Advances in Medical Research
Open Access
ISSN: 2564-8942
+44 1478 350008
ISSN: 2564-8942
+44 1478 350008
Gjon Preci; Iliriana Zekja; Kilda Gusha; Erjona Abazaj
Community Center of Mental Health of Shkodra district, Albania Faculty of Medical Science and Technology, Tirana, Albania Hospital Center ??Mother Teresa? Tirana, Albania University of Shkodra, Nursing Departments, Shkoder, Albania
Posters & Accepted Abstracts: Advances in Medical Research
Introduction Dementia itself is not a disease, but a constellation of symptoms caused by diseases and disorders that affect the brain. Dementia and depression are mental health problems commonly encountered in neuropsychiatric practice in the elderly. The aims study was to evaluate the prevalence of depression in elderly people with dementia and to see the association between them. Methods This is a retrospective cohort study associating dementia with depression among the population from 50 until to more than 85 years old in Shkodra City in Albania. Patients were considered to have depression when one or more ICD codes for depression were recorded as primary or secondary diagnosis. Logistic regression odds ratio (OR) were used to calculate prevalence of depression on persons with dementia. The software SPSS version 20.0 were used for data calculation. P-values less than 0.05 were taken as significant. Results A total of 187 patients with dementia were enrolled in to the study for a periods of four years. The min age was 50 and max 89 years old with average 75±8.1 std. The prevalence of depression among those patients with dementia resulted 44.9% (84/187). Almost sixty-two percent (n=52) of patients had moderate depression and 38% (n=32) of patients had severe depression. Male with dementia were the most predominant sex compared to female with percentage 60.4% and 39.6% respectively. On the other hand, depression was being found more predominant to female patients with dementia. Female were 2.9 (odds ratio) time in risk to develop depression compared to male 95% CI [1.6-5.4] p value 0.0005. We found a strong association between the late-life depression than in depression in middle-aged adults for p value <0.05. Conclusion Depression in older adults is a serious concern especially in dementia population, which often is under-diagnosed being masked by cognitive impairments. Our findings highlight sexspecific associations between depression and dementia and the late-life depression compared to depression in middle-aged adults. Knowledge in the interactions between the depression and dementia will likely contribute to the timely prevention, identification, and treatment of depression in the elderly and will influence on their quality of life. Key words: dementia, depression, elderly people, Shkodra city
Gjon Preçi has completed his University in 1988, in Faculty of Medicine, Tirana, Albania. He finished his specialization in psychiatry in 1991 and neurology in 1993. Dr. Gjoni works as a neuropsychiatric physician in the Community Center of Mental Health of Shkodra district, Albania.