[Screening for factors relating to the development of mental disorders in the geriatric population (PSICOTARD)].

OBJECTIVES

To detect the physical, psychological, social-demographic, and functional factors that may involve risk of developing mental disorder in the elderly, to determine the magnitude of each factor and to do the groundwork for a future longitudinal study that will enable us to define the elderly with psychological fragility in the autonomous region and to design predictive models for mental deterioration in the elderly.

DESIGN

Descriptive study based on personal interviews by professionals using a standardised method.

SETTING

Twenty-eight primary care health centres in the province of Huesca, Spain, with an ageing rate over 24.6%.

PARTICIPANTS

Three-hundred and twenty-six patients over 64 years and resident in the province of Huesca, Spain.

INTERVENTION: Personal interview conducted by health professionals (30 family doctors and a trainee psychologist). The following will be appraised: the presence of cognitive impairment (Mini-Mental State Examination), depression (Yesavage Geriatric Depression Scale), anxiety (Goldberg Scale of Anxiety), and presence of delusions, hallucinations, obsessions and hypochondria (Geriatric Mental State-GMS).

MAIN MEASUREMENTS: The prevalence of the risk factors will be calculated: social and demographic variables (age, sex, marital status, education, living alone), functional status (Barthel index), the severity of physical disability (Cumulative Illness Rating Scale), pathological records (somatic and psychological), and stressful life events in the preceding year. A logistical regression model will be calculated to determine the weight of the effect of each factor adjusted for all the rest. Individual risk will be calculated for the development of each mental disorder (depression, anxiety, cognitive deterioration/dementia, psychotic symptoms, obsessions).

DISCUSSION: The reliability of the questionnaire is ensured by use of diagnostic tests of proven validity and reliability, prior training of researchers and use of a data-gathering pilot study.