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The incidence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in older adults has increased with sexual intercourse being the most common mode of transmission. This demonstrates their participation in risky sexual behaviors. The objective of this systematic review was to determine the individual, psychological, and sociocultural factors associated with the use or nonuse of condoms for vaginal, oral, or anal intercourse and having one or multiple sexual partners in older adults. Primary research articles with correlational designs that identify an association between some individual, psychological, or sociocultural factors with the use or nonuse of condoms for vaginal, oral, or anal intercourse or with monogamous or non-monogamous relationships in older adults were included. Some of the variables associated with safe and risky sexual behaviors were the power of sexual decision-making, self-silencing, the importance of sex, income, frequency of sex, education, and social capital. The literature regarding factors associated with safe and risky sexual behaviors in older adults is scarce and represents an area of opportunity for future research.

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Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the mental health of the population. Depressive symptoms, stress, and anxiety are negative responses that can occur in risky situations in which uncertainty, the unknown or crisis situations are faced, such as the current health crisis. Objective: To identify the association between sociodemographic factors and depressive symptoms, level of stress and anxiety in times of COVID-19 in inhabitants of the city of Saltillo Coahuila, Mexico. Methods: Cross-sectional predictive correlational study. The population was inhabitants of the city of Saltillo Coahuila, Mexico. The sample consisted of 501 participants, who were collected through an online survey that was made available from October 5 to 24, 2020. Results: Age (OR = .93; 95% CI: .900 - .979) and being without a partner (OR = 2.64; 95% CI: 1.347 - 5.201) increase the probability of suffering severe depressive symptoms. Younger people were .95 more likely to have elevated stress. Being a woman (OR = 2.37; 95% CI: 1,144 - 4,915) and not having a job (OR = 2.62; 95% CI: 1,308 - 5,254) was associated with a higher probability of suffering from severe anxiety. Conclusion: Associations were found in sociodemographic factors such as sex, age and economic income with depressive symptoms, level of stress and anxiety in times of COVID-19. These results project preliminary data on some aspects related to mental health in the Mexican context during the current health crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Depressive symptoms are diagnosed by physicians using scales but their pathophysiology is unclear. Low serotonin (5–HT) levels play an important role in depression, and the 5–HT transporter (5–HTT) is an important regulator of plasma serotonin levels and reuptake. Additionally, the 5–HTT gene-linked polymorphic region (5–HTTLPR) is associated with depression. The aim was to clarify the roles of plasma serotonin levels in plasma and the 5HTTPLR polymorphism in depressive symptoms in older adults. A total of 84 older adult participants were evaluated. Depressive symptoms were measured using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale of 20 items (CESD–20). The plasma serotonin levels were determined by ELISA, and the 5–HTTLPR genotype was analyzed by PCR. Depressive symptoms were present in 39.3% (N = 33) of the participants. The median plasma serotonin level was 204.34 ng/mL (SD = 93.88). A significant correlation was found between the CESD–20 scale and plasma serotonin levels (r = –.256; p =.019). Low serotonin levels were associated with the presence of depressive symptoms (p =.001). The 5–HTTLPR analysis showed that of the 84 older adults, 35.7% had the SS genotype, 10.7% had the LL genotype, and 53.6% were heterozygous. The 5–HTTLPR polymorphism was not associated with depressive symptoms (p =.587) and plasma serotonin levels (p = 0.391). Depressive symptoms correlate with low serotonin levels in plasma, but not with the 5–HTTLPR polymorphism in older Mexican adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]