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This study aimed to analyze the association between internalized homophobia and its domains and depression in homosexual and bisexual individuals and to quantify its results in depression. This is a cross-sectional online and anonymous study based on the LGBT+ health study conducted in Brazil from August to November, 2020, summing 926 respondents. Depression was self-reported. Internalized Homophobia was measured by the Brazilian Internalized Homophobia Scale for Gays and Lesbians, using 80% percentile to classify elevated total and by domain scores. Statistical analysis was based on Poisson Regression models with robust variance. Depression prevalence was 23.7%. The results revealed that internalized homophobia was positively associated with depression only among homosexuals (Prevalence Ratio (RP) = 1.80; 95% confidence interval (95%CI) 1.12-2.90). We found no statistical association for stigma and oppression domains. Population attributable fraction of depression was 2.3% (95%CI 0.1-4.5) in relation to internalized homophobia. Our findings highlight the need of controlling internalized homophobia to decrease the prevalence of depression among homosexuals.

Based on a national representative sample of the population aged 50 years or older, this study aimed to estimate the prevalence of frailty among men and women, identify associated sociodemographic and health factors, and estimate the population attributable fraction. Data from the second wave (2019-2021) of the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Aging (ELSI-Brazil) were used. Frailty was classified based on the number of positive items among unintentional weight loss, exhaustion, low level of physical activity, slow gait, and weakness. The main analyses were based on multinomial logistic regression stratified by sex. The prevalence of frailty was lower in men (8.6%; 95%CI: 6.9; 10.7) than in women (11.9%; 95%CI: 9.6; 14.8), with the most frequent item being the low level of physical activity in both. Age and schooling level were the sociodemographic factors associated with pre-frailty and fragility among men and women. The population attributable fraction was different for frailty between genders. In men, the highest population attributable fraction was due to not having a partner (23.5%; 95%CI: 7.7; 39.2) and low schooling level (18.2%; 95%CI: 6.6; 29,7). In women, higher population attributable fraction values were due to memory deficit (17.1%; 95%CI: 7.6; 26.6), vision deficit (13.4%; 95%CI: 5.1; 21.7), and diabetes mellitus (11.4%; 95%CI: 4.6; 18,1). Similar population attributable fraction levels were observed for heart disease (8.9%; 95%CI: 3.8; 14.1 in women and 8.8%; 95%CI: 2.0; 15.6 in men). Strategies aimed at physical activity have the potential to prevent frailty in both men and women, and the prevention of chronic conditions is more important in women.

This study aimed to examine the sociodemographic profile of sexual and gender minorities who regularly interact with children and investigate whether such frequent interactions are associated with healthcare factors. This cross-sectional study utilized data from the LGBT+ Health Survey in Brazil, conducted online and anonymously from August to November 2020 with 958 participants. Regular interaction with children was defined as living with children or engaging in bi-weekly face-to-face meetings with children residing in different households. Healthcare factors encompass having a professional or reference service, feeling comfortable in discussing personal issues, and receiving worse quality medical or hospital care. The statistical analysis used the Poisson regression with robust variance. The prevalence of interaction with children was 5.3%. We observed a statistically higher prevalence among cisgender women (13.4%) and Black/brown and other non-white people (7.9%) after adjusting for age. The results showed a positive association only between regular interaction with children and worse-quality medical or hospital care received (PR=6.00; 95%CI 1.22-29.67). These findings highlight a persistent stigma and prejudice within healthcare services.

The objective were to describe the prevalence of underweight and overweight, assessed by body mass index (BMI), stratified by sex and age group, and to analyze the sociodemographic characteristics associated with BMI in older women and men. This is a cross-sectional analysis of 8,974 participants aged ≥ 50 years from the baseline of the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Aging (ELSI-Brasil, 2015-2016). BMI was classified as underweight, eutrophy, and overweight according to the participant's age. A multinomial logistic regression model was used, considering the sociodemographic characteristics of women and men. The results showed a higher prevalence of overweight in women compared to men (64.1% vs. 57.3%). In both sexes, the prevalence of underweight was higher in the longest-lived individuals, while overweight was lower. In women, the chance of underweight was higher than the chance of eutrophy in those who were single/widowed/divorced (OR = 1.95; 95%CI: 1.42-2.66) and in those living in rural areas (OR = 1.58; 95%CI: 1.01-2.49), while the chance of being overweight was lower than the chance of being eutrophy in those living in rural areas (OR = 0.78; 95%CI: 0.62-0.97) and in all geographic macro-regions related to the South Region. For men, the chance of being overweight was lower than the chance of being eutrophy among single/widowed/divorced individuals (OR = 0.58; 95%CI: 0.48-0.69). The richest had a lower chance of being underweight (OR = 0.59; 95%CI: 0.38-0.90), as well as a higher chance of being overweight (OR = 1.52; 95%CI: 1.20-1.92). In conclusion, the sociodemographic characteristics associated with BMI differed between the sexes.

This study aimed to estimate prevalence of loneliness among older Brazilian adults over the first seven months of the COVID-19 pandemic and to identify the predictors of loneliness trajectories. Pre-pandemic data derived from face-to-face interviews of participants of the 2019-2020 Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Aging (ELSI-Brazil), which is a nationally representative study of community-dwelling individuals aged 50 years and over. Pandemic data were based on three rounds of telephone interviews among those participants, conducted from May to October 2020. Loneliness was measured by a single-item question, considering those who had at least two repeated measures. Explanatory variables included depression, living alone, leaving home in the last week, and virtual connectedness in the last month. Mixed-effects logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios with their 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) and to investigate loneliness trajectories and their predictors. In total, 5,108 participants were included. The overall prevalence of loneliness in the pre-pandemic period was 33.1% (95%CI: 29.4-36.8), higher than the pandemic period (round 1: 23.6%, 95%CI: 20.6-26.9; round 2: 20.5%, 95%CI: 17.8-23.5; round 3: 20.6%, 95%CI: 17.1-24.6). A significant interaction (p ≤ 0.05) was evidenced only between depression and time; participants with depression showed a greater reduction in loneliness levels. Although loneliness levels in Brazil have decreased during the pandemic, this pattern is not present for all older adults. Individuals with depression had a more significant reduction, probably due to feeling closer to their social network members during the stay-at-home recommendations.

The objective of this study was to examine the prevalence of going out to work during the COVID-19 epidemic, and the factors associated with this, among adults aged 50 years and over who were in paid employment before its onset. We used data from the second wave of the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Aging (ELSI-Brazil), conducted through face-to-face interviews between August 2019 and March 2020 (before the onset of the epidemic), in a representative national sample of adults aged 50 and over, and data obtained through telephone interviews carried out among the same participants (ELSI-COVID-19 initiative), conducted between May 26 and June 8, 2020 (during the epidemic). The analyses were based on odds ratios (OR) estimated by logistic regression. The participants' mean age was 59.9 years (SD = 6.5). The prevalence of going out to work in the previous seven days was 38.4% (95%CI: 31.3-46.1), 50.2% among men and 25.1% among women (formal work, self-employment, and informal work). The results showed that among men, the likelihood of going out to work was lower among those aged 60 to 69 years compared to those aged 50 to 59 years (OR = 0.27; 95%CI: 0.15-0.48). Among women, the likelihood was lower among those who were self-employed (OR = 0.28; 95%CI: 0.12-0.64) or in informal employment before the epidemic (OR = 0.25; 95%CI: 0.09-0.69), compared to those in formal employment. One of the hypotheses to explain this association is that women in informal employment were more likely to be dismissed, and that self-employed women have stopped working during the epidemic.

The objective of this article is to examine factors associated with preventive health services search among Brazilian adults. Sample included adults participants from the National Health Survey (2013), that had reported any health service search in prior 15 days, categorized into "treatment/diagnosis" or "preventive" service. Exploratory variables included sex, age, race, marital status, education, household situation, private health plan enrolment and time of FHS enrolment. Associations were verified by prevalence ratios (PR), estimated using robust Poisson regression, considering complexity of sampling parameters. Final sample included 32,377 individuals, 12,94% have searched "preventive" services. Preventive search was more often among women and less often among the older adults, those not living with partner, with less education. Having private health plan was associated with less preventive services search. FHS enrolment were not associated with preventive search. By conclusion, although some efforts and the importance of preventive actions, most of individuals search for treatment services.

Objective: To evaluate the magnitude of wealth-related inequalities in basic activities of daily living among community-dwelling Brazilian older adults and to determine the contribution of demographic, socioeconomic, and health conditions to the inequality., Methods: We used data from the 2015 Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Aging (ELSI-Brazil) with a nationally representative sample of adults aged 50 years or older. We assessed wealth-related inequalities in basic activities of daily living by the concentration index. Concentration index was decomposed to determine the contribution of demographic, health, and socioeconomic factors to wealth-related inequalities in basic activities of daily living., Results: The prevalence of disability in the sample was 15.7% (95%CI 14.9-17.6). The concentration index was -0.145 (95%CI -0.194- -0.097), which indicates that disability is concentrated in the poorest individuals in Brazil. Inequalities in basic activities of daily living disability are primarily explained by socioeconomic status (wealth and own education) not by demographic or health factors., Conclusions: There are avoidable wealth-related inequities for those with a disability in Brazil. The strong contribution of the socioeconomic status highlights the need for new public health policies that promote equity, universality, and integrality, in addition to the expansion of home nursing public services.