Mental health changes in elderly patients undergoing non-cardiac surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic in China

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has a heavy impact on the mental health of elderly surgical patients worldwide. In particular, the elderly patients faced considerable psychological stress due to various environ-mental and medical factors during the outbreak. This study aims to examine changes in mental health trends among non-cardiac surgical patients aged 65 and above in China during the COVID-19 pandemic.Methods: This multi-center, convenient sampling, longitudinal observational study was conducted from April 1, 2020 to April 30, 2022. Primary outcome was the prevalence of postoperative depression. Secondary outcome was the prevalence of postoperative anxiety. Follow-up was conducted separately at 7 days and 30 days after surgery. Depression symptoms were assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire 9 (PHQ-9) scale. Anxiety symptoms were assessed using Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) scale, with scores of >5 defining positive depression or anxiety symptoms. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to investigate risk factors of mental health status in more elderly patients undergoing non-cardiac surgery.Results: A total of 4639 patients were included, of whom 2279 (46.0 %) were male, 752 (15.2 %) were over the age of 75, and 4346 (93.7 %) were married. The monthly prevalence trends demonstrated that compared to the outbreak period, a significant reduction in the prevalence of depression and anxiety symptoms in elderly patients who underwent surgery during the post-pandemic period. In post-pandemic period, a statistically significant decrease in the prevalence of all severity depression and anxiety patients was noted at the 7-day follow-up, but no significant decrease was observed for severe depression and anxiety in the 30-day follow-up. In COVID-19 low-risk area, a significant overall decrease in prevalence of mental health was observed during the post-pandemic period compared to the outbreak period, including 7-day depression, 7-day anxiety, 30-day depres-sion, and 30-day anxiety (all with P < 0.001). Female and patients with >2 comorbidities appeared to be more susceptible to postoperative depression and anxiety during the pandemic.Limitation: The absence of data from the early days of the COVID-19 outbreak.Conclusions: This study analyzed the prevalence of depression and anxiety in elderly non-cardiac patients during and after the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on dimensions such as severity, risk-areas, gender, and comorbidity. Our findings revealed a significant decrease in the prevalence of depression and anxiety in elderly surgery patients during the post-pandemic period.

Automated summary

This study examined the changes in mental health trends among non-cardiac surgical patients aged 65 and above in China during the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings revealed a significant decrease in the prevalence of depression and anxiety in elderly surgery patients during the post-pandemic period.