INTRODUCTION: The aging population is now-a-days a universal phenomenon and depression is a frequent health problem among the elderly. OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence of depression in elderly outpatients of a Geriatric ambulatory and establish associated factors. METHODOLOGY: We conducted a cross-sectional study through a questionnaire containing: clinical and epidemiological variables, Geriatric Depression Scale of Yesavage (GDS), WHOQOL-old and WHOQOL-bref in elderly participating of the Geriatrics Program of Action for Retirement January to April 2009, São Luis-MA. Data were analyzed using SPSS 14.0 for Windows with application of appropriate non-parametric tests, including Spearman correlation, considering differences significant when P < 0,05. RESULTS: We studied 102 elderly patients with age ranging from 60 to 91 years and the mean of 71.5 ± 6.7 years. Most were women (71.6%), married (64.8%) and retirees (87.3%); 38.2% were hypertensive; 11.8%, diabetics; 20.6% with hypertension and diabetes; 40.2% sought treatment for disease of the musculoskeletal system; 34.3% of the circulatory system and 14.7% for endocrine diseases. The EGD ranged from 0 to 13 with an average of 6.0 ± 3.9. The prevalence of depression was 50%, considered severe in 13.7%. There was a significant association of depression with age, sex, race and physical activity reflecting in the quality of life of the elderly. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of depression was high, affecting men, black and sedentary elderly, worsening as they grow older and worsening the quality of life.
Depression; Aging; Aged; Outpatients; Geriatric Depression Scale