The following is a summary of “Interactive changes in depression and loneliness symptoms prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic: A longitudinal network analysis,” published in the March 2024 issue of Psychiatry by Sun et al.

Researchers conducted a retrospective study examining the changes between depression and loneliness among older adults in the pre- and post-pandemic era from a longitudinal network perspective. 

They analyzed data obtained from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA) and utilized the eight-item version of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CESD-8) and the three-item version of the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) Loneliness Scale to assess depression and loneliness, respectively. The Ising Model was used to create a network model, while network differences were assessed using a Network Comparison Test. 

The results included 4,294 adults in the study; depression and loneliness prevalence remained stable from baseline to pre-pandemic but rose significantly during COVID-19. 

The symptom “Inability to get going” (CESD8) saw the most significant increase. “Lack of companionship” (UCLA1) – “Inability to get going” (CESD8) exhibited the highest increase in connectivity. Throughout all assessments, “Feeling depressed” (CESD1) and “Everything was an effort” (CESD2) were consistently central symptoms.

Investigators concluded that COVID-19 changed how loneliness and feeling sad are connected. Knowing this can help find ways to help older people.

Source: sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0165178124000313