Rumination in the elderly

a systematic review of cognitive changes

Abstract

Aim: To identify the main cognitive alterations in older people with a high rate of rumination and the main instruments used to assess rumination and cognitive functions. Methods: Systematic review of selected studies in the Web of Science, PsycINFO, Scielo, Scopus, and Pubmed databases, published in English, from January 2010 to September 2020. The search for articles resulted in 580 studies. The selection was carried out in three stages: reading titles, abstracts and reading of complete articles, following inclusion and exclusion criteria, by two independent reviewers, resulting in eight eligible studies. Results: The Ruminative Response Scale (RSS) was the instrument most used to assess rumination, and the most common cognitive alterations were: inhibition deficits for negative valence information, difficulties in recovering autobiographical memory; changes in episodic memory and working memory velocity; impairments in cognitive control during rule learning, poor conceptual reasoning, less cognitive flexibility, learning difficulties in complex environments, and impaired problem-solving ability. Conclusion: Rumination in the elderly can lead to cognitive impairment; therefore, professionals must be aware of the needs since the number of older adults is growing globally. This is a recent topic that requires new research with more scientific evidence to stimulate the cognitive capacity of older people with rumination.