Elder abuse within the family environment: a systematic review

Resumen

Background: Fundamental freedoms and human rights should be inviolable throughout life, without prejudice, ensuring the individual’s highest possible level of physical and mental health. However, mistreatment of the elderly remains a major public health problem in today’s society. The main objective of this systematic review was to identify the variables that influence elder abuse. The secondary objectives were to identify the demographic characteristics of caregivers of older adults who reside in their homes; determine whether there was a kinship relationship between caregivers and older adults; identify the degree of functional
dependence of older adults; and determine the prevailing types of abuse in the home environment.

Methods: We conducted a literature search according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses standards on December 26 and 27, 2019 in the SCIELO, CUIDEN, CINAHL, PubMed and Google Scholar databases. The search process was conducted by two independent reviewers using the same methodology, and their discrepancies were resolved by consensus.

Results: A total of 46 cross-sectional studies and one case-control study were selected. The cross-sectional articles showed poor and fair methodological quality, whereas the case-control study presented good methodological quality. Limited
evidence suggests that being abused is more often associated with being female, having a lower income, having cognitive or functional impairment, having mood disorders and having a first-degree relationship with the abuser. The qualitative
analysis also showed conflicting evidence regarding the victims’ educational level.

Conclusions: The results of this systematic review show that there are numerous risk factors that increase the prevalence of abuse. Further research and review studies are needed in this area.