scholarly journals Development of Regional Disparities in Alzheimer’s Disease Mortality in the Slovak Republic from 1996 to 2015

2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Beáta Gavurová ◽  
Viliam Kováč ◽  
Dominika Jarčušková

Alzheimer’s disease—subsequently as AD in the text—represents a chronic neurodegenerative disease discussed very often in the recent period. It involves the G30 diagnosis expressing exactly AD and also the F00 diagnosis epitomising dementia in AD. The Slovak Republic has a very various population in terms of the disparities of the population localisation. The analysis is executed on the basement of the standardised mortality rate. It is calculated for the individual districts of the Slovak Republic to get a detailed spatial view and for each year of the explored period from 1996 to 2015 to get a time development. It has a considerably rising tendency. Therefore, the regional disparities of the standardised mortality rate of AD are analysed from an angle of view of its similarity, by its measurement in a form of a Euclidean distance approach. The results of the analysis offer the heat maps as the distance matrices in a graphic form and the maps of the individual districts too. These outputs reveal a very heterogeneous structure of the standardised mortality rate. Another graphic outcome demonstrates a distribution of its values among the districts throughout the whole Slovak Republic for the whole observed period. The results offer a comparison among the districts of the Slovak Republic too. The highest values and also the lowest values are reached in the different districts for the both sexes. Even, one district reaches the opposite result for the individual sexes. The age structure of the deceased population on the G30 diagnosis is also executed and the extreme values from an angle of a view of the districts are picked up. There are evident high differentiations between the individual districts of the Slovak Republic. The conclusion section involves the several key points and the potential suggestions for further research.


2020 ◽  

BACKGROUND: This paper deals with territorial distribution of the alcohol and drug addictions mortality at a level of the districts of the Slovak Republic. AIM: The aim of the paper is to explore the relations within the administrative territorial division of the Slovak Republic, that is, between the individual districts and hence, to reveal possibly hidden relation in alcohol and drug mortality. METHODS: The analysis is divided and executed into the two fragments – one belongs to the female sex, the other one belongs to the male sex. The standardised mortality rate is computed according to a sequence of the mathematical relations. The Euclidean distance is employed to compute the similarity within each pair of a whole data set. The cluster analysis examines is performed. The clusters are created by means of the mutual distances of the districts. The data is collected from the database of the Statistical Office of the Slovak Republic for all the districts of the Slovak Republic. The covered time span begins in the year 1996 and ends in the year 2015. RESULTS: The most substantial point is that the Slovak Republic possesses the regional disparities in a field of mortality expressed by the standardised mortality rate computed particularly for the diagnoses assigned to the alcohol and drug addictions at a considerably high level. However, the female sex and the male sex have the different outcome. The Bratislava III District keeps absolutely the most extreme position. It forms an own cluster for the both sexes too. The Topoľčany District bears a similar extreme position from a point of view of the male sex. All the Bratislava districts keep their mutual notable dissimilarity. Contrariwise, evaluation of a development of the regional disparities among the districts looks like notably heterogeneously. CONCLUSIONS: There are considerable regional discrepancies throughout the districts of the Slovak Republic. Hence, it is necessary to create a common platform how to proceed with the solution of this issue.



2012 ◽  
Vol 51 (No. 12) ◽  
pp. 539-546
Author(s):  
S. Buchta

The article presents the analysis of regional distribution for the approved and completed projects by 2004 under the SAPARD programme in the Slovak Republic. The distribution of funding strongly favoured powerful (innovative) business subjects which increased their competitiveness and gained the “advantage of technology advance” (which, in time may change into the rent of technology advance) associated with growth in labour productivity and high probability of investment return. The implementation of the SAPARD programme provides a strong impetus to the restructuring of businesses in agrifood industry, it accelerates and improves the selection among the businesses and economical differentiation. The bulk of the approved funding for projects under the individual measures for agriculture and processing industry within the SAPARD programme was distributed among western and southern regions of Slovakia. The implementation of the SAPARD programme, on one hand, has helped to reduce regional disparities in the vertical spatial approach by the diversion of the bulk of funding to the economically less favoured southern areas of Slovakia lagging behind in terms of infrastructure. On the other hand, though, it has increased the regional disparities in the horizontal spatial view with regard to the fact that most of the funding is spent in the developed regions of western Slovakia. Eastern Slovakia thus has become a disadvantaged and minority recipient of the financial assistance under this programme.



2019 ◽  
Vol 216 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Audun Osland Vik-Mo ◽  
Lasse Melvaer Giil ◽  
Miguel Germán Borda ◽  
Clive Ballard ◽  
Dag Aarsland

IntroductionUnderstanding the natural course of neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS) in dementia is important for planning patient care and trial design, but few studies have described the long-term course of NPS in individuals.MethodPrimary inclusion of 223 patients with suspected mild dementia from general practice were followed by annual assessment, including the Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI), for up to 12 years. Total and item NPI scores were classified as stable, relapsing, single episodic or not present based on 4.96 (s.d. 2.3) observations (98% completeness of longitudinal data) for 113 patients with Alzheimer's disease and 84 patients with LBD (68 dementia with Lewy bodies and 16 Parkinson's disease dementia).ResultsWe found that 80% had stable NPI total ≥1, 50% had stable modest NPI total ≥12 and 25% had stable NPI total ≥24 scores. Very severe NPS (≥48) were mostly single episodes, but 8% of patients with Alzheimer's disease had stable severe NPS. Patients with Alzheimer's disease and the highest 20% NPI total scores had a more stable or relapsing course of four key symptoms: aberrant motor behaviour, aggression/agitation, delusions and irritability (odds ratio 55, P < 0.001). This was not seen in LBD. Finally, 57% of patients with Alzheimer's disease and 84% of patients with LBD had reoccurring psychotic symptoms.ConclusionsWe observed a highly individual course of NPS, with most presenting as a single episode or relapsing; a stable course was less common, especially in LBD. These findings demonstrate the importance of an individualised approach (i.e. personalised medicine) in dementia care.



2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (10) ◽  
pp. 905-916 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carina Wattmo ◽  
Elisabet Londos ◽  
Lennart Minthon

Background: A varying response to cholinesterase inhibitor (ChEI) treatment has been reported among patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Whether the individual-specific response directly affects time to nursing home placement (NHP) was not investigated. Objective: We examined the relationship between the 6-month response to ChEI and institutionalization. Methods: In a prospective, observational, multicenter study, 881 outpatients with a clinical AD diagnosis and a Mini-Mental State Examination score of 10-26 at the start of ChEI therapy (baseline) were included. The participants were evaluated using cognitive, global, and activities of daily living (ADL) scales at baseline and semiannually over 3 years. The date of NHP was recorded. Results: During the study, 213 patients (24%) were admitted to nursing homes. The mean ± standard deviation time from baseline (AD diagnosis) to NHP was 20.8 ± 9.3 months. After 6 months of ChEI treatment, the improved/unchanged individuals had longer time to NHP than those who worsened. The prolonged time to NHP was 3 months for cognitive response (P=0.022), 4 months for global response (P=0.004), 6 months for basic ADL response (P<0.001), and 8 months for response in all three scales (P<0.001). No differences were detected between the improved and unchanged groups in any scales. Conclusion: Patients who exhibit a positive short-term response to ChEI can expect to stay in their own home for 3-8 months longer. These findings underline the importance of a comprehensive clinical examination including various assessment scales to evaluate treatment response and provide a more accurate prognosis.



Biomolecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 1214 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erika Hemmerová ◽  
Tomáš Špringer ◽  
Zdeňka Krištofiková ◽  
Jiří Homola

Progressive mitochondrial dysfunction due to the accumulation of amyloid beta (Aβ) peptide within the mitochondrial matrix represents one of the key characteristics of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and appears already in its early stages. Inside the mitochondria, Aβ interacts with a number of biomolecules, including cyclophilin D (cypD) and 17β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 10 (17β-HSD10), and affects their physiological functions. However, despite intensive ongoing research, the exact mechanisms through which Aβ impairs mitochondrial functions remain to be explained. In this work, we studied the interactions of Aβ with cypD and 17β-HSD10 in vitro using the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) method and determined the kinetic parameters (association and dissociation rates) of these interactions. This is the first work which determines all these parameters under the same conditions, thus, enabling direct comparison of relative affinities of Aβ to its mitochondrial binding partners. Moreover, we used the determined characteristics of the individual interactions to simulate the concurrent interactions of Aβ with cypD and 17β-HSD10 in different model situations associated with the progression of AD. This study not only advances the understanding of Aβ-induced processes in mitochondria during AD, but it also provides a new perspective on research into complex multi-interaction biomolecular processes in general.



2010 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 238-244 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ari Pedro Balieiro Jr. ◽  
Emmanuelle Silva Tavares Sobreira ◽  
Marina Ceres Silva Pena ◽  
José Humberto Silva-Filho ◽  
Francisco de Assis Carvalho do Vale

Abstract The aim of this study was to analyze the relationship between Caregiver Distress and Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms in Dementias (BPSD) in mild Alzheimer's disease. Methods: Fifty patients and caregivers were interviewed using the Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI). Results: 96.0% of the patients had at least one BPSD. The mean NPI total score was 19.6 (SD=18.05; range=0-78) whereas the mean Caregiver Distress Index (CDI) total score was 11.5 (SD=10.41; range=0-40). For the individual symptoms, the weighted mean CDI was 2.8 (SD=1.58). All symptom CDI means were higher than 2.0 except for euphoria/elation (m=1.8; SD=1.49). There were correlations between CDI and derived measures (Frequency, Severity, FxS, and Amplitude) for all symptoms, except Disinhibition and Night-time behavior. Correlations ranged between 0.443 and 0.894, with significance at p<0.05. Conclusions: All the derived measures, including amplitude, were useful in at least some cases. The data suggests that CDI cannot be inferred from symptom presence or profile. Symptoms should be systematically investigated.







1975 ◽  
Vol 37 (3_suppl) ◽  
pp. 1043-1047 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francisco I. Perez ◽  
Joe R. A. Gay ◽  
Ronald L. Taylor

The present study investigated the performance of patients with multi-infarct dementia, dementia due to Alzheimer's disease and vertebrobasilar insufficiency with dementia using the WAIS. Forty-two patients ranging in age from 45 to 85 yr. ( M, 66) were included. Significant differences in cognitive and intellectual performance were found between patients with dementia due to vertebrobasilar insufficiency and multiple-infarctions versus neuronal atrophy of the Alzheimer type. The group with Alzheimer's disease performed significantly and consistently lower on all measures. There were no significant differences between the two cerebrovascular disease groups, even though the multi-infarct dementia group performed consistently more poorly than the vertebrobasilar insufficiency group. A discriminant function analysis classified 74% of the patients correctly based on the individual WAIS scores. A step-wise regression analysis ranked Block Design and Similarities as the best discriminators.



2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hui Dong ◽  
Jialu Li ◽  
Lei Huang ◽  
Xi Chen ◽  
Donghai Li ◽  
...  

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common type of dementia, and promptly diagnosis of AD is crucial for delaying the development of disease and improving patient quality of life. However, AD detection, particularly in the early stages, remains a substantial challenge due to the lack of specific biomarkers. The present study was undertaken to identify and validate the potential of circulating miRNAs as novel biomarkers for AD. Solexa sequencing was employed to screen the expression profile of serum miRNAs in AD and controls. RT-qPCR was used to confirm the altered miRNAs at the individual level. Moreover, candidate miRNAs were examined in the serum samples of patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and vascular dementia (VD). The results showed that four miRNAs (miR-31, miR-93, miR-143, and miR-146a) were markedly decreased in AD patients’ serum compared with controls. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis demonstrated that this panel of four miRNAs could be used as potential biomarker for AD. Furthermore, miR-93, and miR-146a were significantly elevated in MCI compared with controls, and the panel of miR-31, miR-93 and miR-146a can be used to discriminate AD from VD. We established a panel of four serum miRNAs as a novel noninvasive biomarker for AD diagnosis.



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