Cognitive impairment in pulmonary arterial hypertension.

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is characterized by progressive pulmonary vascular remodeling with resultant abnormal increase in pulmonary artery pressure and right heart dysfunction. There is evidence that PAH includes cognitive impairment. However, the cognitive impairment syndrome has not been well described, and both the underlying mechanism and the relationship between cardiopulmonary and cognitive dysfunction in PAH are unknown.

Validation of the English Version of the Multimodal Assessment of Capacities in Severe Dementia (MAC-SD): A Cognitive and Functional Scale for Use in Severe Dementia.

Background: Most existing screening instruments that assess cognition and functioning in dementia suffer from floor effects, limiting their utility in severely demented patients. In 2015, the first author devised a new instrument, The Multimodal Assessment of Capacities in Severe Dementia (MAC-SD), to address this need. The MAC-SD Spanish version proved reliable, valid, and useful for evaluating patients with severe dementia.

Carotid Stenosis and Impaired Cognition: The Effect of Intervention.

There is a clear association between carotid artery stenosis and cognitive impairment. However, there is no consensus as to how to interpret this association, and what, if any, impact this connection should have on the management of carotid stenosis. A review of the relevant literature suggests that although an intervention to relieve carotid stenosis in patients without clinically significant cognitive impairment does not improve cognition, there may be a cognitive benefit with intervention for carotid stenosis in those patients with clinically significant cognitive disorders.

Comprehensive, Individualized, Person-Centered Management of Community-Residing Persons with Moderate-to-Severe Alzheimer Disease: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background/aims: The aim was to examine added benefits of a Comprehensive, Individualized, Person-Centered Management (CI-PCM) program to memantine treatment.

Methods: This was a 28-week, clinician-blinded, randomized, controlled, parallel-group study, with a similar study population, similar eligibility criteria, and a similar design to the memantine pivotal trial of Reisberg et al. [N Engl J Med 2003;348:1333-1341].

Validation of the multimodal assessment of capacities in severe dementia: a novel cognitive and functional scale for use in severe dementia.

The multimodal assessment of capacities in severe dementia (MAC-SD), a novel cognitive and functional assessment, was developed for use with patients with severe dementia. Its psychometric attributes were examined in a unicenter, open, observational study. The MAC-SD along with the Spanish language Severe Mini Mental Exam were administered to 103 patients with a diagnosis of severe dementia.