einstein (São Paulo). 04/Oct/2019;17(4):eED5214.
Serotonin reuptake inhibitors and bleeding risks related to elderly submitted to major orthopedic surgery
DOI: 10.31744/einstein_journal/2019ED5214
Depression is a major global public health problem, the leading cause of disability with an estimated global prevalence of 4.7%, and the eleventh leading cause of global disease burden. Among elderly individuals, depression is one of the most prevalent mental disorder, a common cause of disability, and reduced life-satisfaction. Along with the worldwide increase in number of older adults, a better understanding of depression among older people is highly valuable from clinical and public health perspectives. Late-life depression is a common psychiatric disorder that decrease older people’s quality of life. Around 14% of individuals older than 55 years have depression including 2% with major depression. Factors associated with late-life depression includes female sex, chronic somatic illness, cognitive impairment, functional impairment, lack of close social contacts, personality traits, stressful life-events, and a history of depression.
The use of antidepressants by elderly patients has some risks. However, untreated or inadequately treated depression is more dangerous and can lead to other adverse health outcomes such as malnutrition, poor hydration, weakness from a lack of physical activity, functional decline, decrease in quality of life, and ultimately, suicide and death.
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