Attitudes of Family Members and Caregivers Regarding Alzheimer's Disease Pre-Symptomatic Screening.

Background: In recent years, studies have examined the acceptability and attitudes that influence the intention to early screen for Alzheimer's disease (AD) in the general population, older people, carers, and asymptomatic individuals who report a family history of AD. However, it remains unclear what specific factors promote or reduce the acceptability of pre-symptomatic screening.

Objective: The aim of this study is to explore the attitudes of family and non-family members as well as caregivers and non-caregivers toward the pre-symptomatic screening of AD.

Feasibility and usability of remote monitoring in Alzheimer's disease.

Introduction: Remote monitoring technologies (RMTs) can measure cognitive and functional decline objectively at-home, and offer opportunities to measure passively and continuously, possibly improving sensitivity and reducing participant burden in clinical trials. However, there is skepticism that age and cognitive or functional impairment may render participants unable or unwilling to comply with complex RMT protocols. We therefore assessed the feasibility and usability of a complex RMT protocol in all syndromic stages of Alzheimer's disease and in healthy control participants.

Daily Functionality of People with Low Vision: The Impact of Visual Acuity, Depression, and Life Orientation-A Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: Low vision (LV) has a significant negative impact on the activities of daily life as well as on the psychological health of patients.

Objectives: The objective of this study is to investigate psychological, clinical, and demographic factors that may impact the daily functionality of patients with LV.

Methods: A convenience sample of 53 patients, meeting the WHO criteria for LV, was recruited.

Correction: Ethical challenges of using remote monitoring technologies for clinical research: A case study of the role of local research ethics committees in the RADAR-AD study.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.

Attitudes, Motivations, and Barriers to Pre-Symptomatic Alzheimer's Disease Screening: Development and Validation of the 'Perceptions regarding pRE-symptomatic Alzheimer's Disease Screening' (PRE-ADS) Questionnaire.

Background: Pre-symptomatic screening methods for detecting a higher risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD) are gaining popularity; thus, more people are seeking these tests. However, to date, not much is known about the attitudes toward pre-symptomatic AD screening.

Objective: The goal of this study is to examine the psychometric properties of a tool for assessing the attitudes, barriers, and motivations to pre-symptomatic AD screening.

Ethical challenges of using remote monitoring technologies for clinical research: A case study of the role of local research ethics committees in the RADAR-AD study.

Introduction: Clinical research with remote monitoring technologies (RMTs) has multiple advantages over standard paper-pencil tests, but also raises several ethical concerns. While several studies have addressed the issue of governance of big data in clinical research from the legal or ethical perspectives, the viewpoint of local research ethics committee (REC) members is underrepresented in the current literature. The aim of this study is therefore to find which specific ethical challenges are raised by RECs in the context of a large European study on remote monitoring in all syndromic stages of Alzheimer's disease, and what gaps remain.

Informal Caregivers' Attitude Toward Dementia: The Impact of Dementia Knowledge, Confidence in Dementia Care, and the Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of the Person with Dementia. A Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: Dementia is rapidly increasing worldwide due to demographic aging. More than two-thirds of patients are cared by family members. The quality of care depends on the caregivers' attitude toward dementia influencing patient care decisions.

Memory Clinics and Day Care Centers in Thessaloniki, Northern Greece: 30 Years of Clinical Practice and Experience.

This review describes the diagnostic and interventional procedures conducted in two university memory clinics (established network of G. Papanikolaou Hospital: 1988-2017 and AHEPA hospital: 2017-today) and 2 day care centers (established network of DCCs: 2005-today) in North Greece and their contribution in the scientific field of dementia. The aims of this work are (1) to provide a diagnosis and treatment protocol established in the network of memory clinics and DCCs and (2) to present further research conducted in the aforementioned network during the last 30 years of clinical practice.

Effects of a Person Centered Dementia Training Program in Greek Hospital Staff-Implementation and Evaluation.

People with Dementia (PwD) are frequently admitted in general hospitals. However, health care professionals have lack of dementia knowledge, negative attitudes toward dementia, and lack of confidence in caring those patients. The aim of this study is to develop, implement and evaluate a dementia staff training program in Greek general hospitals.

Assessing the Attitudes of Greek Nurses Toward Computerized Dementia Screening.

Background: Despite the abundance of research on computerized dementia screening tests, the attitudes of hospital personnel toward this screening method have not been investigated.

Objective: 1) To conduct a confirmatory factor analysis of the first part of a two-part questionnaire about computerized dementia screening. 2) To assess the attitudes of Greek nurses toward computerized dementia screening.

Evaluation and Effectiveness of Dementia Staff Training Programs in General Hospital Settings: A Narrative Synthesis with Holton's Three-Level Model Applied.

Background: People with Dementia (PwD) are frequently admitted to hospital settings. The lack of proper dementia knowledge, poor communication skills, negative attitudes toward dementia, and lack of confidence affects the quality of care, thus development of dementia trainings has increased. Nevertheless, literature regarding the effectiveness of training implementation is limited.

Psychometric properties of dementia attitudes scale, dementia knowledge assessment tool 2 and confidence in dementia scale in a Greek sample.

Aim: Τo validate the Greek version of the Dementia Knowledge Assessment Tool 2, the Dementia Attitudes Scale and Confidence in Dementia Scale.

Design: A quantitative cross-sectional design was applied for translation and validation. The STROBE checklist for observational research has been followed to this survey.

Views of nursing staff on computerized dementia screening : A validation and pilot study in a general hospital.

Background: Cognitive disorders such as dementia are common among older adults admitted to general hospitals. They can complicate treatment leading to longer hospitalization and worse outcomes. They often remain underdiagnosed as the busy routine of the hospital does not enable efficient screening and available screening instruments are not suitable for the hospital environment.

Expectations of nursing personnel and physicians on dementia training : A descriptive survey in general hospitals in Germany and Greece.

Background: The number of dementia training programs in hospital settings is steadily increasing. The way training sessions are designed influences the way the learning content is implemented in practice. To develop a successful training it is important to meet the needs of the target group; however, not much is known about staff preferences and expectations relevant to future dementia training programs in hospitals in Germany and Greece.

Validation of a brief Multicultural Cognitive Examination (MCE) for evaluation of dementia.

Background: The aims of this study were to present the psychometric properties of a newly designed cognitive screening instrument, the Multicultural Cognitive Examination (MCE), and to compare it with the Rowland Universal Dementia Assessment Scale (RUDAS) in a multicultural population.

Methods: The study was a Western European cross-sectional multicenter study. The MCE consists of four components evaluating separate cognitive functions and was constructed by adding measures of memory, verbal fluency, and visuospatial function to the RUDAS to create a scale with 0 to 100 points.

Validation of a European Cross-Cultural Neuropsychological Test Battery (CNTB) for evaluation of dementia.

Background: The aims of this study were to establish the diagnostic accuracy of the European Cross-Cultural Neuropsychological Test Battery (CNTB) for dementia in different ethnic populations in Western Europe, to examine its ability to differentiate cognitive impairment profiles for dementia subtypes, and to assess the impact of demographic variables on diagnostic properties.

Methods: The study was a Western European cross-sectional multi-center study. A total of 66 patients with dementia and 118 cognitively intact participants were included across six memory clinics; 93 had ethnic minority background and 91 had ethnic majority background.

Neuronal pentraxin receptor-1 is a new cerebrospinal fluid biomarker of Alzheimer's disease progression.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common type of dementia, with progressive onset of clinical symptoms. The main pathological hallmarks are brain deposits of extracellular amyloid beta plaques and intracellular neurofibrillary tangles (NFT). Cerebrospinal fluid reflects pathological changes in the brain; amyloid beta 1-42 is a marker of amyloid plaques, while total and phosphorylated tau are markers of NFT formation.

Validation of the Rowland Universal Dementia Assessment Scale (RUDAS) in a multicultural sample across five Western European countries: diagnostic accuracy and normative data.

Unlabelled: ABSTRACTBackground:With increasing cultural diversity and growing elderly immigrant populations in Western European countries, the availability of brief cognitive screening instruments adequate for assessment of dementia in people from diverse backgrounds becomes increasingly important. The aim of the present study was to investigate diagnostic accuracy of the Rowland Universal Dementia Assessment Scale (RUDAS) in a multicultural sample and to calculate normative data as a basis for demographic adjustment of RUDAS scores.

Methods: The study was a prospective international cross-sectional multi-center study.

The Impact of a Long-Term Rivastigmine and Donepezil Treatment on All-Cause Mortality in Patients With Alzheimer's Disease.

Cholinesterase inhibitors (ChEIs) are the mainstays of symptomatic treatment of Alzheimer's disease (AD); however, their efficacy is limited, and their use was associated with deaths in some groups of patients. The aim of the current study was to assess the impact of the long-term use of ChEIs on mortality in patients with AD. This observational, longitudinal study included 1171 adult patients with a diagnosis of AD treated with donepezil or rivastigmine.

Performance of middle-aged and elderly European minority and majority populations on a Cross-Cultural Neuropsychological Test Battery (CNTB).

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine test performance on a cross-cultural neuropsychological test battery for assessment of middle-aged and elderly ethnic minority and majority populations in western Europe, and to present preliminary normative data.

Method: The study was a cross-sectional multi-center study. Tests in the European Cross-Cultural Neuropsychological Test Battery (CNTB) cover several cognitive domains, including global cognitive function, memory, executive functions, and visuospatial functions.

International Ballroom Dancing Against Neurodegeneration: A Randomized Controlled Trial in Greek Community-Dwelling Elders With Mild Cognitive impairment.

Background: Many studies have highlighted the positive effects of dance in people with neurodegenerative diseases.

Objectives: To explore the effects of International Ballroom Dancing on cognitive function in elders with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI).

Methods: One-hundred twenty-nine elderly patients with aMCI diagnosis (mean age 66.

Prevalence of Dementia, Depression, and Mild Cognitive Impairment in a Rural Area of the Island of Crete, Greece.

The studies on the prevalence of dementia, depression, and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in Greece are sparse and show major variations of prevalence depending on geographical areas, nutritional habits, and the way of living. The aim of this door-to-door study was to find the prevalence of dementia, depression, and MCI in a rural Greek population. Four hundred and forty-three individuals older than 61years following the application of specific criteria were diagnosed with: normal cognition, depression, MCI with and without depression, and dementia with and without depression.

Effects of maternal separation on behavior and brain damage in adult rats exposed to neonatal hypoxia-ischemia.

Animal studies suggest that maternal separation, a widely used paradigm to study the effects of early life adversity, exerts a profound and life-long impact on both brain and behavior. The aim of the current study was to investigate whether adverse early life experiences interact with neonatal hypoxia-ischemia, affecting the outcome of this neurological insult at both functional and structural levels during adulthood. Rat pups were separated from their mothers during postnatal days 1-6, for either a short (15 min) or prolonged (180 min) period, while another group was left undisturbed.