scholarly journals A Survey of Dementia Knowledge and Recognition of Dementia Prevention and Practice in Healthy Older Adults

2021 ◽  
pp. 256-263
Author(s):  
Nanako Yamane ◽  
Kanto Tsukagoshi ◽  
Miharu Hisada ◽  
Mina Yamaguchi ◽  
Yukiko Suzuki
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Response Rate ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Preventive Behaviors ◽  
Aggregation Method ◽  
Effective Response ◽  
Healthy Older Adults ◽  
Resource Center ◽  
Dementia Prevention ◽  
Amount Of Knowledge

<b><i>Aim:</i></b> The aim of this study was to investigate the level of dementia knowledge and behaviors recognized as dementia-preventive and the practice thereof among healthy older adults who are highly motivated to engage in activities. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> The participants were older adults registered at the Silver Human Resource Center of city A, and participants anonymously filled questionnaires through the aggregation method in January 2020. <b><i>Results:</i></b> The analysis included 78 participants (the effective response rate was 49.7%). All participants were aware of at least 4 dementia-preventive behaviors, and about 80% of all participants practiced at least 1 preventive behavior. Approximately 20% of participants were not practicing preventive behaviors at all. The elderly aged 65 to 74 years had more knowledge about dementia and more types of behavior perceived as dementia-preventive than the elderly aged 75 years and older. There was no significant correlation between the level of dementia knowledge and the number of types of dementia-preventive behaviors. <b><i>Conclusions:</i></b> Healthy older adults were aware of numerous behaviors for dementia prevention, and most older adults practiced preventive behaviors. In contrast, even with a high amount of knowledge about dementia, a small number of healthy older adults did not translate this knowledge into preventative behavioral practices. High levels of dementia knowledge do not translate into preventive behavioral practices.

scholarly journals Disuse syndrome in Japanese older adults due to instructions to stay at home during the COVID-19 pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 60-67
Author(s):  
Yoshiaki Endo ◽  
◽  
Tamaki Hirose ◽  
Masahiro Ishizaka ◽  
Yohei Sawaya ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Physical Function ◽  
Response Rate ◽  
Effective Response ◽  
Term Care ◽  
Healthy Older Adults ◽  
Large Cities ◽  
Japanese Older Adults ◽  
And Gender

This study aimed to reveal the extent of the adverse effects caused by the restrictions on going out due to the COVID-19 pandemic on physical function. The participants were 129 healthy older adults, aged 65 years and older, who lived independently without the need for long-term care. The presence or absence of disuse syndrome was investigated using a partially modified “Disuse Syndrome Inventory.” The address, age, and gender of the participants were also surveyed in a factor analysis of disuse syndrome. The effective response rate was 90.6% (n = 117). Disuse syndrome was observed in 38.5% (n = 45) of the participants, which was significantly higher in women compared to men, and in medium-sized to depopulated cities compared to large cities. It has become clear that a large number of older adults have disuse syndrome because of the travel and commute restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. To return to normal life sooner, it is necessary to consider countermeasures as soon as possible. Keywords: Coronavirus disease 2019, infection, physical function, restrictions on going out.

scholarly journals Agility Training to Integratively Promote Neuromuscular, Cognitive, Cardiovascular and Psychosocial Function in Healthy Older Adults: A Study Protocol of a One-Year Randomized-Controlled Trial

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (6) ◽  
pp. 1853 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mareike Morat ◽  
Oliver Faude ◽  
Henner Hanssen ◽  
Sebastian Ludyga ◽  
Jonas Zacher ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Randomized Controlled Trial ◽  
Exercise Training ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Healthy Older Adults ◽  
Randomized Controlled ◽  
Training Concept ◽  
One Year

Exercise training effectively mitigates aging-induced health and fitness impairments. Traditional training recommendations for the elderly focus separately on relevant physiological fitness domains, such as balance, flexibility, strength and endurance. Thus, a more holistic and functional training framework is needed. The proposed agility training concept integratively tackles spatial orientation, stop and go, balance and strength. The presented protocol aims at introducing a two-armed, one-year randomized controlled trial, evaluating the effects of this concept on neuromuscular, cardiovascular, cognitive and psychosocial health outcomes in healthy older adults. Eighty-five participants were enrolled in this ongoing trial. Seventy-nine participants completed baseline testing and were block-randomized to the agility training group or the inactive control group. All participants undergo pre- and post-testing with interim assessment after six months. The intervention group currently receives supervised, group-based agility training twice a week over one year, with progressively demanding perceptual, cognitive and physical exercises. Knee extension strength, reactive balance, dual task gait speed and the Agility Challenge for the Elderly (ACE) serve as primary endpoints and neuromuscular, cognitive, cardiovascular, and psychosocial meassures serve as surrogate secondary outcomes. Our protocol promotes a comprehensive exercise training concept for older adults, that might facilitate stakeholders in health and exercise to stimulate relevant health outcomes without relying on excessively time-consuming physical activity recommendations.

scholarly journals Visual-Somatosensory Integration and Balance: Evidence for Psychophysical Integrative Differences in Aging

2014 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeannette R. Mahoney ◽  
Roee Holtzer ◽  
Joe Verghese
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Fall Risk ◽  
Multisensory Processing ◽  
Reaction Times ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Static Balance ◽  
Healthy Older Adults ◽  
Stance Time ◽  
Study Participants ◽  
The Relationship

Research detailing multisensory integration (MSI) processes in aging and their association with clinically relevant outcomes is virtually non-existent. To our knowledge, the relationship between MSI and balance has not been well-established in aging. Given known alterations in unisensory processing with increasing age, the aims of the current study were to determine differential behavioral patterns of MSI in aging and investigate whether MSI was significantly associated with balance and fall-risk. Seventy healthy older adults ( years; 58% female) participated in the current study. Participants were instructed to make speeded responses to visual, somatosensory, and visual-somatosensory (VS) stimuli. Based on reaction times (RTs) to all stimuli, participants were classified into one of two groups (MSI or NO MSI), depending on their MSI RT benefit. Static balance was assessed using mean unipedal stance time. Overall, results revealed that RTs to VS stimuli were significantly shorter than those elicited to constituent unisensory conditions. Further, the current experimental design afforded differential patterns of multisensory processing, with 75% of the elderly sample demonstrating multisensory enhancements. Interestingly, 25% of older adults did not demonstrate multisensory RT facilitation; a finding that was attributed to extremely fast RTs overall and specifically in response to somatosensory inputs. Individuals in the NO MSI group maintained significantly better unipedal stance times and reported less falls, compared to elders in the MSI group. This study reveals the existence of differential patterns of multisensory processing in aging, while describing the clinical translational value of MSI enhancements in predicting balance and falls risk.

Clusters of Dementia Literacy: Implications from a Survey of Older Adults

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Y. Barak ◽  
C. Rapsey ◽  
K.M. Scott
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Protective Factors ◽  
Protective Factor ◽  
Response Rate ◽  
Telephone Survey ◽  
Educational Interventions ◽  
Graduate Degree ◽  
Brain Health ◽  
Dementia Risk ◽  
Dementia Prevention

Clinicians and scientists suggest that up to 40% of dementia cases are potentially preventable. Data on awareness of dementia risk and protective factor among older adults can inform and facilitate designing educational interventions to prevent dementia. We aimed to quantify awareness of dementia risk and protective factors using a telephone survey. The modified Lifestyle for Brain Health scale was used to assess dementia risk and prevention knowledge. A representative sample of 1,005 older adults, mean age 64.02 (standard deviation + 1.4; range: 50-74 years) completed the survey (77% response rate). Under representation of non-European ethnicities was noted. Participants Respondents were all New Zealanders, more women (n=518, 51.5%), mostly European (n=921, 91.6%) and well educated (n=347, 34.5%, university or post-graduate degree). Only 6/14 modifiable risk or protective factors for dementia were adequately identified. Three clusters of dementia literacy were identified: psychosocial, medical and activities. These findings support personalizing dementia prevention efforts via targeted educational packages.

scholarly journals The Effectiveness of the Stepping-On Fall Prevention Program on the Quality of Life, Fear of Fall, and Fall-Preventive Behaviors Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults: A Randomized Clinical Trial

2021 ◽  
Vol In Press (In Press) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sakineh Gholamzadeh ◽  
Maryam Ebrahimi ◽  
Nasrin Sharifi ◽  
Masoumeh Rambod
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Clinical Trial ◽  
Fall Prevention ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Preventive Behaviors ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Community Dwelling Older Adults

Background: Along with increasing population of the elderly in various countries, the incidence of falls and respective damages has also increased. Objectives: Given the numerous disagreements regarding the effectiveness of different interventions mentioned in various sources, the present study aimed to examine the effectiveness of the Stepping-On fall preventive program on the quality of life, fear of fall, and fall-preventive behaviors among community-dwelling older adults in Shiraz, Iran. Methods: This study is a single-blinded randomized interventional or clinical trial study conducted on 90 elderly people under the coverage of two large health centers during 2019 - 2020 in Shiraz, Iran. Multi-stage randomized sampling was used to select the participants who were randomly allocated to either of the intervention (n = 45) or control groups (n = 45). Data collection tools were the fall efficiency scale, fall prevention behaviors, and Lipad quality of life questionnaires. The intervention group participated in a 7-session Stepping-On program, while the control group received the same routine care. Collected data were analyzed with SPSS software version 22. Results: The findings indicated that the Stepping-On program was effective on the fear of falling scores (P = 0.008) and the quality of life of the elderly under study (P = 0.019) at follow-up time. However, there was no significant difference immediately after the intervention (P > 0.05). However, the mean score of fall-preventing behaviors increased during the course of the study and reached a significant level immediately after the study was conducted (P = 0.046) and the other two months later (P = 0.028). Conclusions: The Stepping-On program may apparently affect the study variables. Therefore, further research is suggested to confirm the effectiveness of this program so that it can be used across all healthcare centers for the elderly.

scholarly journals The Moderating Effects of Perceived Severity on the Generational Gap in Preventive Behaviors during the COVID-19 Pandemic in the U.S.

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 2011
Author(s):  
Yunjuan Luo ◽  
Yang Cheng ◽  
Mingxiao Sui
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Moderating Effects ◽  
Preventive Behaviors ◽  
Perceived Severity ◽  
Control And Prevention ◽  
Severity Of The Disease ◽  
The U.S

During the COVID-19 pandemic, older adults appear to be more susceptible to the coronavirus disease. Although the health stakes are higher for older adults, individuals of all ages should adopt preventive measures to contain the human-to-human transmission of the virus. This study conducted a national online survey of 1843 adults at the early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S. to examine age disparities in preventive behaviors against the virus. The results show that older generations, motivated by a higher perceived severity of the disease, were more likely to take the precautionary actions recommended by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) than younger generations. This thus suggests that persuasive health messages addressing the severity of COVID-19 might reduce the generational gap and promote preventive behaviors among young people, to protect themselves and the elderly.

scholarly journals Neural Correlates of Associative Memory in the Elderly: A Resting-State Functional MRI Study

2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Weicong Ren ◽  
Rui Li ◽  
Zhiwei Zheng ◽  
Juan Li
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Functional Mri ◽  
Associative Memory ◽  
Resting State ◽  
Memory Performance ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Neural Correlates ◽  
Parahippocampal Gyrus ◽  
Healthy Older Adults

The neural correlates of associative memory in healthy older adults were investigated by examining the correlation of associative memory performance with spontaneous brain oscillations. Eighty healthy older adults underwent a resting-state functional MRI and took a paired-associative learning test (PALT). Correlations between the amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (ALFF) as well as fractional ALFF (fALFF) in the whole brain and PALT scores were calculated. We found that spontaneous activity as indexed by both ALFF and fALFF in the parahippocampal gyrus (PHG) was significantly positively correlated with associative memory performance, suggesting that the PHG plays a critical role in associative memory in older people.

Partner-Specific Communication Deficits in Individuals With Alzheimer's Disease

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Eun Jin Paek ◽  
Si On Yoon
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Referential Communication ◽  
Sorting Task ◽  
Audience Design ◽  
Healthy Older Adults ◽  
Communication Task ◽  
Design Skills ◽  
Referential Expressions

Purpose Speakers adjust referential expressions to the listeners' knowledge while communicating, a phenomenon called “audience design.” While individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD) show difficulties in discourse production, it is unclear whether they exhibit preserved partner-specific audience design. The current study examined if individuals with AD demonstrate partner-specific audience design skills. Method Ten adults with mild-to-moderate AD and 12 healthy older adults performed a referential communication task with two experimenters (E1 and E2). At first, E1 and participants completed an image-sorting task, allowing them to establish shared labels. Then, during testing, both experimenters were present in the room, and participants described images to either E1 or E2 (randomly alternating). Analyses focused on the number of words participants used to describe each image and whether they reused shared labels. Results During testing, participants in both groups produced shorter descriptions when describing familiar images versus new images, demonstrating their ability to learn novel knowledge. When they described familiar images, healthy older adults modified their expressions depending on the current partner's knowledge, producing shorter expressions and more established labels for the knowledgeable partner (E1) versus the naïve partner (E2), but individuals with AD were less likely to do so. Conclusions The current study revealed that both individuals with AD and the control participants were able to acquire novel knowledge, but individuals with AD tended not to flexibly adjust expressions depending on the partner's knowledge state. Conversational inefficiency and difficulties observed in AD may, in part, stem from disrupted audience design skills.

DSM-5 alcohol use disorder features among treatment-seeking older adults

2018 ◽  
Vol 64 (4) ◽  
pp. 185-196 ◽  
Author(s):  
Silke Behrendt ◽  
Barbara Braun ◽  
Randi Bilberg ◽  
Gerhard Bühringer ◽  
Michael Bogenschutz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Alcohol Use ◽  
Alcohol Use Disorder ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Treatment Seeking ◽  
Controlled Clinical Trial ◽  
Dsm 5 ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
And Gender ◽  
International Multicenter

Abstract. Background: The number of older adults with alcohol use disorder (AUD) is expected to rise. Adapted treatments for this group are lacking and information on AUD features in treatment seeking older adults is scarce. The international multicenter randomized-controlled clinical trial “ELDERLY-Study” with few exclusion criteria was conducted to investigate two outpatient AUD-treatments for adults aged 60+ with DSM-5 AUD. Aims: To add to 1) basic methodological information on the ELDERLY-Study by providing information on AUD features in ELDERLY-participants taking into account country and gender, and 2) knowledge on AUD features in older adults seeking outpatient treatment. Methods: baseline data from the German and Danish ELDERLY-sites (n=544) were used. AUD diagnoses were obtained with the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview, alcohol use information with Form 90. Results: Lost control, desired control, mental/physical problem, and craving were the most prevalent (> 70 %) AUD-symptoms. 54.9 % reported severe DSM-5 AUD (moderate: 28.2 %, mild: 16.9 %). Mean daily alcohol use was 6.3 drinks at 12 grams ethanol each. 93.9 % reported binging. More intense alcohol use was associated with greater AUD-severity and male gender. Country effects showed for alcohol use and AUD-severity. Conclusion: European ELDERLY-participants presented typical dependence symptoms, a wide range of severity, and intense alcohol use. This may underline the clinical significance of AUD in treatment-seeking seniors.

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