Older individuals constitute a significant portion of the population, and concerted efforts are underway to enhance the quality of this life stage by minimizing health issues and maximizing opportunities.

This study aims to investigate the impact of psychosomatic exercises, including practices like yoga, meditation, and tai chi, as an alternative approach to promoting healthy aging and ultimately enhancing the quality of life among elderly individuals.

The study comprised 84 participants, with 51 individuals engaging in various forms of psychosomatic exercises and 33 serving as the control group, having no prior exposure to such practices. Data collection was carried out electronically, with the initial section gathering socio-demographic information and health-related details about the participants. The second part consisted of the WHOQOL-BREF quality of life scale, consisting of 26 questions, which assessed six domains: Overall Quality of Life and General Health, Physical Health, Psychological Health, Social Relationships, and Environment. Statistical analysis was performed with SPSS 26.

The average age of the participants was 66.7 years. A statistically significant positive correlation was identified within the first subscale of the tool, “Overall Quality of Life and General Health,” with scores of 74.3/100 for those engaging in psychosomatic exercises and 66.7/100 for those who did not (t(82) = -2.513, p = 0.014). However, no statistically significant differences were observed in the remaining subscales.

Psychosomatic exercises, including yoga, meditation, and tai chi, hold promise as a means to improve the overall quality of life and general health of elderly individuals. These practices could serve as valuable components of strategies aimed at promoting healthy aging. Further research is needed to explore their effects in greater detail and across various dimensions of well-being.

None Declared

Understanding coronophobia, or the heightened fear and anxiety related to the COVID-19 pandemic, involves assessing physiological, cognitive, and behavioral measures.

We aimed to develop a Greek version of the Coronavirus Anxiety Scale (CAS), the Obsession with COVID-19 Scale (OCS), and the Coronavirus Reassurance-Seeking Behaviors Scale (CRBS), to identify groups that appear vulnerable to this form of pandemic-related anxiety.

We conducted a cross-sectional online study from February to April 2021 in Greek-speaking people living in Cyprus. Participants completed sociodemographic questions and questions related to COVID-19, the CAS, OCS, and the CRBS. All three scales are rated on a 5-point scale, from 0 (not at all) to 4 (nearly every day). For CAS, a score ≥ 9 indicates probable dysfunctional coronavirus-related anxiety, for OCS a ≥ 7 score indicates probable dysfunctional thinking about COVID-19, and for CRBS score ≥ 12 suggests above-average reassurance-seeking activity.

A total of 405 adults (66.4% women) from Cyprus participated in this study. The results of this study demonstrate that these Greek adapted measures have adequate reliability (Cronbach’s alphas >0.70) and factor structure (exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis support). However, only the CAS demonstrated both convergent and divergent validity. Education personnel, housekeepers, and older adults were also found to have higher coronavirus anxiety relative to their counterparts.

The findings of this research support the use of these coronaphobia scales in Cyprus and other Greek-speaking populations. Assessing the potential for fear-driven behaviors may be of great benefit to both clinicians and researchers, helping to identify individuals at risk, adapt interventions, and improve our understanding of the psychological consequences of surviving a public health emergency.

None Declared

Those who have lost loved ones to COVID-19 may be considered at risk of complicated grief. A 5-item mental health screening tool called the Pandemic Grief Scale (PGS) was developed to find likely instances of dysfunctional grief during the pandemic.

To develop a Greek version of PGS and to explore the validity and reliability among the general population in Greece in order to further use it as clinical mental health screener.

We conducted a cross-sectional study between January and April 2022, and 342 persons were recruited. The questionnaire included socio-demographic parameters, the PGS, the Brief Resilience Coping Scale to capture tendencies to cope with stress and the Athens Insomnia Scale to assess the insomnia symptoms. Based on experiences over the previous two weeks, each PGS item is scored on a 4-point scale, from 0 (not at all) to 3 (almost every day), with higher rating and a cut-off of 7 indicating dysfunctional grief. Prior to the psychometric validation a linguistic validation and adaptation in Greek was performed.

A total of 342 patients participated in the study, 67.8 % were females and 27.8% were 18-30 years old. Coefficient Validity Ratio (CVR) results showed that 100% (n = 5) of items were acceptable. Value of Cronbach’s alpha was found 0.848. A one-factor model was conducted by Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), giving acceptable global fit indices. The resulting global fit indices [Standardized Root Mean Square Residual (SRMR) = 0.037, Comparative Fit Index (CFI) = 0.952, Tucker–Lewis Index (TLI)= 0.903] showed that the 5 items in one-factor solution proposed by the primary researchers shouldn’t be rejected for the Greek version. The Bartlett Test of Sphericity was 758.08 (p <0.001). The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling Adequacy was 0.826, showing that the data is suitable for factor analysis. The one-factor solution derived in our study consisted of 5 items. The total explained variance was 64.3 %.

The findings of this research support the PGS psychometric validity and reliability. PGS is suitable to be used in healthcare to identify and assist individuals, who are experiencing this type of pandemic-related dysfunctional grief as it is a screening tool that it’s simple to use, access, and understand.

None Declared

The COVID-19 pandemic has placed extraordinary mental health burdens on healthcare professionals. For women, it is a major challenge to reconcile the diverse roles of a professional, mother, and wife. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated this, increasing their vulnerability to mental health issues.

The aim of the study was to assess COVID-19-related mental health of healthcare professionals and to investigate whether possible gender differences as well as other parameters are associated with mental health disturbances.

We conducted a nationwide cross-sectional study of healthcare professionals working in hospitals or primary care settings in Greece from April to June 2022. Participants answered a questionnaire that included socio-demographic and other parameters, the Coronavirus Anxiety Scale (CAS), the Coronavirus Reassurance-Seeking Behaviors Scale (CRBS), and the Obsession with COVID-19 scale (OCS).

A total of 464 healthcare professionals participated in the study, 71.2% were females and two-thirds were 31-50 years old. Elevated levels of anxiety, frequent reassurance seeking activities and persistent troubling thoughts related to COVID-19 were found in 5.8%, 3.2% and 6.1%, respectively. However, females reported significant higher mean levels on CAS and CRBS compared to males (2.41 vs 1.60, p=0.015, and 3.36 vs 2.64, p=0.041, respectively). Participants living in smaller areas had increased levels on all three scales (CAS, p < 0.001; CRBS, p = 0.007; OCS, p < 0.001), indicating thus higher coronaphobia, more frequent reassurance-seeking behaviors and disturbed thinking about COVID-19, compared to healthcare workers living in urban regions. Furthermore, lower educational level is also associated with higher values on CAS, CRBS and OCS (p < 0.003; p = 0.017; p < 0.023, respectively). Nurses experience higher anxiety scores (2.96) than physicians (1.92, p=0.013) or other healthcare workers (1.87, p=0.016). No dysfunctional thinking about COVID-19 is observed in medical doctors, whereas nurses and other healthcare workers experience higher levels on OCS.

Our study does not show any worrying increased psychological dysfunction related to COVID-19 pandemic among healthcare workers in general. However, females have increased levels than males. Thus, support and mental health protecting strategies should be applied primarily to female healthcare professionals when necessary.

None Declared

The prison environment and health of people who experience incarceration increase the risks of contracting COVID-19. Aside from the risks of infection and transmission, one should also examine the impact on their mental health state and identify their needs, since prison inmates experience already disadvantages and inequalities to a large extent.

The aim of the study was to explore the experiences of inmates with the pandemic and the restrictions, their insights into the pandemic and the impact of social distancing in prison on their emotional status and management.

We used in-depth interviews with 5 inmates and 6 prison employees of a state prison in Athens, to produce an analysis of the challenges that the inmates faced during the pandemic. The study took part from February till June 2022. Each participant was asked semi-structured questions and a thematic content analysis was performed.

The results of the interviews revealed several key themes, that have emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic. The challenges that the participants faced were in relation to communication, feelings of heightened isolation and detachment from family, friends, and the normal rhythms of life in and out of prison. Furthermore, our study has shown that COVID-19 pandemic resulted in higher levels of anxiety, lack of positive stimuli, of work and education, of day-to-day interaction, and of information.

This study highlights the dramatic reduction in opportunities for prisoners to rehabilitate themselves and build productive and meaningful lives. A decline in the emotional, psychological and physical well-being of the prisoners as well as resignation with their situation can be expected due to the lack in purpose. There is a need to improve the information and communication and support them with continuous psychological care, especially when prison services are confronted with additional health or other crises.

None Declared

A pandemic can have significant effects on people’s emotional wellbeing. Infection control measures such as social distancing can lead people to feel isolated and to increased feelings of fear, anxiety, anger, and sadness. Recent research showed a worrying increase in depression and anxiety disorders, general distress, and sleep disorders. People who already suffer from a mental illness may be more vulnerable to stress caused by the pandemic and may experience a deterioration of already preexisting symptoms of anxiety and depression.

The purpose of the present study was to assess the pandemic’s psychological impact on people with preexisting mental illness, to investigate their COVID-19-related fear, anxiety, and depression in association with various variables and to explore their behavioral responses regarding the measures against the pandemic.

A cross-sectional study was conducted from March to May 2022 in the outpatient mental health clinic of a provincial hospital in Greece. Participants were patients, who were not fully disorganized and have been diagnosed with a mental illness before the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the 50 adult patients, 11 lived in assisted living facilities. The study included sociodemographic questions, questions about fear of COVID-19, negative feelings, safety measures and behaviors, disease progression, and compliance with their therapists. DASS-21 scale was used to measure the 3 subscales of emotional states.

Sadness was reported as the most unpleasant emotion of the lockdown, following by hopelessness and denial. Several participants (36%) reported high levels of COVID-19-related fear, mainly patients living in the community and not in assisted facilities (40.1% vs 18.2%) and males compared to females (42.1% vs 32.3%). The majority (70%) declared high compliance with the therapy. A moderate to severe deterioration in disease progression during the pandemic was observed in 28%, mainly in females compared to males (38.7% vs 10.6%). Based on DASS-21 the mean scores ranged from moderate to severe symptoms in depression (16.2/42), anxiety (14.3/42), and stress (18.4/42) without a statistically significant correlation with age, gender, and living situation. However, 34%, 22% and 56% screened positive for severe and extreme severe depression, anxiety, and stress, respectively.

The study revealed a substantial proportion of patients with mental disorders to experience unpleasant emotions and increased levels of psychological distress and highlights the need for supportive mental health services to address the increased mental health symptoms in people with pre-existing mental illnesses during a pandemic.

None Declared

Depression is a very prevalent mental disorder among older people. Exercise and physical activity may have beneficial effects on depressive symptoms that are comparable to those of antidepressant treatments.

The purpose of the present study was to estimate the role that physical activity plays in wellbeing of older people, as well as its association with depression.

A cross-sectional study was conducted among 101 people over the age of 60, who are active members of the Open Day Care Centers (K.A.P.I) of the municipality of Serres, North Greece. An anonymous questionnaire was created to record the basic demographic data of the studied population. The Greek version of the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15) was used to assess depressive symptoms in the elderly, and the (IPAQ) short edition - 7 items, was applied to evaluate the physical activity of the participants. Statistical analysis was performed with a SPSS 21.

According to our results, as the age of the participants increases, so does the severity of the depression according to GDS-15. In addition, depressive symptoms were associated with marital status, widows in comparison to divorced, with participants living in urban areas and with illiterates and high school graduates. Furthermore, older adults with monthly income of 1000 to 2000 Euros presented to suffer more from depression than those who had a monthly income of up to 2000 Euros (p <0.05).On the other hand, physical activity based on IPAQ was strongly associated with age, married compared to not, high level of education, living in rural areas and depression (p <0.05).

The results of the present study may contribute to further interventions in Primary Health Care for the prevention and detection of depression among older people. Furthermore, physical exercise may be an alternative or adjunct to traditional forms of treatment in mild to moderate forms of depression later in life.

None Declared

Studies have shown that dementia family caregivers to be significantly more burdened than non-dementia caregivers.

The aim of the present study was to analyze factors affecting the quality of life and the burden of dementia family caregivers.

70 dementia family caregivers who lived in the Attica Region, Greece participated in the study from February to April 2022. An anonymous questionnaire was used including 16 items regarding demographic and socio-economic factors. The 22 -item Zarit Burden scale was used to estimate the burden of dementia family caregivers. Statistical analysis was performed with SPSS 21.

1.4% of caregivers showed minimal to no burden (n = 1). 28% of caregivers (n = 20) a mild to moderate burden. 40.6% (n = 29) presented a moderate to severe burden, while 28% (n = 20) a very serious burden. According to the results of the present study, there are three main factors that affect the quality of life of caregivers. Caregivers who spend more time with the patient have an increased burden compared to caregivers who spend less time. The patient’s low Mini Mental score is associated with an increase in burden. Caregivers who have attended training and management programs for the care of a patient with dementia have a lower burden than those who have not attended programs.

The study highlights an increased burden on caregivers. Social supports with multiple coping strategies focusing on different levels of patients with dementia and caregivers’ needs should be planned to relieve the caregiver burden.

None Declared

The pandemic that broke out by the new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 and the imposition of restrictive measures to reduce the dispersion, affects both the physical and mental health of all population groups.

The main objective of the study was to investigate how these measures have impacted the students during the first quarantine period (Spring 2020). Also we wanted to know what they lacked most after the six-weeks-lockdown.

More than 2,000 students from all Schools of the University of Patras participated in the research, completing an online questionnaire. Emphasis was placed on the question “What is the FIRST thing you will do immediately after lifting the measures”. The open last option ‘Other’ was qualitative investigated with thematic analysis by gender.

The answer options of the evaluated question were to ‘Go out for coffee/food/drink/fun with friends’ (58%) or ‘with family’ (5%), to ‘Visit beauty and hair salons’ (16%), to ‘Travel’ (6%), or to ‘Go shopping’ (2%). The option ‘Other’ was answered by 246 (13%) students. The thematic analysis revealed 13 categories, with first place ‘Restoring immediately social life without restrictions’, followed by ‘Seeing and being together with boyfriend/girlfriend’, but at the same time ‘Continue to be careful and take self-restraining measures after the end of the quarantine’.

Students of both genders lacked mainly social life and companionship. The need to return to a new daily routine with protection measures that limit both exposure to the new virus and the spontaneity, is obvious.

No significant relationships.

The COVID-19 has affected both physical and mental health of the elderly.

The purpose of the present study was to estimate the impact of the second lockdown in Greece, on both quality of life and mental health in older people.

A cross sectional study was conducted among older adults who visited a primary care physician, from 1st of March to April 30th. An anonymous questionnaire was administered to collect basic sociodemographic data and implementation of hygiene precaution measures. The 5-item World Health Organization Well-Being Index (WHO-5) to measure well-being, the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Assessment (GAD-7) instrument was used to assess the anxiety levels and Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15) depressive symptoms of the responders, respectively. Statistical analysis was performed with SPSS v.24.0

222 elderly took part in the study. 62.6% were female. According to the WHO-5, 37.4% present poor quality of life. GDS-15 reveals that 70.7% of the participants screened positive for moderate depression and 1.8% with severe symptoms. GAD-7 results estimated 32.9% of the participants to suffer from serious anxiety disorder and 37.4% from moderate. GAD-7 and GDS-15 were strongly associated (p <0.05) with female gender, low educational level and with comorbidities (coronary disease, diabetes mellitus and skeletomuscular diseases). Health precaution measures were negative correlated with mental health of the elderly. However, in participants with frequent contact with family and friends, lower anxiety levels were detected.

Our results highlight that older adult has experienced negative impact on both quality of life and mental health during 2nd Covid-19 lockdown in Greece.

No significant relationships.

COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown has brought a serious impact on physical and mental health.

The purpose of the present study was to estimate the impact of the first lockdown in Greece, on both quality of life and anxiety levels in different occupational groups.

A cross-sectional on- line survey was conducted from 20th of April to 4th of May 2020. A 24-item anonymous questionnaire was administered to collect basic demographic and socioeconomic data. The 5-item WHO Well-Being Index (WHO-5, 0-100%, cut-off 52%) and the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Assessment (GAD-7) tools were used to assess well-being and anxiety, respectively. Statistical analysis was performed with SPSS for Windows v.24.0 Statistical Package.

A total of 575 participated in the study, 62.8% females, 48.5% aged between 40 to 59 years. 32.5% were employed in education sector, 32.5% in health sector and 20.3% as season workers in tourism sector. Males showed slightly higher levels of wellbeing (52.1 vs. 47.3, p=0.023) and lower levels of anxiety (7.1 vs. 8.2, p=0.023) compared to females. Factors associated with higher wellbeing and lower anxiety were higher education and income level, optimism, taking less protection measures, and being seasonal worker. Furthermore, participants with comorbidities and symptoms like headache, musculoskeletal pain, as well as feeling depressed or stressed revealed lower wellbeing and higher anxiety scores.

Our study revealed an overall poor wellbeing and mild to moderate levels of anxiety during the lockdown. Actions should be taken to address and to prevent its serious impact on mental health.

No significant relationships.

The coronavirus pandemic has challenged the world with an unprecedented situation. Social distancing, self or quarantine isolation, personal hand hygiene, self-protection, and the fear of becoming infected with the virus, come with a psychological fallout. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected students around the world, in terms of their education and lifestyle.

To investigate the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the students’ mental health and well-being at the University of Patras, in Western Greece.

An online questionnaire was prepared to collect responses from students during April 2020. Socio-demographic data, academic status, opinions about distance learning, changes in daily routine during the lockdown and anxiety and depression scores, according to the Greek version of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), were gathered.

The total number of responders was 2009, of which 67.3% women. During lockdown, the 68% of the students returned to their family home. Anxiety and depression scores were higher in students with a low income, poor self-rated health, not informed about COVID-19, not satisfied with distance learning and being annoyed at staying home. Prevalence of anxiety and depression was found to be 35.8% and 51.2%, ranging from 26.7% to 48.2% for anxiety and from 36.3% to 60.5% for depression in Health Sciences and Humanities and Social Sciences, respectively.

Depression rates among university students in Greece were alarmingly high, denoting the impact of lockdown and changes in students’ life, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Exercise has been repeatedly reported as an effective means of preventing and treating mood disorders. Therefore, there is a significant research interest for the way exercise is connected with depression and the effectiveness of different exercise parameters as intensity, duration and modality. There is significant research evidence supporting the hypothesis that exercise can alleviate the symptoms of clinical depression. Nevertheless, there has not enough evidence to compare the effectiveness of deferent types of exercise as complementary therapy in depression.

The purpose of the present study was to review the available research concerning the effect of exercise modality in depression and attempt to code and analyze the programs used in elderly (>65).

A systematic review was contacted of randomized control trials published in electronic journals. The electronic data bases PubMed, EBSCOhost and Trip Medical Database were used.

Combined programs are predominate used for improving mood in elderly and the combinations used more frequently was short-term, light to moderate sub maximal aerobic exercise combined with dynamic resistance exercise following by Short-term, light to moderate sub maximal aerobic exercise combined with static exercise. Other psychosocial factors that commonly included in the combined exercise programs are group interaction, mindfulness and music.

Combined exercise programs are as effective as simple programs in alleviated the symptoms of depression in elderly. Their advantages over simple programs are that they can promote other health benefits; they are less time consuming and more pleasurable to participants. Therefore, they are good exercise choice for elderly.

Emotional regulation plays a pivotal role in socialization and personal development. However, little is known about the time course of emotional responses and the interaction with the subjective assessment of emotional intensity. The aim of this project was to examine the time course of emotional responses to visual stimuli when they naturally subside and when they are cognitively suppressed.

Healthy volunteers (n=48) viewed 54 images, each lasting for 6 sec, taken from the International Affective Picture System (18 positive, 18 negative, 18 neutral). In the passive condition, subjects had to press a button to view the next image when their response had subsided. In the active condition, subjects had to press a button to view the next image when their response was successfully suppressed. After each presentation, participants rated the intensity of their response on a scale from 1 (lowest) to 9 (highest). Time to resolution (TTR) after image presentation and intensity ratings were averaged (mean±SD).

TTR (seconds) for neutral images was 7.22 ± 7.91 and 4.49 ± 5.41 for passive and active condition, respectively. For positive images, 12.1± 9.2 and 8.66 ± 7.13 for passive and active condition, respectively. For negative images, 15.68 ±10.14 and 11.42 ±8.25 for passive and active condition, respectively. TTR was statistically significantly shorter (p<0.006) for all images during suppression. TTR in both conditions correlated positively with intensity of emotional response.

TTR of emotional responses to emotionally valenced images increases with intensity of the associated response and decreases with voluntary suppression.

This study explores the contribution of personality dimensions as a source of individual variability, to electrodermal arousal, subjective ratings of intensity and time to resolution (TTR) of emotional responses to affectively valenced images.

Healthy volunteers (n=48) viewed 54 images from the International Affective Picture System equally split in positive, negative and neutral categories. Subjects pressed a button to view the next image when their response had naturally subsided (passive condition) or following voluntary suppression (active condition) and then rated the intensity of their response on a scale from 1 (lowest) to 9 (highest). The amplitude of the maximum peak of skin conductance responses (SCRs) was also measured. Personality dimensions were assessed with the Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPQ-Neuroticism, EPQ-Psychoticism and EPQ-Extraversion).

Linear regression analyses were conducted to examine the effect of EPQ-P, EPQ-N and EPQ-P on TTR, intensity ratings, and maximum SCR amplitude in each experimental condition.

The emotional valence of the pictures was the strongest predictor of all 3 main outcome measures in both active and passive condition accounting for 36% of the variance for TTR, 72% for the intensity ratings and 16% for the maximum SCR amplitude. Higher EPQ-Psychoticism scores predicted lower intensity ratings accounting for about 10% of the variance in both conditions. EPQ-Extraversion and EPQ-Neuroticism explained 15% of the variance in TTR but in opposite directions. Higher EPQ-Neuroticism scores predicted lower SCR amplitude accounting for 8% of the variance.

Measures of emotional reactivity show distinct patterns depending on experimental condition and personality characteristics.

This study investigated the duration of emotional responses to emotionally valenced stimuli and explored the relationship between objective [as assessed by skin conductance activity (SC)] and subjective measurements of emotional reactivity.

A sample of 100 healthy volunteers, stratified for age and gender, viewed 54 images from the International Affective Picture System equally split in positive, negative and neutral categories. Subjects pressed a button to view the next image when they judged that their response had subsided (time to emotional resolution, TTR) and then rated the intensity of their response on a scale from 1 to 9 (highest). The number of skin conductance responses (SCRs) and the maximum amplitude (μS) were also acquired and averaged for each condition (mean ± SD).

Picture valence had a significant effect on all measures(p<0.001). TTR (sec) was 11.01±6.57, 14.74±7.82 and 5.27±3.57 while arousal ratings were 5.65±1.80, 7.46±1.78 and 1.77± 0.87 for positive, negative and neutral images, respectively. Maximum amplitude was 0.19±0.14, 0.22±0.17 and 0.16±0.12 while SCRs were 23.76±14.06, 29.67±19.04 and 18.52±10.81 for positive, negative and neutral images, respectively. A correlation matrix of all measures showed significant association between TTR and SCRs (p<0.001) only.

TTR correlated with SCRs indicating that participants viewed the next image when their level of arousal subsided. However, the poor correlation between SC and arousal ratings suggests that when appraising the intensity of their responses, participants were accessing other aspects of emotional processing than arousal alone.

Sleep problems are common in older people and often associated with mood disorders, such as anxiety or depression.

The present study examined the association between sleep disturbances in older adults and frequency of depressed mood and other aggravating factors.

The sample consisted of 139 subjects, aged >65 years, members of day care center for older people (KAPI) in the municipality of Tripolis, Greece. Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15) was applied, to screen the elderly for depression. Athens Insomnia Scale (AIS), a self-assessment psychometric instrument, was used to quantify sleep difficulty. Statistics was processed with SPSS 17.0.

56.8% of older people reported inadequate sleep, based on AIS. According to GDS-15, 53.3% of the studied population screened positive for depressive symptoms (43.2% moderate, 10.1% severe). In 79 persons who reported insomnia, 70.9% and 17.7% observed moderate and severe depression respectively, applying the GDS-15. Sleep disorders were more frequent in women (67.7% vs 48.1%, p=0.02), in not married, including divorced and widowed, (85.2% vs 44.7%, p=0.004) and in subjects without children (91.7% vs 53.2%, p=0.25). Insomnia was common in elderly with chronic diseases compared to elderly without co-morbidity (65.8% vs 9.1%, p<0.001), in participants with low monthly income (98.1% vs 1.9%, p<0.001) and in older adults suffering from depression (88.6% vs 6.7%. p<0.001).

Sleep disorders between the elderly of this study are common and strongly associated with depression. Determining the causality of the sleep disturbance could help to treat insomnia in the elderly and improve overall their health.

Patients with schizophrenia seem to have a higher mortality and a lower life expectancy compared to the general population.

To estimate the rate of mortality at a psychiatric hospital and to identify the causes and risk factors of these deaths.

A retrospective study was conducted based on the medical records of patients who had died during the time period from January 2007 to March 2012 at the 250-bed Psychiatric Hospital of Tripolis in Greece.

A total of 39 deaths were recorded (mean annual mortality: 1.7 per 1000 inpatients). Patients were predominantly male (67%), mean age 64 years, most of them farmers (41%), with low educational level (69%) and mainly unmarried (72%). Medical co-morbidity was observed in 74% of the cases, mainly hypertension, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. In 59% hospitalization was made after a court order. Thirty two patients were diagnosed with schizophrenia, mainly of the paranoid form (77%). Haloperidol was the most prescribed antipsychotic drug (62%). The main causes of mortality were respiratory and cardiovascular diseases (each 59%). Six of the occurred deaths could not be determined, but autopsy classified them as natural cause of death.

Low rate of mortality, no clear forensic responsibility and high rates of medical co-morbidities in schizophrenia patients were observed in this study. The implementation of medical screening and prevention programs of serious health problems should be a high priority in psychiatric hospitals in order to improve quality of life and extend life expectancy in mentally ill adults.

Depression is the most common mental health problem among older people, posing a critical impact on their well-being and the quality of life.

To estimate the prevalence and under diagnosis of depression in elderly, and to investigate the association with various factors.

Data on 239 members of “day care centres for older people” in the municipality of Patras, W-Greece, were recorded, including questions regarding self-reported and/or diagnosed depression (EHIS). Furthermore, the Greek version of the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15) was applied. the scores of GDS were compared to the corresponding EHIS answers and associated to various basic parameters.

The results of GDS indicated 45% having depression (36% moderate, 9% severe). Having ever been affected with chronic depression reported 49 (20.5%), out of them 34 (66.7%) were diagnosed by physician. in detail, out of the 162 (67.8%) subjects reporting never have been affected by depression, 37 (22.8) and 8 (4.9%) screened positive for moderate and severe depression, respectively. in 27 individuals who reported not to know if they have depression, 16 revealed depressive symptoms using the GDS. Depression is more frequent in women, in not married, including divorced and widowed, in subjects living alone at home (62% vs 38.1%, p = 0.003), and in elderly with chronic diseases (50.8% vs 27.5%, p = 0.02).

High prevalence of depressive symptoms in elderly population is evident, but rarely recognized. the systematic use of short GDS versions in primary care may increase detection rates of depression among the elderly.

Postpartum depression (PPD) is a serious mental health condition. Untreated PPD places the mother and infant at risk and is associated with significant long-term effects on child development and behavior.

Appropriate screening for and prompt recognition and treatment of depression after the birth of a child are essential for maternal and child well-being.

The purpose of the present study was to estimate the prevalence of PPD in the first 5 days after the birth of a neonate and to investigate associations with several risk factors.

A cross-sectional study was conducted among 150 mothers, in a public obstetric hospital in Nicosia, Cyprus. A questionnaire was administered including socio-demographic characteristics. The Greek version of the Edinburgh postnatal depression scale (EPDS), a 10–item questionnaire to identifying women who are at risk of PPD, was used to estimate depression among the participants.

According to EPDS, 42% of the mothers screened positive for risk of developing PPD. Higher risk was observed in very young mothers (<20 years) (66.6% vs 15%), in women with history of psychological disorders (86.95% vs 33.85%), in single mothers (71.69% vs 22.8%), in women with serious problems during the pregnancy (74% vs 23.95%) and in mothers with not healthy neonate (75.7% vs 32.4%).

The study reveals a high prevalence of PPD and identifies various risk factors associated with developing PPD. The use of maternal depression screening programs such as the EPDS may help to recognize an elevated risk of postpartum depression and to ensure a healthier mother-child relationship.