Abstract
Objective: to investigate the occurrence of depressive symptoms in elderly patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD) admitted to a philanthropic hospital in Aracaju. Methods: we carried out a descriptive, observational, cross-sectional study in a Vascular Surgery Service of a tertiary hospital, during the period of November 2018 to April 2019. All patients had more than 60 years old, diagnosed with PAD and answered to the sociodemographic questionnaires and geriatric depression scale of 15 items (GDS-15). Results: the prevalence of depressive symptoms found in the studied population was of 61,8%, and 14,6% of those were classified as severe symptoms and 47.2% as mild. Regarding the sociodemographic characteristics, the patients had an average of 69.1 years old, the majority of whom were male, married, from the interior of the state, retired, Catholic and with income less than or equal to a minimum wage. When comparing elderly patients with and without depression, the variables occupational status, alcoholism, critical ischemia, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, previous amputation and age were statistically significant (p <0.05). Conclusion: depression in the elderly was associated with chronic diseases, sociodemographic factors and amputation. We consider important the multidisciplinary approach of these patients in order to reduce the risk of complications.