Visual search becomes slower with aging, particularly when targets are difficult to discriminate from distractors. Multiple distractor rejection processes may contribute independently to slower search times: dwelling on, skipping of, and revisiting of distractors, measurable by eye-tracking. The present study investigated how age affects each of the distractor rejection processes, and how these contribute to the final search times in difficult (inefficient) visual search.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: A brain healthy lifestyle, consisting of good cardiometabolic health and being cognitively and socially active in midlife, is associated with a lower risk of cognitive decline years later. However, it is unclear whether lifestyle changes over time also affect the risk for mild cognitive impairment (MCI)/dementia, and rate of cognitive decline.
Objectives: To investigate if lifestyle changes over time are associated with incident MCI/dementia risk and rate of cognitive decline.
Background: There is consistent evidence for the contribution of modifiable risk factors to dementia risk, offering opportunities for primary prevention. Yet, most individuals are unaware of these opportunities.
Objective: To investigate whether online education about dementia risk reduction may be a low-level means to increase knowledge and support self-management of modifiable dementia risk factors.
Introduction: Recruitment of participants for intervention studies is challenging. We evaluated the effectiveness and efficiency of a participant recruitment campaign through an online registry for the FINGER-NL study, a multi-domain lifestyle intervention trial targeting cognitively healthy individuals aged 60-79 with dementia prevention potential. Additionally, we explored which recruitment strategy successfully reached individuals from underrepresented groups in research.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEfforts to prevent dementia can benefit from precision interventions delivered to the right population at the right time; that is, when the potential to reduce risk is the highest. Young adults (aged 18-39 years) are a neglected population in dementia research and policy making despite being highly exposed to several known modifiable risk factors. The risk and protective factors that have the biggest effect on dementia outcomes in young adulthood, and how these associations differ across regions and groups, still remain unclear.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Hearing loss (HL) and visual loss (VL) are recently identified as promising dementia risk factors, but long-term studies with adequate control of other modifiable dementia risk factors are lacking. This 25-year follow-up study investigated the association between objectively measured HL and VL with cognitive decline and incident dementia.
Methods: 1823 participants (age 24-82 years) of the Maastricht Aging Study were assessed at baseline, 6, 12 and 25 years.
Background: Little is known about the impact of short, low-intensity multidomain dementia risk reduction interventions in older adults.
Objectives: To examine the effectiveness and feasibility of a low-intensity multidomain lifestyle intervention on dementia risk and dementia literacy in Australian older adults.
Design: Single-group pre-post design.
Background: The "LIfestyle for BRAin health" (LIBRA) index was recently updated with three new modifiable factors: hearing impairment, social contact, and sleep (LIBRA2), but has not yet been validated.
Objective: Comparison of the performance of both LIBRA versions in predicting dementia risk.
Methods: Longitudinal data from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA) and the Maastricht Aging Study (MAAS) were used.
Background: Different aspects of social relationships (e.g., social network size or loneliness) have been associated with dementia risk, while their overlap and potentially underlying pathways remain largely unexplored.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBecause of their robustness and orthogonal reactivity features, alkyl germanes bear significant potential as functional handles for the construction of C(sp)-rich scaffolds, especially in the context of modular synthetic approaches. However, to date, only radical-based reactivity has been accessible from these functional handles, which limits the types of possible decorations. Here, we describe the first general C(sp)-heteroatom bond formation of alkyl germanes (-GeEt) by leveraging electrochemistry to unlock polar reactivity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: Loneliness and social isolation are associated with adverse health outcomes, especially within the older adult population, underlining the need for effective interventions. This systematic review and meta-analysis aims to summarize all available evidence regarding the effectiveness of interventions for loneliness and social isolation, to map out their working mechanisms, and to give implications for policy and practice.
Design: Systematic literature review and meta-analysis.
Evaluating archaeobotanical data from over 3.9 million seeds and 124,300 charcoal fragments across 330 archaeological site phases in Southwest Asia, we reconstruct the history of olive and grape cultivation spanning a period of 6,000 years. Combining charcoal and seed data enables investigation into both the production and consumption of olive and grape.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Evidence on the effectiveness of multidomain lifestyle interventions to prevent cognitive decline in older people without dementia is mixed. Embedded in the World-Wide FINGERS initiative, FINGER-NL aims to investigate the effectiveness of a 2-year multidomain lifestyle intervention on cognitive functioning in older Dutch at risk individuals.
Methods: Multi-center, randomized, controlled, multidomain lifestyle intervention trial with a duration of 24 months.
Introduction: The LIfestyle for BRAin Health (LIBRA) index yields a dementia risk score based on modifiable lifestyle factors and is validated in Western samples. We investigated whether the association between LIBRA scores and incident dementia is moderated by geographical location or sociodemographic characteristics.
Methods: We combined data from 21 prospective cohorts across six continents (N = 31,680) and conducted cohort-specific Cox proportional hazard regression analyses in a two-step individual participant data meta-analysis.
Background: Adults with refractory, mechanical chronic low back pain associated with impaired neuromuscular control of the lumbar multifidus muscle have few treatment options that provide long-term clinical benefit. This study hypothesized that restorative neurostimulation, a rehabilitative treatment that activates the lumbar multifidus muscles to overcome underlying dysfunction, is safe and provides relevant and durable clinical benefit to patients with this specific etiology.
Materials And Methods: In this prospective five-year longitudinal follow-up of the ReActiv8-B pivotal trial, participants (N = 204) had activity-limiting, moderate-to-severe, refractory, mechanical chronic low back pain, a positive prone instability test result indicating impaired multifidus muscle control, and no indications for spine surgery.
Introduction: Hearing loss (HL) has been associated with cognitive decline and dementia. We examined the temporal association between prevalent and incident HL and cognitive change.
Methods: A total of 1823 participants (24-82 years) from the Maastricht Aging Study (MAAS) were assessed at baseline, 6 and 12 years, including pure-tone audiometry.
Objective: To evaluate whether psychological and social factors complement biomedical factors in understanding post-COVID-19 fatigue and cognitive complaints. Additionally, to incorporate objective (neuro-cognitive) and subjective (patient-reported) variables in identifying factors related to post-COVID-19 fatigue and cognitive complaints.
Design: Prospective, multicenter cohort study.
Objective: It is estimated that about 40% of all dementia cases are potentially attributable to modifiable risk factors, but awareness of this is relatively lacking.
Methods: An 18-months nation-wide public awareness campaign on dementia risk reduction was rolled out in Denmark that combined a mass-media approach with an online risk assessment tool and knowledge bank targeting all inhabitants aged between 40 and 75 years. Campaign effects (increase in awareness and knowledge of modifiable dementia risk and protective factors) were assessed via online surveys in two independent random samples before (n = 1003) and after the campaign (n = 1076).
Background: Evidence on modifiable risk factors for dementia is accumulating rapidly, including e.g. smoking, hypertension, and diabetes.
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