Abstract
to map the scientific knowledge about COVID-19 in older adults. this is a scoping review literature review. A search was performed in the PubMed, CINAHL, Web of Science and LILACS databases. Original articles that answered the guiding question were included: what scientific knowledge is available in the world about COVID-19 in older adults? thirty-one articles were included, most of them carried out in China (n=23) and with a retrospective design (n=13) and case studies/case series (n=13). Based on the findings, six thematic categories emerged: clinical signs and symptoms (n=12), other information (n=9), adverse outcomes/complications resulting from COVID-19 (n=8), age relationship and greater severity of COVID-19 (n=8), variables related to death by COVID-19 (n=8), and diagnostic findings (n=8). the findings reinforce older adults' greater vulnerability to the worsening of COVID-19, as well as to complications resulting from the disease, including the greater occurrence of death.
Highlights
COVID-19 is an acute respiratory disease caused by the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2)(1), which was declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern and characterized as a pandemic on March 11, 2020(2)
440 articles were found in the databases and 79 identified in the PubCovid-19 Platform, 103 of which were excluded by duplicate
As for outcomes/complications resulting from COVID-19 (n=8), there was a higher proportion of hospitalizations in older adults in Intensive Care Units(24), severe pneumonia(32) and a lower proportion of discharge in these units in relation to the younger groups(25)
Summary
COVID-19 is an acute respiratory disease caused by the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2)(1), which was declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern and characterized as a pandemic on March 11, 2020(2). In an epidemiological cohort study conducted in China, most cases of COVID-19 and the worst prognosis for this disease were among older adults(5). Supporting these findings, data demonstrated that the occurrence of death by COVID-19 increased exponentially from 3 to 5% among people aged 65├75 years, from 4 to 11% among people aged 75├85 years and from 10 to 27% among people aged 85 years and over. People aged 65 and over represented 45% more hospital admissions, 53% of occupations in Intensive Care Units and 80% of deaths(6) This leads to the belief that more comprehensive measures are needed to protect older adults
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