Performance on cognitive tests, instrumental activities of daily living and depressive symptoms of a community-based sample of elderly adults in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Christina Martins Borges Lima,Daniel Correa Mograbi,Heloisa Veiga Dias Alves,Jesus Landeira Fernandez,Helenice Charchat-Fichman,Flávia Furtado Pereira

doi:10.1590/1980-57642016dn11-010009

Christina Martins Borges Lima, Daniel Correa Mograbi + Show 4 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1590/1980-57642016dn11-010009

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Abstract

ObjectiveTo describe the performance on basic cognitive tasks, instrumental activities of daily living, and depressive symptoms of a community-based sample of elderly adults in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) who participated in multiple physical, social, and cognitive activities at government-run community centers.MethodsA total of 264 educated older adults (> 60 years of age of both genders) were evaluated by the Brief Cognitive Screening Battery (BCSB), Lawton's and Pfeffer's activities of daily living indexes, and the Geriatric Depressive Scale (GDS).ResultsThe mean age of the sample was 75.7 years. The participants had a mean of 9.3 years of formal education. With the exception of the Clock Drawing Test (CDT), mean scores on the cognitive tests were consistent with the values in the literature. Only 6.4% of the sample had some kind of dependence for activities of daily living. The results of the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15) indicated mild symptoms of depression in 16.8% of the sampleConclusionThis study provided important demographic, cognitive, and functional characteristics of a specific community-based sample of elderly adults in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Highlights

Population aging is a worldwide phenomenon, characterized by a higher rate of growth among the elderly population relative to other age groups.[1]
We sought to describe the cognitive-depressive-functional profiles of independent elderly individuals who participated in multiple physical, social, and cognitive activities offered by the government of the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Instruments were applied in the following fixed order: the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE),[19] Figure Memory Test (FMT),[15,16] Semantic Verbal Fluency Test (VFT; animal category),[10,15] Clock Drawing Test (CDT),[20] Lawton IADL21, Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15),[21,23] and Pfeffer’s Functional Activities Questionnaire (FAQ).[24]

Summary

INTRODUCTION

Population aging is a worldwide phenomenon, characterized by a higher rate of growth among the elderly population (aged ≥60 years) relative to other age groups.[1]. Recent studies involving older adults from the community and using a screening battery to assess normal aging in this heterogeneous population, found that sociodemographic variables, age, low levels of education, and symptoms of depression can strongly contribute to cognitive decline and impact functioning in these individuals.[6,8,10,11,12] studies evaluating the diversity of the Brazilian community-based population using similar measures failed to investigate the performance of normal, healthy participants.[13,14] In other words, previous studies only described the demographic profile and prevalence of dementia and did not report normative data on cognition and functioning In this context, the objective of the present study was to describe the performance of a community-based sample of elderly adults on basic cognitive tasks, instrumental activities of daily living, and depressive symptoms. We sought to describe the cognitive-depressive-functional profiles of independent elderly individuals who participated in multiple physical, social, and cognitive activities offered by the government of the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

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RESULTS

DISCUSSION