A community based study in South India of the association between Common Mental Disorders(CMD) and Cognitive Impairment(CI) in urban elderly.

Abstract

Background: Unprecedented aging in India has brought with it a host of difficulties for the elderly, including urbanization, breakdown of the joint family system, economic distress, poor nutrition and significant unpreparedness to manage their increasing needs. This urgent need was addressed through a formal research proposal aimed to study the prevalence of CMD and CI in community living elderly, their associations and sociodemographic correlates. This detailed analysis thus provides a framework to stimulate policy decisions for elder care in the country. Materials and methods: A prospective cross-sectional study was conducted across six old age homes in Chennai, India where 273 community living elderly aged 65 and older were assessed using the Clinical Interview Scale-Revised and the Mini Mental State Examination (Hindi version). Results: Most of the subjects were female (71.1%), had at least ten years of education and were of high socio-economic status; 52% were positive for CMD and 14.28% had CI. There was a statistically significant association between CMD and CI (t=5.115, p=0.000, 95%CI 8.453-19.034). Conclusions: The prevalence of CI is in keeping with the published literature. However, the prevalence of CMD in this population was found to be higher than that published in literature from India and low- and middle-income countries (LAMIC). Older age, female gender, low educational attainment and middle socio-economic status were factors associated with CI. This study validates the extensively reported finding that CMD and CI are important in the public health implications of human ageing that health planners and policy makers need to focus on.