title: Religiousness affects mental health, pain and quality of life in older people in an outpatient rehabilitation setting.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the relationship between religiousness and mental health, hospitalization, pain, disability and quality of life in older adults from an outpatient rehabilitation setting in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional study.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 110 patients aged 60 years or older were interviewed during attendance at an outpatient rehabilitation service.
  
  
  METHODS
  Researchers administered a standardized questionnaire that assessed socio-demographic data, religiousness, self-reported quality of life, anxiety, physical activity limitation, depression, pain and cognition. Predictors were included in each model analysis, and a backward conditional method was used for variable selection using logistic regression (categorical outcomes) or linear regression (continuous outcomes).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Thirty-one patients (28.2%) fulfilled criteria for significant depressive symptoms, 27 (24.5%) for anxiety, and 10 (9.6%) for cognitive impairment. Pain was present in 89 (80.7%) patients. Limited depressive symptoms (as assessed by the Geriatric Depression Scale), and greater self-reported quality of life were related to greater self-reported religiousness, as were scores on the Mini-Mental State Examination (less cognitive impairment), and lower ratings of pain.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Religiousness is related to significantly less depressive symptoms, better quality of life, less cognitive impairment, and less perceived pain. Clinicians should consider taking a spiritual history and ensuring that spiritual needs are addressed among older patients in rehabilitation settings.
authors.affiliation: São Paulo Medical Spiritist Association, Brazil and Service of Geriatrics, Santa Casa of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil. g.lucchetti@yahoo.com.br
authors.forename: Giancarlo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lucchetti
authors.forename: Alessandra Granero
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Lucchetti
authors.forename: Antonio M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Badan-Neto
authors.forename: Patricia T
authors.initials: PT
authors.lastname: Peres
authors.forename: Mario F P
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Peres
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Moreira-Almeida
authors.forename: Cláudio
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gomes
authors.forename: Harold G
authors.initials: HG
authors.lastname: Koenig
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000368:Aged; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003863:Depression / Q000175:diagnosis; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008603:Mental Health; D008875:Middle Aged; D010146:Pain / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011788:Quality of Life; D012046:Rehabilitation / Q000523:psychology*; D012068:Religion and Medicine; D057566:Self Report; D029181:Spirituality; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires