Triangulating brain alterations in anorexia nervosa: a multimodal investigation of magnetic resonance spectroscopy, morphometry and blood-based biomarkers.

The acute state of anorexia nervosa (AN) is associated with widespread reductions in cortical gray matter (GM) thickness and white matter (WM) volume, suspected changes in myelin content and elevated levels of the neuronal damage marker neurofilament light (NF-L), but the underlying mechanisms remain largely unclear. To gain a deeper understanding of brain changes in AN, we applied a multimodal approach combining advanced neuroimaging methods with analysis of blood-derived biomarkers. In addition to standard measures of cortical GM thickness and WM volume, we analyzed tissue-specific profiles of brain metabolites using multivoxel proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy, T1 relaxation time as a proxy of myelin content leveraging advanced quantitative MRI methods and serum NF-L concentrations in a sample of 30 female, predominately adolescent patients with AN and 30 age-matched female healthy control participants.

Sterilizing immunity: Understanding COVID-19.

Immune memory develops during primary infections to protect from future exposures to the same pathogen. Vaccines mimic this response and induce immune memory that protects from severe disease and, in some cases, from symptomatic infection. If the pathogen is eliminated before it can replicate, natural and vaccine-induced immune memory can prevent the establishment of the infection, mediating sterilizing immunity.

Using wearables to promote physical activity in old age : Feasibility, benefits, and user friendliness.

Background: Wearables provide new opportunities to promote physical activity also among older adults but data on effectiveness and user friendliness are rare.

Objective: The effects of a comprehensive self-regulative intervention on moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and number of steps were examined using commercially available activity trackers. Acceptance regarding the devices was analysed in various domains.

Communication behavior of cognitively impaired older inpatients : A new setting for validating the CODEM instrument.

Background And Objective: Acutely ill older patients with cognitive impairment represent a major subgroup in acute care hospitals. In this context, communication plays a crucial role for patients' well-being, healthcare decisions, and medical outcomes. As validated measures are lacking, we tested the psychometric properties of an observational instrument to assess Communication Behavior in Dementia (CODEM) in the acute care hospital setting.

SPMSQ for risk stratification of older patients in the emergency department : An exploratory prospective cohort study.

Background: Risk stratification of older patients in the emergency department (ED) is seen as a promising and efficient solution for handling the increase in demand for geriatric emergency medicine. Previously, the predictive validity of commonly used tools for risk stratification, such as the identification of seniors at risk (ISAR), have found only limited evidence in German geriatric patient samples. Given that the adverse outcomes in question, such as rehospitalization, nursing home admission and mortality, are substantially associated with cognitive impairment, the potential of the short portable mental status questionnaire (SPMSQ) as a tool for risk stratification of older ED patients was investigated.

Out-of-home behavior and cognitive impairment in older adults: findings of the SenTra Project.

This study explores differences in the out-of-home behavior of community-dwelling older adults with different cognitive impairment. Three levels of complexity of out-of-home behavior were distinguished: (a) mostly automatized walking behavior (low complexity), (b) global out-of-home mobility (medium complexity), and (c) defined units of concrete out-of-home activities, particularly cognitively demanding activities (high complexity). A sample of 257 older adults aged 59 to 91 years (M = 72.

Functional ability loss in sensory impaired and sensory unimpaired very old adults: analyzing causal relations with positive affect across four years.

This paper focuses on the relationship between functional ability (FA) and positive affect (PA), a major component of well-being, in sensory impaired very old adults (SI) compared with sensory unimpaired individuals (UI). Previous research mostly suggests a robust causal impact of FA on PA. However, some research, drawing from Fredrickson's broaden-and-build theory, also points to the possibility of an inverse causality between FA and PA.

Severe vision and hearing impairment and successful aging: a multidimensional view.

Purpose: Previous research on psychosocial adaptation of sensory-impaired older adults has focused mainly on only one sensory modality and on a limited number of successful aging outcomes. We considered a broad range of successful aging indicators and compared older adults with vision impairment, hearing impairment, and dual sensory impairments and without sensory impairment.

Design And Methods: Data came from samples of severely visually impaired (VI; N = 121), severely hearing-impaired (HI; N = 116), dual sensory-impaired (DI; N = 43), and sensory-unimpaired older adults (UI; N = 150).

Natural occurrence of subjective aging experiences in community-dwelling older adults.

Objectives: The subjective experience of aging is a relevant correlate of developmental outcomes. However, traditional approaches fall short of capturing the inherent multidimensionality of subjective aging experiences (SAEs). Based on the concept of Awareness of Age-Related Change (AARC; Diehl, M.

Interplay of cognitive and motivational resources for out-of-home behavior in a sample of cognitively heterogeneous older adults: findings of the SenTra project.

Objectives: We examined in this study the hypothesis that cognitive resources are more closely linked with out-of-home behavior than motivational resources.

Method: A cognitively heterogeneous sample of 222 older adults aged 59-91 years (M = 72.7; SD = 6.

Aging well and the environment: toward an integrative model and research agenda for the future.

Purpose Of The Study: The effects of the physical-spatial-technical environment on aging well have been overlooked both conceptually and empirically. In the spirit of M. Powell Lawton's seminal work on aging and environment, this article attempts to rectify this situation by suggesting a new model of how older people interact with their environment.

Robustness of personality and affect relations under chronic conditions: the case of age-related vision and hearing impairment.

Objectives: Relations between personality and affect are generally regarded as robust. Extraversion is closely linked to positive affect (PA), but not to negative affect (NA), whereas neuroticism is closely linked to NA, but not to PA. We argue in this work that the stress experience associated with age-related vision and hearing impairment may alter this commonly found pattern as compared with sensory unimpaired (UI) older adults.

Is the emergence of functional ability decline in early old age related to change in speed of cognitive processing and also to change in personality?

Objective: To test whether the onset of functional ability decline in early old age is related to change in speed of cognitive processing and personality characteristics.

Method: Among 500 randomly sampled participants, the 230 cases that did not show impairment in functional ability were selected. Mean age at Time 1 was 62.

The home environment and disability-related outcomes in aging individuals: what is the empirical evidence?

Purpose: Building on the disablement process model and the concept of person-environment fit (p-e fit), this review article examines 2 critical questions concerning the role of home environments: (a) What is the recent evidence supporting a relationship between home environments and disability-related outcomes? and (b) What is the recent evidence regarding the effects of home modifications on disability-related outcomes?

Design And Methods: Using computerized and manual search, we identified relevant peer-reviewed original publications and review articles published between January 1, 1997, and August 31, 2006. For Research Question 1, 25 original investigations and for Research Question 2, 29 original investigations and 10 review articles were identified.

Results: For Research Question 1, evidence for a relationship between home environments and disability-related outcomes for older adults exists but is limited by cross-sectional designs and poor research quality.

Age-related macular degeneration and change in psychological control: role of time since diagnosis and functional ability.

We apply the life-span theory of control proposed by Heckhausen and Schulz to study the change in use of control strategies related to age-related macular degeneration (AMD). A mixed-model approach considers nonlinear relations of rate of change in the use of control strategies with time since diagnosis and functional ability. Data stem from a sample of 90 individuals with AMD (age, M=79.