Impact of the Pandemic Time on the Mental Health of People with Dementia and Their Family Caregivers in Brazil and Chile: One-Year Follow-Up

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Olavarría, Loreto^{a; b; c; d} | Caramelli, Paulo^e | Lema, José^a | Andrade, Caíssa Bezerra de^e | Pinto, Alejandra^f | Azevedo, Lílian Viana dos Santos^e | Thumala, Daniela^{a; g} | Vieira, Maria Carolina Santos^h | Rossetti, Adriana Peredo^h | Generoso, Alana Barroso^h | Carmona, Karoline Carvalho^e | Sepúlveda-Loyola, Walterⁱ | Pinto, Ludmilla Aparecida Cardoso^e | Barbosa, Maira Tonidandel^{e; h} | Slachevsky, Andrea^{a; b; f; j; *}

Affiliations: [a] Geroscience Center for Brain Health and Metabolism (GERO), Santiago, Chile | [b] Physiopathology Department – Institute of Biomedical Sciences (ICBM), Neuroscience and East Neuroscience Departments, Faculty of Medicine, Neuropsychology and Clinical Neuroscience Laboratory (LANNEC), Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile | [c] Psychiatry Department, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile | [d] Latin American Brain Health Institute (BrainLat), Universidad Adolfo Ibanez, Santiago, Chile | [e] Faculdade de Medicina, Behavioral and Cognitive Neurology Research Group, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil | [f] Neurology Department, Memory and Neuropsychiatric Center (CMYN), Memory Unit, Hospital del Salvador and Faculty of Medicine, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile | [g] Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile | [h] Faculdade Ciências Médicas de Minas Gerais, Geriatric Medicine, Belo Horizonte, Brazil | [i] Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, Universidad de Las Américas. Santiago, Chile | [j] Departamento de Medicina, Servicio de Neurología, Clínica Alemana-Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile

Correspondence: [*] Correspondence to: Dr. Andrea Slachevsky, Gerosciences Center for Brain Health and Metabolism, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Chile, Avenida Salvador 486, Providencia, Santiago, Chile. Tel.: +56 2 29770530; E-mail: andrea.slachevsky@uchile.cl; ORCID: 0000-0001-6285-3189.

Abstract: Background:Previous studies reported the negative impact of social isolation on mental health in people with dementia (PwD) and their caregivers, butlongitudinal studies seem scarcer. Objective:To describe a one-year follow-up impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on PwD and their caregivers in both Brazil and Chile. Methods:This study analyzed the impact of the pandemic on the psychological and physical health of PwD and their family caregivers after one year of follow-up in three outpatient clinics in Brazil (n = 68) and Chile (n = 61). Results:In both countries, PwD reduced their functional capacity after one year of follow-up (p = 0.017 and p = 0.009; respectively) and caregivers reported worse physical and mental health (p = 0.028 and p = 0.039). Only in Chile, caregivers reported more sadness associated with care (p = 0.001), and reduced time sleeping (p = 0.07). Conclusions:In conclusion, the COVID-19 pandemic appears to have had a long-lasting impact on PwD and their caregivers. However, it is essential to acknowledge that the inherent progression of dementia itself may also influence changes observed over a year.

Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease, behavioral symptoms, caregiver, COVID-19, dementia, follow-up studies

DOI: 10.3233/JAD-231310

Journal: Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, vol. 98, no. 2, pp. 691-698, 2024