Publications by authors named "Henry Ukachukwu Michael"

Objective: To systematically review the literature of existing evidence on the measurement properties of the Quality of Life in Neurological Disorders (Neuro-QoL) measurement system among neurorehabilitation populations.

Data Sources: The Consensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement Instruments (COSMIN) guided this systematic review in which we searched nine electronic databases and registries, and hand-searched reference lists of included articles.

Study Selection: Two independent reviewers screened selected articles and extracted data from 28 included studies.

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Objective: To estimate the extent to which comorbidity, polypharmacy, and anticholinergic/sedative burden interrelate to influence cognitive ability, perceived cognitive deficits and physical frailty in people living with HIV.

Design: Cross-sectional Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) of data from 824 older people living with HIV in Canada, participating in the Positive Brain Health Now study.

Method: SEM was used to link observed variables, including comorbidity, polypharmacy, anticholinergic and sedative burden, to cognitive ability and two latent constructs - physical frailty and perceived cognitive deficits (PCD).

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Objective: This study aims to estimate the extent to which anticholinergic and sedative burden is associated with cognitive ability and self-reported cognitive difficulties (SCD) in middle-aged and older adults living with HIV.

Design: This cross-sectional analysis examined data from the inaugural visit of participants enrolled in the Positive Brain Health Now (BHN) study.

Methods: Cognitive ability was measured using the Brief Cognitive Ability Measure (B-CAM; higher is better) and SCD using the Perceived Deficits Questionnaire (PDQ; higher is worse).

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Background: Post-COVID syndrome (PCS) causes lasting symptoms like fatigue and cognitive issues. PCS treatment is nonspecific, focusing on symptom management, potentially increasing the risk of polypharmacy.

Objectives: To describe medication use patterns among patients with Post-COVID Syndrome (PCS) and estimate the prevalence of polypharmacy, potential drug-drug interactions, and anticholinergic/sedative burden.

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Objective: This study aimed to estimate the strength of the association between anticholinergic/sedative burden and concurrent physical frailty in people aging with HIV.

Design: This cross-sectional analysis examined baseline data from 824 adults with a mean age of 53 enrolled in the Positive Brain Health Now study.

Methods: Anticholinergic medications were identified using four methods: Anticholinergic Cognitive Burden (ACB) Scale, Anticholinergic Risk Scale (ARS), Anticholinergic Drug Scale (ADS), and the anticholinergic list of the Anticholinergic and Sedative Burden Catalog (ACSBC).

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Article Synopsis
  • Anticholinergic drugs are widely used, particularly among older adults, but the effectiveness of anticholinergic burden scales (ABS) in predicting negative health outcomes like cognitive decline is inconsistent.
  • A review of various studies highlighted significant gaps in the research surrounding ABS, such as the absence of a universal scale and insufficient focus on diverse populations and the effects on frailty.
  • Recommendations for future research include addressing these gaps, defining clinically relevant thresholds for anticholinergic burden, and investigating the impact of reducing this burden on health outcomes.
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HIV-associated neurocognitive impairment remains a challenge even in the era of antiretroviral therapy (ART). Over 90% of people living with HIV are in low- and middle-income countries. Hence, it is not surprising that such countries bear a considerable burden of comorbidities like HIV-associated neurocognitive impairment despite an overall increase in life expectancy.

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Low and middle-income countries (LMICs) are the epicenter of the HIV epidemic. The scale-up of antiretroviral therapy (ART) has reduced mortality, but HIV-associated neurocognitive impairment (HANI) remains prevalent, which impacts functional performance, medication adherence, and quality of life. We aimed to evaluate the effect of ART on neurocognitive outcomes among people living with HIV/AIDS in LMICs and to identify determinants of these outcomes.

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