Mental health symptoms and verbal fluency in elderly people: Evidence from the Spanish longitudinal study of aging
Mental health symptoms and verbal fluency in elderly people: Evidence from the Spanish longitudinal study of aging
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DOI：
10.1080/13607863.2018.1448969
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发表时间：
2019-06-03
影响因子：
3.4
通讯作者：
Calet, Nuria
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
Craig Simpson, Ian;Gabriela Dumitrache, Cristina;Calet, Nuria
目的：抑郁和孤独在老年人中非常普遍。此外，这些心理健康症状对老年人的语言流畅性产生不利影响。我们研究了50岁或50岁以上人群中抑郁和孤独与语言流畅性之间的关系。方法：在西班牙纵向老龄化研究（ELES）的试点研究期间收集了研究数据，其中对非机构化的西班牙老年人进行了评估。在这里，使用分层回归分析了962名参与者的横断面数据，控制了年龄，教育水平，整体认知功能，社交网络和家庭满意度。结果：较高的认知功能水平与较高的语言流畅性相关。女性表现出较高水平的语音流畅性。抑郁和孤独感都不是语音流畅性的显着预测因子，但孤独感是语义流畅性的显着预测因子。对于轻度的孤独，语义流畅性的下降速度在最老的年龄减缓。相比之下，严重的孤独的速度下降的语义流畅性增加在最老的年龄。结论：抑郁症状、孤独和认知障碍在衰老过程中都很突出，因此需要更好地了解它们对衰老的影响。早期发现孤独感，沿着对被诊断为孤独的个体实施干预是明智的，以避免对这些个体的语言流畅性产生负面影响。
Objectives: Depression and loneliness are highly prevalent in old age. Moreover these mental health symptoms adversely affect the verbal fluency of the elderly. We examined the relationship between depression and loneliness with verbal fluency in people aged 50 years or older. Method: Research data were collected during the pilot study of the Longitudinal Aging Study in Spain (ELES) in which a representative sample of non-institutionalized Spanish older people was assessed. Here, the cross-sectional data for 962 participants were analysed using hierarchical regressions, controlling for age, education level, overall cognitive functioning, social networks and satisfaction with family. Results: Higher levels of cognitive functioning were associated with higher verbal fluency. Females showed higher levels of phonological fluency. Neither depression nor loneliness were significant predictors of phonological fluency but loneliness was a significant predictor of semantic fluency. For mild levels of loneliness, the rate of decline in semantic fluency slows in the oldest ages. In contrast, for severe loneliness the rate of decline in semantic fluency increases in the oldest ages. Conclusions: Depressive symptoms, loneliness and cognitive impairment are all prominent in ageing and therefore their impact on ageing needs to be better understood. Early detection of loneliness, along with the implementation of intervention for individuals diagnosed with loneliness is advisable in order to avoid negative repercussions for the verbal fluency of these individuals.