Depression and quality of life in Brazilian and Portuguese older people communities: Analysis of association

Influence of pain on the quality of life in patients with venous ulcers: Cross-sectional association and correlation study in a brazilian primary health care lesions treatment center

We aimed to verify the association and correlation between pain and QoL in people with VU treated in a Brazilian Primary Health Care (PHC) lesions treatment center. This is an observational, cross-sectional study with a quantitative approach, carried out in a service specialized in the treatment of chronic injuries, linked to 29 PHC units. Sociodemographic and health characterization instruments were used. The Short Form Health Survey-36 (SF-36) and Visual Analogue Pain Scale (VAPS) also were used. The Kruskal-Wallis test verified the association between the scalar variables of QoL and pain intensity. With Spearman's correlation test, we verified the level of correlation between the scales applied. A total of 103 patients participated in the study. Higher QoL scores associated with moderate pain were found, especially in the Physical role functioning, Physical functioning, and Vitality domains. Correlation analysis showed its greatest (moderate) strength in the interaction between the highest scores in the Physical role functioning and Emotional role functioning domains with the lowest pain levels.

Determinants of socioeconomic factors for quality of life and depressive symptoms in community-dwelling older people: A cross-sectional study in Brazil and Portugal

Our aim was to analyze the association between socioeconomic status and quality of life (QoL) among older people with depressive symptoms treated through the Primary Health Care (PHC) system in Brazil and Portugal. This was a comparative cross-sectional study with a nonprobability sample of older people in the PHC in Brazil and Portugal conducted between 2017 and 2018. To evaluate the variables of interest, the socioeconomic data questionnaire, the Geriatric Depression Scale and the Medical Outcomes Short-Form Health Survey were used. Descriptive and multivariate analyses were performed to test the study hypothesis. The sample consisted of n = 150 participants (Brazil n = 100 and Portugal n = 50). There was a predominance of woman (76.0%, p = 0.224) and individuals between 65 and 80 years (88.0%, p = 0.594). The multivariate association analysis showed that in the presence of depressive symptoms, the QoL mental health domain was most associated with the socioeconomic variables. Among the prominent variables, woman group (p = 0.027), age group 65-80 years (p = 0.042), marital status "without a partner" (p = 0.029), education up to 5 years (p = 0.011) and earning up to 1 minimum wage (p = 0.037) exhibited higher scores among brazilian participants. The portuguese participants showed an association between the general health status domain and woman group (p = 0.042) and education up to 5 years (p = 0.045). The physical functioning domain was associated with income of up to 1 minimum wage (p = 0.037). In these domains, the portuguese participants exhibited higher scores than the brazilian participants. We verified the association between socioeconomic profile and QoL in the presence of depressive symptoms, which occurred mainly among woman, participants with low levels of education and low income, with QoL aspects related to mental, physical and social health and self-perceived health. The group from Brazil had higher QoL scores than the group from Portugal.

Quality of Life in the Face of Depression Among Older People: A Cross-Sectional Study in Brazil and Portugal

Background

This study aimed to analyze and compare the association of depression levels with quality of life among older people in primary health care in Brazil and Portugal.

Methods

This was a cross-sectional study conducted with older people in primary health care. The Medical Outcomes Short-Form Health Quality of Life (SF-36) instrument was used to measure the quality of life, and the Beck Depression Inventory was used to evaluate depression. We grouped the depression level variables into "absent/mild" and "moderate/severe" and tested their association with the categorical variables of quality of life ("better quality of life" and "worse quality of life").

Results

The total sample was 150 participants (Brazil n = 100 and Portugal n = 50). Each group results in the subcategory of absent/mild depression (n = 129) indicated better quality of life in Portugal in physical role functioning (P = .027/odds ratio = 2.768), physical functioning (P < .001/odds ratio = 5.864), and the physical health dimension (P = .002/odds ratio = 3.752). The binary logistic regression analysis highlighted the domains physical role functioning (odds ratio = 1.01/CI for 95% = 1.00-1.03), physical functioning (odds ratio = 1.02/CI for 95% = 1.01-1.03), and the physical health dimension (odds ratio = 1.09/CI for 95% = 1.04-1.13).

Conclusion

There was an association between better assessments of the physical and functional aspects of quality of life and lower levels of depression, in which we could highlight those aspects related to physical health and functionality. Among the groups studied, Portugal had better quality of life evaluations than Brazil. However, none of the groups overlapped the other in levels of depression.

Quality of Life in Community-Dwelling Older People with Functional and Nutritional Impairment and Depressive Symptoms: A Comparative Cross-Sectional Study in Brazil and Portugal

Background: The interaction of quality of life (QoL) with functionality, nutrition and depression has been studied, but few studies have compared different realities. Our objective was to compare the associations of QoL with impaired functionality, nutritional status and depressive symptoms among older people patients treated in primary health care (PHC) in Brazil and Portugal. Methods: Cross-sectional, comparative study was conducted with primary data from PHC services in Brazil and Portugal with users over 65 years old. Participants’ scores were classified as “impaired” and “preserved” for QoL, functional decline, nutrition and depression. We used Pearson’s chi-square test, Fisher’s exact test and the Mann–Whitney U test. Results: Our sample had a total of 150 PHC users. We found lower QoL scores in Brazil, which were associated with the risk of functional decline for the domains Physical Functioning, General Health Perceptions, Mental Health dimensions and Physical Health. Nutritional impairment in the group from Portugal included the domains of Vitality and Social Role Functioning. For depressive impairment, Portugal showed an association with the domains Mental Health, Vitality and Social Role Functioning. Conclusions: QoL was associated with functional and nutritional impairment and depressive symptoms, highlighting physical, mental and social characteristics related to the perception of well-being.