A model of brain morphological changes related to aging and Alzheimer's disease from cross-sectional assessments

Abstract Background Caregiver burden affects the caregiver’s health and is related to the quality of care received by patients. This study aimed to determine the extent to which caregivers feel burdened when caring for patients with Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) and to investigate the predictors for caregiving burden. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted. One hundred two caregivers of patients with AD at Maharaj Nakorn Chiang Mai Hospital, a tertiary care hospital, were recruited. Assessment tools included the perceived stress scale (stress), PHQ-9 (depressive symptoms), Zarit Burden Interview-12 (burden), Clinical Dementia Rating (disease severity), Neuropsychiatric Inventory Questionnaires (neuropsychiatric symptoms), and Barthel Activities Daily Living Index (dependency). The mediation analysis model was used to determine any associations. Results A higher level of severity of neuropsychiatric symptoms (r = 0.37, p < 0.01), higher level of perceived stress (r = 0.57, p < 0.01), and higher level of depressive symptoms (r = 0.54, p < 0.01) were related to a higher level of caregiver burden. The direct effect of neuropsychiatric symptoms on caregiver burden was fully mediated by perceived stress and depressive symptoms (r = 0.13, p = 0.177), rendering an increase of 46% of variance in caregiver burden by this parallel mediation model. The significant indirect effect of neuropsychiatric symptoms by these two mediators was (r = 0.21, p = 0.001). Conclusion Caregiver burden is associated with patients’ neuropsychiatric symptoms indirectly through the caregiver’s depressive symptoms and perception of stress. Early detection and provision of appropriate interventions and skills to manage stress and depression could be useful in reducing and preventing caregiver burden.

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Potentially Inappropriate Medication Use in Older Adults with Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias Living in the Community: A Cross-Sectional Analysis

Drugs - Real World Outcomes ◽

10.1007/s40801-021-00265-4 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Lauren E. Vickers ◽

Ashley I. Martinez ◽

Alexandra M. Wallem ◽

Clare Johnson ◽

Daniela C. Moga

Keyword(s):

Alzheimer’S Disease ◽

Older Adults ◽

Alzheimer's Disease ◽

Inappropriate Medication ◽

Medication Use ◽

Potentially Inappropriate Medication ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Cross Sectional Analysis ◽

Inappropriate Medication Use ◽

Sectional Analysis

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Burden of caring for Alzheimer’s disease or dementia patients in Japan, the US, and EU: results from the National Health and Wellness Survey: a cross-sectional survey

Journal of Medical Economics ◽

10.1080/13696998.2021.1880801 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 24 (1) ◽

pp. 266-278

Author(s):

Shinya Ohno ◽

Yirong Chen ◽

Hiroyuki Sakamaki ◽

Naoki Matsumaru ◽

Motoaki Yoshino ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Alzheimer’S Disease ◽

Alzheimer's Disease ◽

National Health ◽

Health And Wellness ◽

Cross Sectional Survey ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Dementia Patients ◽

The Us ◽

Burden Of Caring

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Neuropsychological and neuroimaging changes in preclinical Alzheimer's disease

Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society ◽

10.1017/s1355617706060863 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 12 (5) ◽

pp. 707-735 ◽

Cited By ~ 130

Author(s):

ELIZABETH W. TWAMLEY ◽

SUSAN A. LEGENDRE ROPACKI ◽

MARK W. BONDI

Keyword(s):

Alzheimer’S Disease ◽

Alzheimer's Disease ◽

Temporal Lobe ◽

Functional Neuroimaging ◽

Neuropsychological Functioning ◽

Clinical Manifestations ◽

Symptomatic Treatment ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Preclinical Ad ◽

Normal Individuals

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a common, devastating form of dementia. With the advent of promising symptomatic treatment, the importance of recognizing AD at its very earliest stages has increased. We review the extant neuropsychological and neuroimaging literature on preclinical AD, focusing on longitudinal studies of initially nondemented individuals and cross-sectional investigations comparing at-risk with normal individuals. We systematically reviewed 91 studies of neuropsychological functioning, structural neuroimaging, or functional neuroimaging in preclinical AD. The neuropsychological studies indicated that preclinical AD might be characterized by subtle deficits in a broad range of neuropsychological domains, particularly in attention, learning and memory, executive functioning, processing speed, and language. Recent findings from neuroimaging research suggest that volume loss and cerebral blood flow or metabolic changes, particularly in the temporal lobe, may be detected before the onset of dementia. There exist several markers of a preclinical period of AD, in which specific cognitive and biochemical changes precede the clinical manifestations. The preclinical indicators of AD reflect early compromise of generalized brain integrity and temporal lobe functioning in particular. (JINS, 2006,12, 707–735.)

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P3-132: Motivational reserve as risk factor in the development of mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease: Cross-sectional and longitudinal data

Alzheimer s & Dementia ◽

10.1016/j.jalz.2009.04.1107 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 5 (4S_Part_13) ◽

pp. P383-P383

Author(s):

Simon Forstmeier ◽

Michael Wagner ◽

Wolfgang Maier ◽

Hendrik Van Den Bussche ◽

Birgitt Wiese ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Alzheimer’S Disease ◽

Alzheimer's Disease ◽

Risk Factor ◽

Cognitive Impairment ◽

Mild Cognitive Impairment ◽

Longitudinal Data ◽

Cross Sectional

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Association of naturally occurring antibodies to β-amyloid with cognitive decline and cerebral amyloidosis in Alzheimer’s disease

Science Advances ◽

10.1126/sciadv.abb0457 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 7 (1) ◽

pp. eabb0457

Author(s):

Yu-Hui Liu ◽

Jun Wang ◽

Qiao-Xin Li ◽

Christopher J. Fowler ◽

Fan Zeng ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Alzheimer’S Disease ◽

Alzheimer's Disease ◽

Cognitive Decline ◽

Plasma Levels ◽

Imaging Biomarkers ◽

Amino Terminus ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Naturally Occurring ◽

Β Amyloid ◽

Naturally Occurring Antibodies

The pathological relevance of naturally occurring antibodies to β-amyloid (NAbs-Aβ) in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) remains unclear. We aimed to investigate their levels and associations with Aβ burden and cognitive decline in AD in a cross-sectional cohort from China and a longitudinal cohort from the Australian Imaging, Biomarkers and Lifestyle (AIBL) study. NAbs-Aβ levels in plasma and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) were tested according to their epitopes. Levels of NAbs targeting the amino terminus of Aβ increased, and those targeting the mid-domain of Aβ decreased in both CSF and plasma in AD patients. Higher plasma levels of NAbs targeting the amino terminus of Aβ and lower plasma levels of NAbs targeting the mid-domain of Aβ were associated with higher brain amyloidosis at baseline and faster cognitive decline during follow-up. Our findings suggest a dynamic response of the adaptive immune system in the progression of AD and are relevant to current passive immunotherapeutic strategies.

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Microglia and its genetics in Alzheimer's Disease

Current Alzheimer Research ◽

10.2174/1567205018666211105140732 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 ◽

Author(s):

Xinyan Liang ◽

Haijian Wu ◽

Mark Colt ◽

Xinying Guo ◽

Brock Pluimer ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Alzheimer’S Disease ◽

Alzheimer's Disease ◽

Immune Cell ◽

Morphological Changes ◽

Association Studies ◽

Unmet Need ◽

Genome Wide Association Studies ◽

Protective Effects ◽

Risk Genes ◽

Main Component

: Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) is the most prevalent form of dementia across the world. While its discovery and pathological manifestations are centered on protein aggregations of amyloid-beta (Aβ) and hyperphosphorylated tau protein, neuroinflammation has emerged in the last decade as a main component of the disease in both pathogenesis and progression. As the main innate immune cell type in central nervous system (CNS), microglia play a very important role in regulating neuroinflammation, which occurs commonly in neurodegenerative conditions including AD. Under inflammatory response, microglia undergo morphological changes and status transition from homeostatic to activated forms. Different microglia subtypes displaying distinct genetic profiles have been identified in AD, and these signatures often link to AD risk genes identified from the genome-wide association studies (GWAS), such as APOE and TREM2. Furthermore, many of AD risk genes are highly enriched in microglia and specifically influence the functions of microglia in pathogenesis, e.g. releasing inflammatory cytokines and clearing Aβ. Therefore, building up a landscape of these risk genes in microglia, based on current preclinical studies and in the context of their pathogenic or protective effects, would largely help us to understand the complexed etiology of AD and provide new insight for the unmet need of effective treatment.

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Evaluation of macrolinguistic aspects of the oral discourse in patients with Alzheimer’s disease

International Psychogeriatrics ◽

10.1017/s1041610218001758 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 31 (9) ◽

pp. 1343-1353 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Juliana Onofre de Lira ◽

Thaís Soares Cianciarullo Minett ◽

Paulo Henrique Ferreira Bertolucci ◽

Karin Zazo Ortiz

Keyword(s):

Alzheimer’S Disease ◽

Alzheimer's Disease ◽

Language Processing ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Oral Discourse ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Cohesive Devices ◽

Global Coherence ◽

Comparison Groups ◽

Study Setting

ABSTRACTIntroduction:Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a degenerative syndrome that impairs cognitive functioning, including speech and language. Discourse can be used to analyze language processing, which is organized into microlinguistic and macrolinguistic dimensions.Objectives:To identify the occurrence of changes in the macrolinguistic dimension of oral discourse in AD patients. Design: This was developed as a cross-sectional study. Setting: Outpatient clinic of the Behavioural Neurology Division of São Paulo Federal University.Participants:121 elderly patients, with ≥ 4 years of education, divided into AD and comparison groups.Measurements:The subjects were asked to create a narrative based on seven figures that made up a story. The macrolinguistic aspects of the narratives were analyzed.Results:The performance of the AD group was inferior to that of the comparison group on content-related, no-content-related complete and incomplete propositions as well as macropropositions, main information units, appropriated local and global coherence, cohesive devices and all subtypes, cohesive errors and some of their subtypes. Global coherence, macropropositions and ellipsis subtype of cohesive devices were the variables that best differentiated the groups.Conclusions:Changes were observed in most aspects of the macrolinguistic dimension of oral discourse in patients with AD.

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Prevalência, desempenho cognitivo e funcionalidade de idosos com Doença de Alzheimer em instituições de longa permanência de Bento Gonçalves

PAJAR - Pan-American Journal of Aging Research ◽

10.15448/2357-9641.2017.1.26051 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

pp. 23 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Daniela Fernandes Tonholi ◽

Gisele Oltramari

Keyword(s):

Alzheimer’S Disease ◽

Alzheimer's Disease ◽

Cognitive Performance ◽

Junior High School ◽

Functional Independence Measure ◽

The Elderly ◽

Functional Independence ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Functional Evaluation ◽

Cross Sectional

Aims: To determine the prevalence, cognitive performance and functionality of elderly people with Alzheimer's disease in long-stay institutions for the elderlyin the city of Bento Gonçalves. Methods: Cross-sectional study including 24 elderly residents in long-stay institutions for the elderly, sociodemographic datawere obtained, and the elderly were subjected to functional evaluation by the Functional Independence Measure and evaluation of cognitive performancethrough the mental state the Mini (MMSE). Results: Most of the residents were female (83%), as 54.2% schooling had completed junior high school, mostof the elderly (70.8%) was admitted by the will of the family, 100% of the elderly showed cognitive performance bad, and the smaller the more dependentcognitive performance was the individual. Conclusion: institutionalized elderly with Alzheimer's disease had negative results on cognitive performance,as well as deficits in their ability to perform activities of daily living, thus altering their functionality.Keywords: aging; functionality; cognition; Alzheimer Disease; long-stay institutions.

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