Slower gait speed increases risk of falling in older adults with depression and cognitive complaints.

Slowed gait is one of the strongest predictors of fall risk in older adults. The present study investigated whether gait speed mediated the relationship between depression and fall history in 147 older adults presenting to a memory clinic for cognitive complaints. Depression, cognitive status, gait speed, and number of falls within the last year were the primary measures.

Dual-Task Gait Assessment in a Clinical Sample: Implications for Improved Detection of Mild Cognitive Impairment.

Objectives: Research has longitudinally linked dual-task gait dysfunction to mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementia risk. Our group previously demonstrated that dual-task gait speed assessment distinguished between subjective cognitive complaints (SCC) and MCI in a memory clinic setting, and also found that differences in dual-task gait speed were largely attributable to executive attention processes. This study aimed to reproduce these findings in a larger diverse sample and to extend them by examining whether there were group differences in single- versus dual-task cognitive performance (number of letters correctly sequenced backward).

Posterior cortical atrophy of a suspected non-Alzheimer type: a case report.

Objective: A case of Posterior Cortical Atrophy syndrome of a suspected non-Alzheimer disease pathology type is presented to illustrate prospective diagnosis and course.

Method: A 54-year-old woman with vague memory complaints underwent serial neuropsychological assessment, MRI, PET, and CSF screening; data are reviewed.

Results: While early diagnosis was confounded by multiple factors, classic visuospatial symptoms were later demonstrated using routine neuropsychological methods.

Therapeutic effect of increased openness: Investigating mechanism of action in MDMA-assisted psychotherapy.

A growing body of research suggests that traumatic events lead to persisting personality change characterized by increased neuroticism. Relevantly, enduring improvements in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptoms have been found in response to 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-assisted psychotherapy. There is evidence that lasting changes in the personality feature of "openness" occur in response to hallucinogens, and that this may potentially act as a therapeutic mechanism of change.

Improving Sensitivity to Detect Mild Cognitive Impairment: Cognitive Load Dual-Task Gait Speed Assessment.

Objectives: Longitudinal research indicates that cognitive load dual-task gait assessment is predictive of cognitive decline and thus might provide a sensitive measure to screen for mild cognitive impairment (MCI). However, research among older adults being clinically evaluated for cognitive concerns, a defining feature of MCI, is lacking. The present study investigated the effect of performing a cognitive task on normal walking speed in patients presenting to a memory clinic with cognitive complaints.

Durability of improvement in post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms and absence of harmful effects or drug dependency after 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine-assisted psychotherapy: a prospective long-term follow-up study.

We report follow-up data evaluating the long-term outcomes for the first completed trial of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-assisted psychotherapy for chronic, treatment-resistant post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (Mithoefer et al., 2011). All of the 19 subjects who received MDMA-assisted treatment in the original trial participated in the long-term follow-up (LTFU), with 16 out of 19 completing all of the long-term outcome measures, which were administered from 17 to 74 months after the original study's final MDMA session (mean = 45.

APOE genotype in the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease in patients with cognitive impairment.

Background: Although an association between the apolipoprotein E (APOE) ε4 allele and increased risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is established, the utility of APOE genotyping in the clinical diagnosis of AD is still under investigation.

Methods: Medical records of 89 patients with cognitive impairment and APOE genotype data underwent a retrospective review.

Results: Comparison of age, age at onset, education, Mini-Mental State Examination, months of follow-up, and family history of dementia did not reveal statistical difference among the patients with different APOE genotypes.

The impact of clinical and demographic variables on cognitive performance in methamphetamine-dependent individuals in rural South Carolina.

Inconsistencies in reports on methamphetamine (METH) associated cognitive dysfunction may be attributed, at least in part, to the diversity of study sample features (eg, clinical and demographic characteristics). The current study assessed cognitive function in a METH-dependent population from rural South Carolina, and the impact of demographic and clinical characteristics on performance. Seventy-one male (28.

Transient epileptic amnesia: a neurosurgical case report.

One memory disorder that is potentially treatable with antiepileptic drugs is transient epileptic amnesia (TEA). Working diagnostic consensus criteria for TEA include: (1) a history of recurrent witnessed episodes of transient amnesia; (2) confirmation by a reliable witness that cognitive functions other than memory are intact during typical episodes; and (3) evidence for a diagnosis of epilepsy. We describe a case with both complex partial seizures and episodes of TEA.

The safety and efficacy of {+/-}3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine-assisted psychotherapy in subjects with chronic, treatment-resistant posttraumatic stress disorder: the first randomized controlled pilot study.

Case reports indicate that psychiatrists administered ±3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) as a catalyst to psychotherapy before recreational use of MDMA as 'Ecstasy' resulted in its criminalization in 1985. Over two decades later, this study is the first completed clinical trial evaluating MDMA as a therapeutic adjunct. Twenty patients with chronic posttraumatic stress disorder, refractory to both psychotherapy and psychopharmacology, were randomly assigned to psychotherapy with concomitant active drug (n = 12) or inactive placebo (n = 8) administered during two 8-h experimental psychotherapy sessions.

Establishment of a predominantly African-American cohort for the study of Alzheimer's disease: the South Carolina Alzheimer's disease clinical core.

Background/aims: The recruitment of culturally diverse subject populations into research studies, particularly African-Americans (AA), has been the focus of intense interest by many groups.

Methods: In this paper, we present the methodology utilized to create a predominantly AA cohort for the longitudinal study of risk factors in Alzheimer's disease (AD). The underlying strategy was that of identifying geographically diverse clinical venues within South Carolina (SC) where large numbers of AA patients already come to seek medical care.

Preliminary examination of progression of Alzheimer's disease in a rural Southern African American cohort.

African Americans are at significantly increased risk for the development of Alzheimer's disease (AD), yet are seriously underrepresented in research trials. Preliminary experiences on a large scale, multi-site, 5-year longitudinal trial investigating the psychometric expression and progression of AD targeting an aging Southern rural cohort of African Americans are reported. Sixty-five participants, ranging from asymptomatic to severely demented, underwent extensive individual diagnostic and psychometric evaluation.

The role of personality and other factors in a mother's decision to initiate breastfeeding.

The objective of the study was to measure the impact of personality and other factors on the decision to initiate breastfeeding. Mothers were enrolled (24-96 hours postpartum) and were classified as fully breastfeeding, formula-feeding, or combination-feeding. A semi-structured interview about maternal sociodemographics and attitudes and a standardized personality inventory (NEO-PI-R) were conducted.

Use of the Personality Assessment Inventory as an efficacious and cost-effective diagnostic tool for nonepileptic seizures.

Video electroencephalographic monitoring (VEEG) is considered the "gold standard" for making the differential diagnosis between epileptic seizures (ES) and nonepileptic seizures (NES), but is a costly, time-consuming procedure and not readily available in all communities. Of the various diagnostic techniques and measures that have been used, the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI) has shown promise as an effective psychological screening tool to aid in the differential diagnosis of ES/NES. Using VEEG results as the outcome measure, this study examined the diagnostic effectiveness of the PAI in a group of adults with treatment-refractory seizures.

The Test of Memory Malingering (TOMM): normative data from cognitively intact, cognitively impaired, and elderly patients with dementia.

This research adds to the psychometric validation of the Test of Memory Malingering (TOMM) by providing data for samples of elderly patients who are cognitively intact, cognitively impaired (non-dementia), and with dementia. Subjects were 78 individuals referred for evaluation of memory complaints. Significant group differences emerged between the dementia group and the two other groups (normals and cognitively impaired), although the latter two did not differ from each other.

Utility of a clinically derived abbreviated form of the WAIS-III.

The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Third Edition (WAIS-III) often poses problems for many populations due to the length of administration. Twenty geriatric subjects were administered the full WAIS-III. Three abbreviated forms of the WAIS-III (Satz-Mogel abbreviation; seven-subtest short form; and a clinically derived abbreviation) were evaluated by rescoring original full WAIS-III protocols.

Transient Kluver-Bucy syndrome following complex partial status epilepticus.

The characteristic features of Kluver-Bucy syndrome include hypersexuality, hyperorality, placidity, hypermetamorphosis, visual agnosia, changes in dietary habits, and memory impairment. Human cases have been reported with herpes simplex encephalitis, head injury, Pick's disease, transtentorial herniation, adrenoleukodystrophy, and Reye's syndrome, all involving bilateral temporal lobe pathology. We present the case of a patient with no evidence of a structural lesion in the temporal lobes and behavioral changes consistent with Kluver-Bucy syndrome following complex partial status epilepticus.