnosed of dementia. Face and content validity were evaluated and the reliability of the instrument was evaluated. Results...

Frontiers of Nursing

Objective To recognize and screen common mental disorders in elderlies and determine their relationship with social support in Shiraz, Iran. Methods In this cross-sectional analytical study, 400 elderlies aged >60 years from Shiraz were selected through stratified random sampling. Data collection was done by 3 demographic data, Medical Outcome Study (MOS), social support, and standardization of mental disorders symptoms checklist 90 (SCL-90) questionnaires. The collected data were analyzed with SPSS 22, using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation coefficient, and univariate and multivariate linear regression analyses. A P value <0.05 was regarded as statistically significant. Results A total of 400 elderlies (mean age = 67.39 ± 6.89), among whom 204 individuals were female (51%), participated in the study. Somatization and phobic anxiety were the most (68.9%) and least (14.2%) prevalent disorders, respectively. The average total score of social support was 85.59 + 3.5. S...

Revista da Rede de Enfermagem do Nordeste, 2016

to describe the socioeconomic characteristics of the elderly according to cognitive status, and, to associate the cognitive decline with functional disability and depression indicative among the elderly. Methods: this is a quantitative, retrospective and observational study with 92 elderly. The used instruments were: Mini Examination of Mental State; Katz Index; Lawton and Brody Scale and Abbreviated Geriatric Depression Scale. Statistical analysis and chi-square test (p<0.05) were used. Results: elderly with a cognitive decline for females were predominant, 80 years and older, widowed and living with children, with one to three years of study, individual income up to a minimum wage. The proportion of elderly with a dependent cognitive decline in basic activities of daily living (p=0.043) and instrumental activities of daily living (p=0.008) was higher than independent. There were no significant differences in the depression indicative (p=0.437). Conclusion: the proportion of dep...

Australasian Medical Journal, 2016

Background In Malaysia, as a result of urbanization and due to the migration of the youth from rural to urban areas, more elderly are now living on their own leading to poor social support and reduced social interactions which may result in negative consequences to the cognitive function of the elderly. Aims To determine the influence of social support on cognitive impairment among elderly Malaysians. Methods This cross sectional study was conducted using a representative sample for Penang, Malaysia. The Elderly Cognitive Assessment Questionnaire (ECAQ) was used to screen for cognitive impairment and Oslo-3 Social Support Scale (OSS-3) was used to measure social support. Results A total of 2005 elderly participated in the study, 10.8 per cent had borderline cognitive impairment whereas 4.8 per cent were cognitively impaired with borderline dementia. Most of the participants had moderate social support (63.6 per cent) and 16.3 per cent had poor social support. There is about a threefold higher odds of being cognitively impaired among those who have poor social support (OR 3.1 [2.0-4.8]. a OR 2.6 [1.2-5.4]). Attributable risk analysis showed that 65 per cent risk of cognitive impairment in the sample was due to poor social support whereas in the population it was 24.0 per cent. Conclusion The rapid urbanization and the changes brought along with it are likely to affect social support and eventually the cognitive health of the elderly.

Journal of Clinical Medicine of Kazakhstan

The purpose of this study was to identify cognitive disorders in older people by conducting a survey of their relatives (close people) by the Arizona Questionnaire. Material and methods: The study involved people who had relatives (close ones) aged 60-74 years old. Three hundred and eighty respondents took part in the survey. Results: Summing up all the points obtained during the survey of relatives 4-13 points 78.7% (n=299), which may indicate the presence of moderate cognitive disorders that are better not to be ignored (suggests going to the doctor) and above 13 points 6% (n=23) indicates a fairly high probability of dementia (urgent need to seek medical help). Our study revealed that family status (p<0.001), employment (p=0.014), and recitation of namaz (p=0.009) act as protective factors that promote social participation and build cognitive reserve. Social isolation, on the other hand, can lead to apathy, withdrawal, depression, and a greater likelihood of cognitive impairment. We also found that place of residence (p<0.001) and living conditions (p=0.002), may also influence the early formation of cognitive dysfunctions. Arizona Questionnaire has high sensitivity and specificity in detecting both mild cognitive impairments and Alzheimer's disease and allows clinicians to quickly and accurately assess people with reported cognitive problems. Conclusion: As a result of survey informants, it was revealed that most of the olders, whose relatives have been surveyed, may be at risk of cognitive impairment and further testing is needed.