COVID-19 and geropsychiatry: A retrospective study evaluating psychiatry referrals before and during the pandemic

Abstract

The COViD-19 pandemic had widespread effects on mental health, but limited researchhas examined its impact on elderly individuals—a particularly vulnerable population.this study aimed to determine whether the pandemic period was associated withchanges in psychiatric symptoms, diagnoses, and consultation patterns among adultsaged 65 years and older. We hypothesized that the pandemic period would show adistinct distribution of psychiatric presentations compared to the pre-pandemic period.the records of people over the age of 65 treated in the Mental health and DiseasesOutpatient clinic of Balıkesir University health and application Research hospitalbetween March 2019 and March 2020 (routine period) were compared with the recordsof the patients between March 2020 and March 2021 (pandemic period). sociodemographicdata, clinical diagnoses, indications for requesting consultations, and follow-up attendancerates were compared. a total of 336 inpatient consultation records and 982 outpatientapplications from individuals over 65 years of age were analyzed. the majority ofpsychiatric consultations 57% occurred before the pandemic, while 43% were conductedduring the pandemic period. Requests for consultations due to delirium and agitationincreased during the pandemic (33.2 % vs. 45.9 %), while those for depressive andanxiety-related complaints declined (p=0.001). Depression remained the most commonoutpatient diagnosis in both periods (~50%). however, the rate of attendance at secondfollow-up visits dropped significantly during the pandemic (62.7 % vs. 47.9 %, p<0.001).the cOViD-19 pandemic affected psychiatric consultation patterns and service useamong older adults. increased agitation referrals and decreased follow-up attendanceindicate the need for adapted care models during such periods.