Context:

The cognitive decline of the aging process can lead to a reduction in the autonomy, independence and social adaptability, but the social interaction and social support networks can slow down the process.

Objective:

To identify the association between social support and cognitive deficit in the elderly.

Method:

The study is a cross-sectional descriptive with elderly registered in a Family Health Unit in the city of Recife, northeast of Brazil. Eighty-eight elderly patients were evaluated using a sociodemographic questionnaire, an instrument regarding the perception of social support of the elderly and the mini mental state examination for screening for cognitive impairment. In the data analysis, stratified and bivariate analyzes were performed.

Results:

The elderly who participated in the study had a mean age, female predominant (70.5%), and 73.9% had a schooling level up to elementary school. High social support was observed by 86.4% of respondents. 47 Were founded a positive and statistically significant association between having high social support and not presenting cognitive deficit in the dimensions: time orientation (OR:8,33; IC95%: 2,01-34,42), space orientation (OR:25,00; IC95%: 2,34-266,48), repeating sentence (OR: 4,22; IC95%:1,13-15,69) and following order (OR: 15,00; IC95%: 1,24-180,82).

Conclusion:

Social support is important in the lives of the elderly for a positive development of cognitive aging.

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