Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-Coronavirus-2 and Loss of Autonomy in the Elderly

The question of the outcome of elderly populations in the immediate aftermath of the epidemic
and at a distance from it are essential to measure the effectiveness of the medical care that
has been undertaken, but also to adapt the response to the specific problems of the elderly
population. It is likely that the older, more fragile population will take longer to recover
from the epidemic than the younger population because their functional reserves prior to
coronavirus disease 19 are lower. In addition, the possible consequences of containment must
be added to the burden of co-morbidities and dependence prior to the epidemic. Containment is
synonymous with a restriction in social relationship, and sometimes a reduction in the
support provided on a daily basis to frail or even dependent elderly people. Moreover,
containment alone may be responsible for the onset or worsening of pathologies.

In most diseases, older people have less typical symptomatology than that described for
younger people. The investigators therefore hypothesize that within the framework of
coronavirus disease 19, the clinical pictures in the elderly will present specificities that
will need to be described. Moreover, since infection by the SARS-CoV-2 virus is new to
humans, the investigators do not yet have sufficient information on the fate of the elderly,
in terms of loss of autonomy, rehospitalization, institutionalization, mortality, etc. The
investigators therefore assume that the clinical pictures in the elderly will present
specificities that will need to be described. The investigators hypothesize that an acute
infection of this type will have short-, medium-, and long-term repercussions in the elderly.