The psychosocial effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on Turkish older adults: is there a difference between males and females?

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has seriously affected older adults' social lives, physical activity, and cognitive functions. Additionally, the lockdowns have disrupted regular healthcare for patients with chronic illnesses or needing acute care. Furthermore, the pandemic has negatively affected different psychosocial influences in each country due to the various cultural characteristics, technology, health system, and financial opportunities.

The relationship between cognitive frailty, physical frailty and malnutrition in Turkish older adults.

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between cognitive and physical frailty and malnutrition in older adults.

Methods: The study was cross-sectional and observational. A total of 992 patients who applied to the geriatric outpatient clinic between January 2018 and December 2022 were included in the study.

Postprandial hypotension is more common than orthostatic hypotension in older adults with dementia with lewy bodies: a cross-sectional study.

Cardiovascular autonomic dysfunction is one of the supportive clinical features in dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB). This study aimed to investigate the frequency of postural and postprandial hypotension in people with DLB. The study group comprised 125 patients with DLB (76 females; mean age 78.

Sarcopenia in older patients with idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus: an observational study from a single geriatric clinic in Turkey.

Objective: Idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH), a classical triad of gait abnormality, cognitive disturbance, and urinary incontinence, increases in prevalence with aging. Sarcopenia is also characterized by low muscle strength and mass, contributing to gait difficulty. Gait abnormality and lower physical activity also lead to the development of sarcopenia.

Primitive reflexes and dementia in older adults: a meta-analysis of observational and cohort studies.

Primitive reflexes (PRs) are clinical signs that indicate diffuse cerebral dysfunction and frontal lesions. We aimed to present a comprehensive analysis of the prevalence and risk of PRs in patients with dementia. English-language articles published from January 1990 to April 2021 were searched in PubMed, ScienceDirect, Cochrane, and Web of Science with keywords.

Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome in Patients With Dementia: Experiences of A Single Memory Clinic.

Objectives: Neuroleptic malignant syndrome (NMS) is a life-threatening condition that occurs as an adverse reaction to antipsychotic and antiemetic agents or sudden withdrawal of dopaminergic medications. Given the metabolic and functional reserves and the comorbidities in older adults, NMS may show an atypical course.

Methods: The medical records of patients with neurodegenerative diseases leading to dementia between 2013 and 2020 were reviewed for the diagnosis of NMS.

Hyperuricemia may be associated with muscle wellness in older adults.

Purpose: Sarcopenia, associated with morbidity and mortality, is a common geriatric syndrome in older adults. In this study, we investigated the relationship between uric acid, which is a powerful antioxidant and has intracellular proinflammatory activity, and sarcopenia in older adults.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional retrospective study involving a total of 936 patients.

Orthostatic hypotension in dementia with Lewy bodies: a meta-analysis of prospective studies.

Purpose: Orthostatic hypotension (OH), one of the supportive clinical features in the diagnosis of dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), is a significant problem in advanced age because of its severe negative consequences. The aim of this meta-analysis was to investigate the prevalence and risk of OH in patients with DLB.

Methods: The indexes and databases cited to identify relevant studies were PubMed, ScienceDirect, Cochrane, and Web of Science.

Validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the ALBA screening instrument for Lewy body dementia in older adults.

ALBA screening instrument (ASI) has been demonstrated to be an effective, cheap, and noninvasive clinical instrument to screen for Lewy body dementia (LBD). We aimed to determine the validity and reliability of the Turkish version of ASI (ASI-T) in patients with LBD and to investigate the discriminative power of the test in patients with Alzheimer's Disease (AD), LBD, and cognitively healthy older adults (controls). 172 older adults over 60 years of age (43 with LBD, 41 AD, and 88 controls) were included.

Muscle Strength Seems to be Related to The Functional Status and Severity of Dementia in Older Adults with Alzheimer's Disease.

Aim: This study aimed to determine the possible interrelationships between sarcopenia and Alzheimer's disease (AD).

Background: Sarcopenia and AD are two common geriatric syndromes; however, the relationship between AD and sarcopenia has not been evaluated in detail so far.

Objective: The objective is to evaluate the relationship between AD and sarcopenia.

Antidepressant-induced serotonin syndrome in older patients: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Widespread prescription of antidepressants and their resulting role in serotonin syndrome (SS) are of great importance for clinical practice in the elderly. This study aims to investigate possible associations of antidepressant drug-induced SS with related variables in these patients.

Methods: A total of 238 older adults using antidepressants were included.

DPP4 inhibitors as a potential therapeutic option for sarcopenia: A 6-month follow-up study in diabetic older patients.

Objectives: Sarcopenia is associated with increased morbidity and mortality in older adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). This study investigates the effects of dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors (DPP4i) as an add-on therapy for sarcopenia in older adults with T2DM over a six-month follow-up period.

Methods: This is a retrospective and six-month follow-up study.

Prediction of probable sarcopenia with an alternative method: plantar flexion strength.

Objective: Sarcopenia is a geriatric syndrome characterized by age-related reduction in muscle mass and strength. Assessment of handgrip strength (HGS) is an essential measurement for the diagnosis of sarcopenia; however, disorders affecting upper limb muscles and joints may pose challenges in assessing handgrip strength. Therefore, the present study aimed to show the validity of plantar flexion strength (PFS) in diagnosing probable sarcopenia and investigating the relations between comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) and PFS while determining appropriate cutoff values for PFS.

A Comparison of Cerebrospinal Fluid Beta-Amyloid and Tau in Idiopathic Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus and Neurodegenerative Dementias.

Purpose: Idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH) is the leading reversible cause of cognitive impairment and gait disturbance that has similar clinical manifestations and accompanies to major neurodegenerative disorders in older adults. We aimed to investigate whether cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarker for Alzheimer's disease (AD) may be useful in the differential diagnosis of iNPH.

Patients And Methods: Amyloid-beta (Aß) 42 and 40, total tau (t-tau), phosphorylated tau (p-tau) were measured via ELISA in 192 consecutive CSF samples of patients with iNPH (n=80), AD (n=48), frontotemporal dementia (FTD) (n=34), Lewy body diseases (LBDs) (n=30) consisting of Parkinson's disease dementia and dementia with Lewy bodies.

Sarcopenia is as common in older patients with dementia with Lewy bodies as it is in those with Alzheimer's disease.

Aim: Alzheimer's disease (AD) and dementia with Lewy body (DLB) constitute the most common types of dementia, and are two common geriatric syndromes; however, sarcopenia has not been elaborately evaluated in DLB so far. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the relationship between sarcopenia and DLB in older adults.

Methods: In this retrospective and cross-sectional study, 662 participants, who were followed in a memory clinic at the Geriatrics department of a university hospital, were included.

An Increased Anticholinergic Drug Burden Index Score Negatively Affect Nutritional Status in Older Patients Without Dementia.

Introduction/aim: Anticholinergic drugs, which have severe central and peripheric side effects, are frequently prescribed to older adults. Increased anticholinergic drug burden is associated with poor physical and cognitive functions. On the other side, the impact of anticholinergics on nutritional status is not elaborated in the literature.

Orthostatic hypotension in patients with Alzheimer's disease: a meta-analysis of prospective studies.

Background: Orthostatic hypotension (OH) is a clinical sign associated with severe adverse health outcomes in older adults. It has been reported to be common in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD). The present meta-analysis aimed to investigate the prevalence and risk of OH in AD patients.

The Swiss STAR trial - an evaluation of target groups for sexually transmitted infection screening in the sub-sample of women.

Objectives: In Switzerland, universal health insurance does not cover any routine testing for sexually transmitted infections (STIs), not even in individuals at high risk, and extra-genital swabbing is not standard of care. We compared STI prevalence in a multicentre prospective observational cohort of multi-partner women with/without sex work and evaluated associated risk factors.

Materials And Methods: Between January 2016 and June 2017, we offered free STI testing to women with multiple  sexual partners (three or more in the previous 12 months), with follow-up examinations every 6 months.

Usefulness of optical fluorescence imaging in identification and triaging of oral potentially malignant disorders: A study of VELscope in the LESIONS programme.

Background: Optical fluorescence imaging (OFI) has been shown to enhance the detection of oral potentially malignant disorders (OPMD), by providing additional information about the nature of these lesions, with loss of autofluorescence (LAF) signifying potential underlying oral epithelial dysplasia (OED) or malignancy. This study aims to assess the usefulness of OFI in identification and triaging of OPMDs by primary oral health practitioners, in a community setting.

Methodology: Participants were recruited from the LESIONS programme in South-East Queensland, Australia.

Mismatch Amplification Mutation Assay-Based Real-Time PCR for Rapid Detection of Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Antimicrobial Resistance Determinants in Clinical Specimens.

Molecular methods are often used for detection, but complete definition of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) patterns still requires phenotypic tests. We developed an assay that both identifies and detects AMR determinants in clinical specimens. We designed a mismatch amplification mutation assay (MAMA)-based SYBR green real-time PCR targeting one -specific region (); mosaic alleles (Asp345 deletion [Asp345del], Gly545Ser) associated with decreased susceptibility to cephalosporins; and alterations conferring resistance to ciprofloxacin (GyrA Ser91Phe), azithromycin (23S rRNA A2059G and C2611T), and spectinomycin (16S rRNA C1192T).