Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) represents the most common cause of chronic respiratory failure and it's associated with several comorbidities such as depression. Depression is about four times more frequent in elderly patients with COPD compared to peers who are not affected and its prevalence increases with the degree of disease severity.

To assess mood and perception of the quality of life in elderly patients hospitalized for acute exacerbation of COPD.

Thirty-five elderly patients hospitalized for reactivation of COPD were examined; they were subjected to spirometry test for the calculation of FEV1 and to COPD Assessment Test (CAT) and Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAM-D) to evaluate impact of COPD on patients’ quality of life and depressive symptomatology, respectively. The number of COPD exacerbations in the last year prior to hospitalization and the number of recovery days required for the stabilization of patients were also recorded.

There were strongly significative correlations (P < 0.001), positive between HAM-D scores, CAT scores, number of exacerbation in the last year and hospital length of stay and negative between HAM-D scores and FEV1 values. Furthermore, females were more depressed, with lower FEV 1 (P = 0.043) and with a longer length of stay (P = 0.039) as compared to males.

A greater severity of depressive symptoms is related to a greater severity of COPD exacerbations, disability associated with it and perceived by the patient, as well as a higher number of recovery days and annual acute exacerbations, particularly in female gender.