[Aging with meaning. A qualitative and multicultural study].

Introduction: Currently in Catalonia, multiculturalism is increasing, also among older people. However, little is known about the aspects that give meaning to aging or whether there are differences by origin and culture.

Objectives: Identify what it means to age meaningfully for people over 50 years of age from different origins and cultures.

[Ageing in the host country].

Objective: To explore the perceptions of elderly people from diverse cultures regarding the factors relevant to aging, identifying similarities and differences, and describing elements that facilitate or hinder this process, with a focus on the impact of care services.

Method: Qualitative study with 48 participants over 50 years old, residing in the Alt Empordà region, Catalonia. Seven focus groups were conducted, including one exploratory multicultural group and six stratified by origin: native, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Latin America, North Africa, and West Africa.

Sex differences in dementia diagnosis: a fourteen-year retrospective analysis of cases using the Registry of Dementia of Girona.

Objective: To evaluate the impact of sociodemographic and clinical sex/gender-associated factors on dementia severity at the time of diagnosis.

Methods: Retrospective, cross-sectional study using 2007-2020 data from the Registry of Dementia of Girona (ReDeGi), collecting information from new dementia diagnoses in the seven hospitals of the Health Region of Girona (Northeast region of Catalonia, Spain). Sociodemographic and clinical variables were compared by sex and dementia severity at diagnosis.

Multimorbidity patterns and disability and healthcare use in Europe: do the associations change with the regional socioeconomic status?

Multimorbidity, the concurrence of several chronic conditions, is a rising concern that increases the years lived with disability and poses a burden on healthcare systems. Little is known on how it interacts with socioeconomic deprivation, previously associated with poor health-related outcomes. We aimed to characterize the association between multimorbidity and these outcomes and how this relationship may change with socioeconomic development of regions.

A 14-Year Longitudinal Analysis of Healthcare Expenditure on Dementia and Related Factors (DEMENCOST Study).

Background: The large number of dementia cases produces a great pressure on health and social care services, which requires efficient planning to meet the needs of patients through infrastructure, equipment, and financial, technical, and personal resources adjusted to their demands. Dementia analysis requires studies with a very precise patient characterization of both the disease and comorbidities present, and long-term follow-up of patients in clinical aspects and patterns of resource utilization and costs generated.

Objective: To describe and quantify direct healthcare expenditure and its evolution from three years before and up to ten years after the diagnosis of dementia, compared to a matched group without dementia.

Longitudinal effect of dementia carers' sense of coherence on burden.

Background: A sense of coherence (SOC) could help us better understand why there are individuals who cope better than others in similar situations. The study aimed to assess the effect of SOC on the course of burden reports in relatives of persons with dementia.

Methods: This was a prospective cohort study of 156 dementia carers.

Needs Detection for Carers of Family Members with Dementia.

Aim: To determine the perceived needs of carers of non-institutionalized family members that suffer from dementia.

Methods: Two-steps qualitative study by focus groups of relatives in three centres of different characteristics from the Girona Health Region (step 1) and two in-depth interviews with significant professionals in dementia care (step 2). The analysis was performed based on the interpretation of the transcribed data and the bottom-up coding of categories and themes.

Multimorbidity patterns and their related characteristics in European older adults: A longitudinal perspective.

Background: The concurrence of several chronic conditions is a rising concern that poses a serious burden on ageing populations. Analysing how these conditions appear together and how they change through time may provide useful information to design successful multimorbidity-management programs.

Objective: To identify multimorbidity patterns and their related characteristics from a longitudinal perspective.

Caregivers' Sense of Coherence: Implications on Direct and Indirect Costs of Dementia Care.

Background: Dementia care is associated with physical, emotional, and monetary impact on the informal carers providing unpaid care. Differences in the personal characteristics of caregivers may help explain the variations in the costs of dementia care.

Objective: The aim of this study was to analyze the effect of caregivers' sense of coherence (SOC) on direct and indirect costs in dementia care.

Individuals experiencing chronic homelessness: A 10-year follow-up of a cohort in Spain.

With the start of the great economic recession in 2007, homelessness increased fivefold in some regions of southern Europe. Larger numbers of people experiencing homelessness, compounded by a lowered capacity for social and health services to respond to their needs, precipitated an increase in so-called 'chronic homelessness'. The aim of this study was to establish the presence of chronic homelessness in a defined geographical area of Spain, and to determine the prevalence of diagnosed mental disorders within both the chronic and non-chronic homeless population.

CAUSES, mortality rates and risk factors of death in community-dwelling Europeans aged 50 years and over: Results from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe 2013-2015.

Objective: To determine mortality rates and to rank the causes and predictors of mortality using a wide range of sociodemographic and clinical variables.

Materials And Methods: It is a prospective population-based cohort study of adults living in the community, 2013-15 N = 48,691, age ≥50; deceased = 1,944. Clinical and sociodemographic data were obtained from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe SHARE: Age, Gender, Marital Status, Years of Schooling, Income, Loneliness, Cognition, Self-Rated Health, Diseases, Activities of daily living ADL, and Frailty.

Evaluation of the efficacy of WhatsApp through a harm reduction intervention group for injecting drug users.

This study aims to analyse the use of an instant messaging app (WhatsApp®) as a means of communication for reaching people who inject drugs. An eight-week prospective longitudinal and observational study with three observations was designed for five addiction centres in Catalonia. The participants were 105 people who inject drugs, distributed in five intervention groups.

Antonovsky's sense of coherence and resistance resources reduce perception of burden in family carers of people with Alzheimer's disease.

Taking care of people with dementia (PWD) has been associated with some degree of burden. The variability of the carer's burden can be partially explained by their personal characteristics. Antonovsky's model of health defined the resistance resources (RRs) as essential mechanisms to cope with stressors, and to shape the personal sense of coherence (SOC).

Survival, effect measures, and impact numbers after dementia diagnosis: a matched cohort study.

Background: Knowledge on survival after diagnosis is important for all stakeholders. We aimed to estimate the survival and life expectancy after a dementia diagnosis, and to quantify the impact of dementia subtypes on mortality.

Methods: Retrospective matched cohort study using a linkage between a dementia-specific registry and two primary care electronic medical records databases.

Course of depressive symptoms and associated factors in people aged 65+ in Europe: A two-year follow-up.

Background: The epidemiology of depressive disorders presents notable differences among European countries. The objectives of the study are to determine the prevalence, incidence, persistence and remission rates of depressive symptoms and to identify risk factors and differences between four European regions.

Method: Prospective cohort design using data from waves 5 and 6 (2013-15) of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe.

[Assessment of the sense of coherence in the perceived burden and in the adherence to a psycho-educational program for informal caregivers of dependent persons].

Introduction: The care of dependent persons is arduous, and requires time, energy, and physical effort on the part of caregivers. Personal characteristics, such as the sense of coherence (SOC), can influence the perceived burden and care giving.

Objective: To determine the impact of SOC on the perceived burden and to determine if these characteristics are associated with adherence to a psycho-educational program for informal caregivers.

Measuring anticholinergic exposure in patients with dementia: A comparative study of nine anticholinergic risk scales.

Objective: To describe the prevalence and concordance of anticholinergic exposure according to 9 published scales, to quantify the relative weight of the drug subtypes included in each scale, and to identify clinical variables related to anticholinergic exposure.

Methods: Observational and cross-sectional study using 5323 cases of dementia diagnosed in the 7 hospitals of the public health care system of the Health Region of Girona (Spain) between 2007 and 2014 and registered by the Registry of Dementias of Girona (ReDeGi). We used the Pharmacy database that includes all the drugs prescribed by specialist and primary care physicians and dispensed in pharmacies.

Adherence to Clinical Practice Guidelines during Dementia Work-Up in a Real-World Setting: A Study from the Registry of Dementias of Girona.

Background: There are several position statements and clinical practice guidelines (CPG) for diagnosing dementia.

Objective: Our aims were to evaluate the adherence to CPG among specialists in the 7 memory clinics included in the Registry of Dementias of Girona (ReDeGi), and to compare the results between 2007-2011 and 2012-2015. We also determined the time and number of visits required to achieve a diagnosis, the supplementary tests ordered, and the drugs prescribed according to dementia subtypes.

Kinematic and Pressure Features of Handwriting and Drawing: Preliminary Results Between Patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment, Alzheimer Disease and Healthy Controls.

Background: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common neurodegenerative dementia of old age, and the leading chronic disease contributor to disability and dependence among older people worldwide. Clinically, AD is characterized by a progressive cognitive decline that interferes with the ability to perform the activities of daily living. Handwriting and drawing are complex human activities that entail an intricate blend of cognitive, kinesthetic, and perceptual-motor features.

Kinship and cohabitation in relation to caregiver burden in the context of Alzheimer's disease: a 24-month longitudinal study.

Objectives: The aims of the study were to identify the clinical characteristics of three groups of caregivers: spouses, live-in adult-child or non-live-in adult-child, and their relation to the degree of perceived burden (Caregiver Burden Interview).

Methods: The sample comprised 275 Alzheimer's disease primary caregivers, with a follow-up of 24 months. Cognitive, functional and behavioural characteristics were evaluated in persons with dementia, whilst sociodemographic data, use of socio-medical resources, physical and mental health and self-perceived burden were assessed in caregivers.