Determinants of depressive symptoms increase in older persons during the COVID-19 pandemic: evidence from Czech cohort study using repeated assessments
Open Access
- 22 November 2022
- journal article
- research article
- Published by BMJ in Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health
- Vol. 77 (2), 101-107
- https://doi.org/10.1136/jech-2022-219412
Abstract
Background Numerous studies reported higher levels of mental health issues during the COVID-19 pandemic but only a minority used repeated measurements. We investigated change in depressive symptoms in the Czech ageing cohort and the impact of pre-existing and COVID-19-related stressors. Methods We used data on 2853 participants (mean age 73.4 years) from the Czech part of the prospective Health, Alcohol and Psychosocial factors In Eastern Europe cohort that participated in postal questionnaire surveys before (September 2017–June 2018) and during the pandemic (October 2020–April 2021). Participants reported their depressive symptoms using the Centre for Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale including 10 (CESD-10) tool. A principal component analysis (PCA) was used to create representative components of the pandemic-related stressors. The impact of the stressors on change in depressive symptoms was tested using multivariable linear regression, after adjustment for age and potential confounders. Results Three patterns of the pandemic-related stressors (‘financial stressors’, ‘social and perception stressors’ and ‘death and hospitalisation stressors’) were extracted from the PCA. The mean CESD-10 score increased from 4.90 to 5.37 (pConclusion This study confirms an increase in depressive symptoms in older persons during the pandemic and identified several pandemic-related risk factors suggesting that public health policies should address this vulnerable group by adopting the preventing strategies.Keywords
Funding Information
- European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme (857340, 857487, 857560)
- Czech NPO Systemic Risk Institute (LX22NPO5101)
- Operational Programme Research, Development and Education - CETOCOEN EXCELLENCE (CZ.02.1.01/0.0/0.0/17_043/0009632)
- Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports (LM2018121)
This publication has 37 references indexed in Scilit:
- Multidisciplinary research priorities for the COVID-19 pandemic: a call for action for mental health scienceThe Lancet Psychiatry, 2020
- WHO Declares COVID-19 a Pandemic2020
- Clinical course and risk factors for mortality of adult inpatients with COVID-19 in Wuhan, China: a retrospective cohort studyThe Lancet, 2020
- Social isolation, loneliness and health in old age: a scoping reviewHealth & Social Care in the Community, 2015
- Cohort and Gender Differences in Psychosocial Adjustment to Later-Life WidowhoodThe Journals of Gerontology, Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 2015
- Psychometric Properties of the CES-D-10 in a Psychiatric SampleAssessment, 2013
- Risk factors for anxiety and depression in the elderly: A reviewJournal of Affective Disorders, 2008
- Determinants of cardiovascular disease and other non-communicable diseases in Central and Eastern Europe: Rationale and design of the HAPIEE studyBMC Public Health, 2006
- Screening for depression in well older adults: evaluation of a short form of the CES-D (Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale).1994
- Screening for Depression in Well Older Adults: Evaluation of a Short Form of the CES-DAmerican Journal of Preventive Medicine, 1994