Abstract
Background: The development of the COVID-19 pandemic has prompted the implementation of many procedures to safeguard against further increases in illness. Unfortunately, this has drastically reduced residents’ contact with their families, which has increased feelings of loneliness and isolation. This is particularly difficult in long-term care facilities, where the risk of developing depression is higher than in the general population.Objectives: The aim of the study was to assess the risk of depression among the residents of long-term care institutions in Poland during the COVID-19 pandemic and to determine the relationship between the risk of depression and the occurrence of cognitive impairment in the study group.Methods: The study included 273 residents from long-term care institutions in Poland. The risk of depression was determined based on an originally designed questionnaire. The cognitive state of the subjects was assessed using the screening test Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). Both the depression risk assessment and the MMSE test were conducted twice: in March and December 2020.Results: In March, severe dementia was present in 28.2% of the residents and normal MMSE scores were observed in 16.1% of the subjects; in December, the prevalence of severe dementia increased to 31.1% and that of normal scores decreased to 10.3%. In March, no participant was found to be at high risk of depression and moderate risk was observed in 14.3% of the subjects; in December, 2.6% of the residents had a high risk score and 45.4% had a moderate risk score. Statistical analysis revealed that higher MMSE scores correspond with a higher risk of depression.Conclusion: A higher risk of depression was observed with the development of the pandemic. Residents with cognitive impairment were characterised by a lower risk of depression compared to individuals with normal MMSE scores. During the study, progression of cognitive impairment was observed in the residents.
Highlights
In 2019 in Wuhan in China, a number of cases of unexplained pneumonia occurred
In March, severe dementia was present in 28.2% of the residents (N = 77), and a normal Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score was observed in 16.1% of the subjects (N = 44), while in December, the prevalence of severe dementia increased to 31.1% (N = 85) and that of normal scores decreased to 10.3% (N = 28)
In March, no participant was found to be at high risk of depression, and moderate risk was observed in 14.3% of the subjects (N = 39), whereas in December, 2.6% of the residents (N = 7) had a high risk score and 45.4% had a moderate risk score (N = 124)
Summary
In 2019 in Wuhan in China, a number of cases of unexplained pneumonia occurred. In January 2020, the Chinese Center For Disease Control and Prevention (CCDC) detected a novel coronavirus in a patient’s throat sample (Zhu et al, 2020). The name was subsequently changed to “severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2” (SARS-CoV-2) and the disease caused by the virus was named “coronavirus disease” (COVID-19) (World Health Organization [WHO], 2021). The development of the COVID-19 pandemic has prompted the implementation of many procedures to safeguard against further increases in illness. This has drastically reduced residents’ contact with their families, which has increased feelings of loneliness and isolation. This is difficult in longterm care facilities, where the risk of developing depression is higher than in the general population
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