[Effect of cognitive stimulation in elderly community]

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Cognitive Psychology
• Public Health

Background:

• Community-dwelling elders are at risk for cognitive decline and depressive symptoms.
• Cognitive Stimulation (CS) programs offer a potential non-pharmacological intervention.
• The 'Making a Difference' (MD) program is designed for this demographic.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of the 'Making a Difference' CS program.
• To assess improvements in cognition and depressive symptoms in retired community elders.
• To determine the short-term and medium-term effects of the intervention.

Main Methods:

• A multicenter quasi-experimental study involving 45 community-dwelling elders (mean age 75.29).
• Participants attended 14 sessions over seven weeks at three day-care centers.
• Cognitive and depressive symptoms were assessed using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15) at baseline, post-test, and follow-up.

Main Results:

• A statistically significant reduction in depressive symptoms was observed from baseline to post-test (P=.010), explaining 21% of the variance.
• No statistically significant differences in cognitive function were found between baseline and post-test.
• No significant differences in either cognition or depressive symptoms were observed from post-test to follow-up.

Conclusions:

• The 'Making a Difference' program effectively reduced depressive symptoms in elders after a seven-week intervention.
• The intervention did not demonstrate efficacy in improving cognitive function.
• Cognitive stimulation may be beneficial for preventing elder depressive symptoms within a health promotion plan, though long-term effects require further investigation.