[Identification and appreciation of the psychological distress in hospitalized elderly persons]

We evaluated psychological distress in a survey of 398 geriatric medical inpatients, using the Symptom Distress Check-List (SCL-90). Predominant patterns of emotional response are depression, somatization and sleep disorders. Women scored higher than men for psychological suffering on many of the SCL-90 subscales. Those who lived alone, and those who entered the hospital with a neurological disturbance, scored higher for depression than the others. We briefly discussed the need for attention to psychological reactions in this setting.