Novel Diagnostic and Therapeutic Approaches to Temporomandibular Dysfunction: A Narrative Review.

Temporomandibular dysfunction (TMD) is a burgeoning area of study within the dental field. TMD is caused by abnormalities in the temporomandibular joint or muscles of mastication and can lead to pain, loss of function, and other complications. As this area of patient care receives increased focus, the ability to accurately diagnose TMD becomes paramount.

Computerized Games versus Crosswords Training in Mild Cognitive Impairment.

Background: Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) increases the risk of dementia. The efficacy of cognitive training in patients with MCI is unclear.

Methods: In a two-site, single-blinded, 78-week trial, participants with MCI - stratified by age, severity (early/late MCI), and site - were randomly assigned to 12 weeks of intensive, home-based, computerized training with Web-based cognitive games or Web-based crossword puzzles, followed by six booster sessions.

Impact of Computerized Cognitive Training on Default Mode Network Connectivity in Subjects at Risk for Alzheimer's Disease: A 78-week Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) represents a high risk group for Alzheimer's disease (AD). Computerized Cognitive Games Training (CCT) is an investigational strategy to improve targeted functions in MCI through the modulation of cognitive networks.

Objective: The goal of this study was to examine the effect of CCT versus a non-targeted active brain exercise on functional cognitive networks.

Mindfulness-Enhanced Computerized Cognitive Training for Depression: An Integrative Review and Proposed Model Targeting the Cognitive Control and Default-Mode Networks.

Depression is often associated with co-occurring neurocognitive deficits in executive function (EF), processing speed (PS) and emotion regulation (ER), which impact treatment response. Cognitive training targeting these capacities results in improved cognitive function and mood, demonstrating the relationship between cognition and affect, and shedding light on novel targets for cognitive-focused interventions. Computerized cognitive training (CCT) is one such new intervention, with evidence suggesting it may be effective as an adjunct treatment for depression.

Validity of the Web-Based, Self-Directed, NeuroCognitive Performance Test in Mild Cognitive Impairment.

Background: Digital cognitive tests offer several potential advantages over established paper-pencil tests but have not yet been fully evaluated for the clinical evaluation of mild cognitive impairment.

Objective: The NeuroCognitive Performance Test (NCPT) is a web-based, self-directed, modular battery intended for repeated assessments of multiple cognitive domains. Our objective was to examine its relationship with the Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale-Cognition Subscale (ADAS-Cog) and Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) as well as with established paper-pencil tests of cognition and daily functioning in mild cognitive impairment (MCI).

Who benefits most from expectancy effects? A combined neuroimaging and antidepressant trial in depressed older adults.

Depressed patients' expectations of improvement drive placebo effects in antidepressant clinical trials, yet there is considerable heterogeneity in the magnitude of expectancy effects. The present study seeks to identify those individuals who benefit most from expectancy effects using baseline neuroimaging and cognitive measures. Older adult outpatients diagnosed with major depressive disorder (MDD) participated in a prospective, 8-week clinical trial in which expectancy was experimentally manipulated and its effects on depression outcome measured.

Cortical thickness predicts remission of depression with antidepressants in patients with late-life depression and cognitive impairment.

Background: Depression (DEP) and cognitive impairment (CI) share etiological risk factors, anatomical underpinnings, and interact to produce deleterious treatment outcomes. Both DEP and CI exhibit altered patterns of cortical thickness which may impact the course of antidepressant treatment, though inconsistencies in directionality and affected brain regions have been reported. In this study, we examined the relationship between cortical thickness and treatment outcome in older adults with comorbid DEP-CI.

Cortical Thickness and Hippocampal Volume in Vascular and Non-vascular Depressed Patients.

Reduced cortical thickness and hippocampal volume are prevalent markers of late life depression as well as mild cognitive impairment (MCI) but are conspicuously absent in the vascular depression (VD) literature. The present study aimed to determine differences in cortical thickness and hippocampal volume between VD and non-VD patients. Participants were enrolled in an 8-week open treatment antidepressant trial.

Association of White Matter Integrity With Executive Function and Antidepressant Treatment Outcome in Patients With Late-Life Depression.

Objective: While patients with late-life depression (LLD) often exhibit microstructural white matter alterations that can be identified with diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), there is a dearth of information concerning the links between DTI findings and specific cognitive performance, as well as between DTI measures and antidepressant treatment outcomes.

Design: Neuroimaging and cognitive tests were conducted at baseline in 71 older adults participating in a larger, 8-week duration antidepressant randomized controlled trial. Correlations between DTI measures of white matter integrity evaluated with tract-based spatial statistics, baseline neurocognitive performance, and prospective antidepressant treatment outcome were evaluated.

Slowed Processing Speed Disrupts Patient Expectancy in Late Life Depression.

Objective: Slowed processing speed and executive dysfunction are associated with poor outcomes in Late Life Depression (LLD), though it is unclear why. We investigated whether these variables interfere with the development of positive treatment expectancies in an antidepressant trial.

Methods: Depressed older subjects were randomized to Open (intended to increase patient expectancy) or Placebo-controlled (termed 'Hidden,' intended to decrease expectancy) administration of antidepressant medication for 8 weeks.

Testing the Mechanism of Action of Computerized Cognitive Training in Young Adults with Depression: Protocol for a Blinded, Randomized, Controlled Treatment Trial.

Background: Depression is associated with a broad range of cognitive deficits, including processing speed (PS) and executive functioning (EF). Cognitive symptoms commonly persist with the resolution of affective symptoms and increase risk of relapse and recurrence. The cognitive control network is comprised of brain areas implicated in EF and mood regulatory functions.

Vascular depression for radiology: A review of the construct, methodology, and diagnosis.

Vascular depression (VD) as defined by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has been proposed as a unique subtype of late-life depression. The VD hypothesis posits that cerebrovascular disease, as characterized by the presence of MRI-defined white matter hyperintensities, contributes to and increases the risk for depression in older adults. VD is also accompanied by cognitive impairment and poor antidepressant treatment response.

Cognitive training and neuroplasticity in mild cognitive impairment (COG-IT): protocol for a two-site, blinded, randomised, controlled treatment trial.

Introduction: Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is common in older adults and represents a high-risk group for progression to Alzheimer's disease (AD). Medication trials in MCI have generally failed, but new discoveries with brain plasticity in ageing have led to the study of cognitive training as a potential treatment to improve cognitive abilities. Computerised cognitive training (CCT) involves computerised cognitive exercises that target specific cognitive abilities and neural networks to potentially improve cognitive functioning through neuroplasticity.

Computerized cognitive training in young adults with depressive symptoms: Effects on mood, cognition, and everyday functioning.

Background: Computerized cognitive training (CCT) has previously improved cognition and mood in people with depression. Existing research has not determined if the benefits following CCT are specific to the content of CCT or are a function of participation in an engaging activity. In this double-blind randomized controlled trial, we tested whether executive functioning and processing speed (EF/PS)-focused CCT could outperform verbal ability-focused CCT.

Donepezil Treatment in Patients With Depression and Cognitive Impairment on Stable Antidepressant Treatment: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Objective: Depression and cognitive impairment are often comorbid in older adults, but optimal treatment strategies remain unclear. In a two-site study, the efficacy and safety of add-on donepezil versus placebo were compared in depressed patients with cognitive impairment receiving stable antidepressant treatment.

Methods: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was conducted in older adults with depression and cognitive impairment (https://clinicaltrials.

Association of Obstructive Sleep Apnea with Episodic Memory and Cerebral Microvascular Pathology: A Preliminary Study.

Objectives: To evaluate the impact of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) on neurocognitive function and brain morphology in older adults with depression and cognitive impairment.

Methods: We prospectively screened OSA with the STOP-Bang questionnaire in the last 25 patients enrolled into the Donepezil Treatment of Cognitive Impairment and Depression (DOTCODE) trial. High and low probability of OSA were defined as a STOP-Bang score of ≥5 (h-OSA) and of <5 (l-OSA), respectively.

Biological Aging and the Future of Geriatric Psychiatry.

Advances in understanding the biological bases of aging have intellectually revitalized the field of geriatric psychiatry and broadened its scope to include promoting successful aging and studying resilience factors in older adults. To describe the process by which this paradigm shift has occurred and illustrate its implications for treatment and research of late-life brain disorders, late-life depression is discussed as a prototype case. Prior phases of geriatric psychiatry research were focused on achieving depressive symptom relief, outlining pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic differences between older and younger adults, and identifying moderators of treatment response.

Computerized cognitive training and functional recovery in major depressive disorder: A meta-analysis.

Objective: Depression is common, frequently resistant to antidepressant treatment, and associated with impairments in cognition and everyday functioning. Computerized cognitive training (CCT) paradigms offer potential to improve cognition, mood and everyday functioning, but their effectiveness is not well established. The goal of this article was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis to determine the efficacy of CCT in depressive disorders.