Citation

Lutz J, Van Orden KA. Med. Clin. North Am. 2020; 104(5): 843-854.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.mcna.2020.05.001

PMID

32773049

Abstract

Older adults experience greater emotional well-being in late life. However, older adults may be vulnerable to certain physiologic risk factors, including less physiologic resilience to prolonged stress. Depression and anxiety can be difficult to diagnose in late life owing to differences in self-reported symptoms from younger adults and unclear distinctions between normative and non-normative emotional experiences. We discuss age differences in the presentations of depression and anxiety, and normative and non-normative late life developmental trajectories around bereavement and grief, social isolation and loneliness, and thoughts of death and suicide. We provide recommendations for clinicians for assessing and diagnosing older adults.

Language: en

Keywords

Suicide; Depression; Geriatrics; Bereavement; Anxiety; Grief; Social connectedness; Social isolation