scholarly journals Home containment and COVID-19: a perspective about the mental health of the geriatric population

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 50
Author(s):  
Nicolle Dos Santos Moraes Nunes ◽  
Jacqueline Stephanie Fernandes Do Nascimento ◽  
Maria Eduarda Abreu Rangel ◽  
Esther Victória Lima De Mello ◽  
Janie Kelly Fernandes Do Nascimento ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Emotional Disorders ◽  
Social Isolation ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Major Public Health Problem ◽  
Geriatric Population ◽  
English Articles ◽  
The Impact

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic is a major Public Health problem today. Social isolation is the main measure established so far to delay the spread of this pathology. However, the loneliness resulting from confinement can be particularly problematic in senescence. This article aimed to produce and update reflections about the impact of social isolation on the mental health of the elderly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methodology: A search was carried out in the main data sources: Lilacs, Bireme and Pubmed, in Portuguese and English. Articles that address inclusion requirements were selected and exclude those that do not. It was also decided to perform a reverse search, in order to expand and diversify the results. Results: By crossing the keywords in the database, a total of 475 publications were found. Joining selected articles in the database and in the reverse search, the sample was composed of 21 articles in all. Conclusion: Social isolation negatively affects the mental health of the elderly. Thus, health professionals must be prepared to face an epidemic of emotional disorders arising from the confinement of this population.Keywords: elderly, mental health, pandemic, COVID-19, social isolation.

scholarly journals 556 - The Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on elderly’s mental health

2021 ◽  
Vol 33 (S1) ◽  
pp. 96-97
Author(s):  
Sofia Ramos Ferreira ◽  
Daniela Pereira ◽  
Horácio Firmino
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Elderly Population ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
World Health ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Geriatric Population ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
The Impact

Background:Since the disease caused by the SARS-Cov-2 virus was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization, countries around the globe adopted measures of social distancing to limit the spread of the virus. Although social distancingmeasures are essential preventive mechanisms, they can promote feelings of loneliness and influence the onset or exacerbation of psychiatric disorders. Current knowledge about the impact of COVID-19 on mental health - and in particular on mental health of the geriatric population - is still scarce.Research Objective:The present review aimed to analyze the COVID-19 pandemic impact on the elderly´s mental health and to suggest measures that can mitigate this impact.Method:A non-systematic review of the literature, through bibliographic research in Pubmed and Embase databases - using the keywords “COVID-19", “SARS-CoV-2", “Coronavirus”, “Aging”, “Older adults”, “Elderly”, “Quarantine” and “Mental health” -was performed.Preliminary results of the ongoing study:The available literature points towards a likely increase in mental disorders as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. This phenomena may be particularly relevant in the elderly population. Several measures – pharmacological and non-pharmacological – can help to maintain the physical and mental health of the elderly.Conclusion:The COVID-19 pandemic had an important impact in elderly’s mental health. This subject should be addressed by profissionals/caregivers and measures tominimize negative consequences are in order.

scholarly journals Treatment of obesity: Theory into practice

1999 ◽  
Vol 58 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-58 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara F. L. Kirk
Keyword(s):  
Health Professionals ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Obese Individual ◽  
Obesity Treatment ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
Dietary Advice ◽  
Major Public Health Problem ◽  
Treatment Of Obesity ◽  
The Impact

The purpose of the present paper is to outline the current situation in the management of obesity in adults, and to make some suggestions as to how health professionals involved in obesity treatment can best address this growing problem. Dietitians and nutritionists have long been involved in the treatment of obesity, and have a vital role to play in the battle to reverse the increasing prevalence of this major public health problem. However, the current management of obesity is far from ideal. There is evidence to suggest that in general health care, even when there are clearly effective clinical interventions, health professionals may not practise in the best way. Furthermore, some professionals may also hold negative attitudes towards the obese. These are the subject of a systematic review on improving health professionals' practice and organization of care in obesity treatment, the preliminary findings of which will be discussed in the present paper (Harvey et al. 1998a, b). A new approach to obesity is required, encompassing effective treatment and prevention strategies. A greater understanding of the problems faced by the obese individual in attempting to lose weight is also needed, with a range of treatment approaches on offer to acknowledge the heterogeneity of obesity. Those health professionals involved in obesity treatment must consider the impact of dietary advice given in a consultation against the impact of environmental cues that assail the patient as soon as they leave the room. Tackling the obesity epidemic requires action at the individual and population level if we are to see any reduction in prevalence.

scholarly journals Period prevalence, risk factors and consequent injuries of falling among the Saudi elderly living in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: a cross-sectional study

BMJ Open ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. e019063 ◽  
Author(s):  
Faisal Yousef Almegbel ◽  
Ibrahim Muthyib Alotaibi ◽  
Faisal Ahmed Alhusain ◽  
Emad M Masuadi ◽  
Salma Lafyan Al Sulami ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Major Public Health Problem ◽  
Old People ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Period Prevalence ◽  
The Impact

ObjectivesApproximately 28% to 35% of people aged 65 and over fall each year. The consequent injuries of falls are considered a major public health problem. Falls account for more than half of injury-related hospitalisations among old people. The aim of this study was to measure a 1-year period prevalence of falling among old people in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. In addition, this study described the most common risk factors and consequent injuries of falls.Setting and participantsA cross-sectional survey was carried out in Riyadh, using a convenient sampling. The targeted population were Saudi citizens who were 60 years or above. Over a 6-month period, 1182 individuals were sampled (545 men and 637 women).ResultsThe 1-year prevalence of falling among old Saudis (>=60 years) was 49.9%. Our results show that 74% of the participants who experienced falls had postfall injuries. Old participants who were uneducated and those with middle school certification were associated with falls (adjusted OR (aOR) 1.72; 95% CI 1.15 to 2.56, aOR 1.81; 95% CI 1.15 to 2.85, respectively). Those who live in rented houses had a higher risk of falls. Interestingly, having a caregiver was significantly associated with more falls (aOR 1.39; 95% CI 1.08 to 1.79). However, not using any medications was significantly related to fewer falls. In addition, old individuals using walking aids were more likely to fall than those who did not. Participants who mentioned ‘not having stressors were associated with less frequent falls (aOR 0.62; 95% CI 0.39 to 0.97). Cerebrovascular accidents were strongly associated with falls with an estimated OR of 2.75 (95% CI 1.18 to 6.43). Moreover, osteoporosis, poor vision and back pain were found to be predictors for falls among the elderly.Conclusion49.9% of elderly Saudis had experienced one or more falls during a 12-month period. Several preventable risk factors could be addressed by routine geriatric assessment. Research on the impact of these risk factors is needed.

scholarly journals The Covid-19 pandemic as a trigger for depression

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natália Murad Schmitt ◽  
Gabriel Costa Ferreira Andrade ◽  
Maria Arlete da Silva Rodrigues ◽  
Myrela Murad Sampaio
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Psychiatric Symptoms ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
Routine Activities ◽  
World Population ◽  
The World ◽  
First Contact ◽  
The Impact

Background: In the last years, a high number of people with depression have been found and it’s estimated that 5% of the world population lives with this disease. However, since the Covid-19 pandemic, there was a significant increase, which is justify by the fear of the virus, boredom of isolation and the uncertainty of the future due to the difficulties caused by the situation. In this scenario, understand this disease considered a public health problem is important, because health professionals may need to deal with a possible imminent new pandemic: the depression one. Objective: To understand the impact of depression during the Covid-19 pandemic. Methods: An integrative review was performed, through a virtual scenario, selecting articles from the last five years in the Pubmed, Scielo and Google Scholar platforms. Results: Depression brings desmotivation, lack of energy and loss of pleasure in routine activities, besides feeling deep sadness, low self-esteem and a recurrent feeling of guilt. It’s natural the population suffers from mood swings and that’s why it’s important to take care of mental health during the pandemic, like how to create a new routine and make it work, because the atypical situation has been the trigger for the first contact with psychiatric symptoms of many. Conclusion: Fear, financial crisis and the lack of routine are risk factors, which may reflect on the behavior of the population. Understanding the trigger and being able to live with it’s essential for the mental health.

What Gives a Diagnostic Label Value? Common Use Over Informativeness

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Babak Hemmatian ◽  
Sze Yu Yu Chan ◽  
Steven A. Sloman
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Professionals ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Causal Relation ◽  
Causal Beliefs ◽  
Diagnostic Categories ◽  
Diagnostic Labels ◽  
Diagnostic Label ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Practical Implications

A label’s entrenchment, its degree of use by members of a community, affects its perceived explanatory value even if the label provides no substantive information (Hemmatian & Sloman, 2018). In three experiments, we show that laypersons and mental health professionals see entrenched psychiatric and non-psychiatric diagnostic labels as better explanations than non-entrenched labels even if they are circular. Using scenarios involving experts who discuss unfamiliar diagnostic categories, we show that this preference is not due to violations of conversational norms, lack of reflectiveness or attentiveness, and the characters’ familiarity or unfamiliarity with the label. In Experiment 1, whether a label provided novel symptom information or not had no impact on lay responses, while its entrenchment enhanced ratings of explanation quality. The effect persisted in Experiment 2 for causally incoherent categories and regardless of direct provision of mechanistic information. The effect of entrenchment was partly related to induced causal beliefs about the category, even when participants were informed there is no causal relation. Most participants in both experiments did not report any effect of entrenchment and the effect was present for those who did not. In Experiment 3, mental health professionals showed the effect using diagnoses that were mere shorthands for symptoms, despite a tendency to rate all explanations as unsatisfactory. The data suggest that bringing experts’ attention to the manipulation eliminates the effect. We discuss practical implications for mental health disciplines and potential ways to mitigate the impact of entrenchment.

scholarly journals Promoting the Quality of Life of Elderly during the COVID-19 Pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (13) ◽  
pp. 6813
Author(s):  
Chia-Jung Lee ◽  
Yen Hsu
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Mental Health ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Learning Approach ◽  
Learning Center ◽  
Learning Centers ◽  
Technology Learning ◽  
The Impact

This study explored the technology learning model of the elderly in a senior learning center under the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many senior learning centers were closed during the pandemic, and many of them adopted the mode of online education. However, problems such as decreased motivation and a lack of peer interaction still exist. To solve these problems, this study used the easy-to-implement calligraphy AR approach and E-book approach to conduct a quasi-experiment on the elderly of a calligraphy course offered by a senior learning center. The results show a higher learning motivation among the elderly who use calligraphy AR. The learning effectiveness and technology acceptance of the elderly in the E-book learning group were higher than those in the calligraphy AR group. The elderly mentioned that the E-book learning approach is more user-friendly. In general, in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic affecting the suspension of classes in senior centers, education through the development of technology has stimulated the growth of education in advanced learning centers. Through this kind of scientific and technological learning method, it will bring a whole new experience to the elderly. It can improve the stress relief methods, mental health, and quality of life of the elderly during the COVID-19 emergency shutdown, and provide a novel calligraphy technique learning experience for the elderly. Therefore, we believe that the calligraphy AR learning approach and the calligraphy E-book learning approach are practical and may promote quality of life and mental health of the elderly during the emergency closures due to COVID-19, providing elderly attendees with a novel calligraphy technology learning experience.

scholarly journals How is the COVID-19 lockdown impacting the mental health of parents of school-age children in the UK? A cross-sectional online survey

BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. e043397
Author(s):  
Austen El-Osta ◽  
Aos Alaa ◽  
Iman Webber ◽  
Eva Riboli Sasco ◽  
Emmanouil Bagkeris ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Physical Activity ◽  
Social Isolation ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Female Gender ◽  
School Age Children ◽  
School Age ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Impact

ObjectiveInvestigate the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on feelings of loneliness and social isolation in parents of school-age children.DesignCross-sectional online survey of parents of primary and secondary school-age children.SettingCommunity setting.Participants1214 parents of school-age children in the UK.MethodsAn online survey explored the impact of lockdown on the mental health of parents with school-age children, and in particular about feelings of social isolation and loneliness. Associations between the UCLA Three-Item Loneliness Scale (UCLATILS), the Direct Measure of Loneliness (DMOL) and the characteristics of the study participants were assessed using ordinal logistic regression models.Main outcome measuresSelf-reported measures of social isolation and loneliness using UCLATILS and DMOL.ResultsHalf of respondents felt they lacked companionship, 45% had feelings of being left out, 58% felt isolated and 46% felt lonely during the first 100 days of lockdown. The factors that were associated with higher levels of loneliness on UCLATILS were female gender, parenting a child with special needs, lack of a dedicated space for distance learning, disruption of sleep patterns and low levels of physical activity during the lockdown. Factors associated with a higher DMOL were female gender, single parenting, parenting a child with special needs, unemployment, low physical activity, lack of a dedicated study space and disruption of sleep patterns during the lockdown.ConclusionsThe COVID-19 lockdown has increased feelings of social isolation and loneliness among parents of school-age children. The sustained adoption of two modifiable health-seeking lifestyle behaviours (increased levels of physical activity and the maintenance of good sleep hygiene practices) wmay help reduce feelings of social isolation and loneliness during lockdown.

scholarly journals Health risk assessment and countermeasure analysis of the elderly population exposed to PM2.5 microenvironment

Work ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Yan Xu ◽  
Wantian Cui
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Risk ◽  
Elderly Population ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Exposure Concentration ◽  
Physical Diseases ◽  
The Impact

BACKGROUND: China’s atmospheric PM2.5 pollution is serious, and PM2.5 exerts a negative impact on the human respiratory system, cardiovascular, and mental health, and even more serious health risk for the elderly with weak immunity. OBJECTIVE: This work aims to analyse the impacts of PM2.5 microenvironment exposure on the health of the elderly and provide corresponding countermeasures. METHODS: The survey subjects are 118 retired elderly people in the community. PM2.5 exposure concentrations are monitored in summer (June 10 ∼ July 10, 2019) and winter (November 25 ∼ December 25, 2019). RESULTS: The exposure concentration in winter is higher than that in summer, with statistical difference (P <  0.05). Under the impact of PM2.5 microenvironment exposure, smoking in the elderly can increase the concentration of PM2.5, and long-term exposure to PM2.5 in the elderly can cause mental health problems. CONCLUSION: Long-term exposure of the elderly to the PM2.5 microenvironment leads to physical diseases and even psychological problems, which requires attention.

Impact of PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) on mental health

2021 ◽  
pp. 002581722098181
Author(s):  
Shweta Sunil ◽  
Manoj Kumar Sharma ◽  
Nitin Anand
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Systematic Review ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Online Gaming ◽  
Anxiety And Depression ◽  
Self Harm ◽  
Aggressive Behaviours ◽  
Causal Patterns ◽  
The Impact

Online gaming has become a concern for health professionals due to its dysfunctional effects. This study aimed to conceptualise and summarise the impact that gaming platforms like PUBG can have on an individual’s mental health. A systematic review was conducted using the PRISMA model. A total of five papers were shortlisted and reviewed for the purpose of this study. The results indicated the use of gaming platforms like PUBG by players to address and cope with anxiety and depression, and it also highly influences the presence of other concerns like ADHD and suicidality, self-harm and aggressive behaviours. While the literature points to the detrimental effects of PUBG, this study highlights the importance of undertaking more research to establish the causal patterns in PUBG use and how to address the issues posed from both psychological and legal perspectives.

scholarly journals The Association between Physical Activity and Selected Parameters of Psychological Status and Dementia in Older Women

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (14) ◽  
pp. 7549
Author(s):  
Angelika Cisek-Woźniak ◽  
Kinga Mruczyk ◽  
Rafał W. Wójciak
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Physical Activity ◽  
Cognitive Impairment ◽  
Cognitive Functioning ◽  
Cognitive Functions ◽  
Protective Factor ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Regular Physical Activity ◽  
Psychological Status ◽  
The Impact

Physical activity has an unquestionable impact on broadly understood human health. One interesting issue related to this is the importance of movement on mental health and cognitive functioning. Research shows that regular physical activity improves the cognitive functioning of adults and people with mental disorders. Regular physical activity can be an important and powerful protective factor in cognitive impairment and dementia in the elderly, and exercise is an important non-pharmacological treatment for mild cognitive impairment or neurodegenerative diseases. This study aims to present the impact of physical activity on selected cognitive functions in physically active women over 60 years of age. The research was carried out in a group of 110 generally healthy women from the area of western Poland over 60 years of age, who were divided into four groups based on the intensity of their physical activity. A pedometer (sport watch) and a physical activity diary were used to measure physical activity. Body Mass Index was assessed. Selected cognitive functions were assessed using the MMSE test, motor and psychomotor skills were measured, and Luria’s auditory memory test and recall test, a clock drawing test, and a GDS test were performed. There were statistically significant relationships between the level of physical activity and the effectiveness of cognitive processes. These results show that about 5000 steps a day is enough to see a positive effect on the mental health and cognitive functioning of this group of the elderly population. The women had an average BMI of 28.1 ± 4.7. BMI, indicating an overweight condition (over 30 kg/m2), was observed in 31% of women. The results of this study lead the authors to conclude that physical activity positively influences cognitive function and can be recommended for all seniors who do not have other serious comorbidities that would prevent them from playing sports.

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