Avaliação do estado mental de idosos hospitalizados

Abstract

Cognitive loss and dementia characterized mainly by memory difficulty are among the alterations and disorders that can affect elderly people. With the changes and aggravations during the aging process, there is an increase on the demand for health services by the elderly population. Elderlies´s hospitalization in addition to a high burden for the country, frequently also causes consequences that impair their autonomy, quality of life, triggering embryogenesis weakness and increase morbimortality. Objectives: To characterize the sociodemographic, economic and clinical aspects of the elderlies in a clinical and geriatric ward of the Unified Health System (SUS) of a school hospital in the interior of São Paulo state. To evaluate the mental state of hospitalized elderlies. Methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional quantitative study carried out with 115 elderly individuals who answered the socio-demographic and clinical characterization tool and the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE). Descriptive analysis of the variables of sample characterization and chi-square test were performed for the association between MMSE scores and categorized variables. Mann-Whitney test was used to compare MMSE scores with continuous variables and 0.05 or 5% significance level for the tests, using Minitab software (Minitab Inc.) Results: The results have allowed the characterization of the elderly hospitalized in a clinical and geriatric ward. The majority of them was: men, white, from urban origin, with a partner, with one to four years of schooling, retired without occupation, retirement income, living with family, a home of their own, Catholic religion practice, no practice of social activity, hospitalized due to pulmonary problems and hypertension. It was possible to identify that cognitive decline present an important correlation with age and social activity. Conclusion: The performance of a multidisciplinary team in the hospital environment is necessary to provide early detection of cognitive impairment on the elderly patients. From these observations, important interventions with emphasis on Occupational Therapy and Physiotherapy are fundamental on preventive measures for the maintenance of the cognitive function of the elderlies.