The increased life expectancy associated with the improved health conditions has resulted in the increasing and ongoing rise of the elderly population in most societies. Projections show that, by the year 2050, there will be approximately two billion older people across the world, most of who will be living in developing countries. Population aging in Brazil is a phenomenon derived from technological advances in the field of health, particularly the reduced child mortality, the decreased fertility due to the introduction of contraceptive methods, the expanded vaccination coverage and the use of antibiotics and chemotherapic drugs that enabled the prevention and healing of many diseases. Although old age is a universal process, its experience has a great distinction by gender, mainly because there is higher number of elderly women, as aging runs its course. This phenomenon is characterized as the feminization of old age, adding to this the fact that there is the onset of several chronic diseases, among them depression and its symptomatology.
The depressive syndrome is characterized by the presence of a predominantly depressive and/or
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Accordingly, it is proposed to assist these customers by meeting their needs and demands, with a view to providing health promotion, disease prevention, early diagnosis, suitable treatment and effective rehabilitation. Lastly, it is believed that the knowledge of depressive symptoms in Primary Care will enable the comprehensive and multidimensional care of elderly women assisted by the Family Health