The effects of stay-at-home orders and their associated factors in elderly Koreans and Korean-Americans during COVID-19

Abstract

Objective: The coronavirus pandemic has caused several people to feel isolated. Therefore, we conducted a cross-sectional study on 23 Korean and Korean-Americans to determine their general characteristics, loneliness, depression, and cognitive function. Methods: We investigated the possible relationships between these variables and the duration of staying at home due to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Mann–Whitney U and Fisher’s exact tests were used for continuous and categorical variables, respectively. Stepwise multivariate regression analysis was performed to investigate the relationships between the variables. Results: Depression scores were higher in the Korean participants, and no difference was found in loneliness or cognitive function. The multivariate regression analysis results indicated that the duration of staying at home due to COVID-19 negatively associated with depression scores. Conclusions: Depression in the elderly Korean population should be assessed and managed using efficient healthcare approaches. Studies with large cohorts are needed to investigate whether a sense of security affects depression in older adults who stay at home to avoid COVID-19.