Asociación entre cognición y depresión en adultos mayores panameños con cognición normal y deterioro cognitivo leve

Depression and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in the elderly are related to the development of different types of dementia and decreased functionality. A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out with a sample of 73 Panamanian older adults aged 65 years or older, from the cohort of the PanamaAgingResearch Initiative (PARI). Health status and functionality were measured in activities of daily living. Cognitive functioning was measured with neuropsychological tests whose scores were combined to form six domains: global cognition, memory, language, visuospatial skills, attention, and executive functions. To measure depressive symptoms, the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-30) was used. An analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was performed comparing subjects with and without possible depression for each cognitive domain, in subjects with MCI and normal cognition (NC) and controlling for the variables of age and education. Significant differences were found between the groups, the group with possible depression and MCI had lower scores compared to the other groups in global cognition. Two linear regression analyzes were performed to determine the factors associated with cognitive performance in each diagnostic group individually. In the NC group, education was a significant predictor of performance in the cognitive domains, while in the MCI it was found that age, education, depression and body mass index (BMI) were related to lower cognitive performance. , depression predicted poor performance in the cognitive domains of executive functions and attention. These results could contribute to the development of health policies aimed at older adults, and to specialized prevention and intervention efforts focused on minimizing disability and its mediators.