Publications by authors named "Steffi Riedel Heller"

Background: eHealth interventions constitute a promising approach to disease prevention, particularly because of their ability to facilitate lifestyle changes. Although a rather recent development, eHealth interventions might be able to promote brain health and reduce dementia risk in older adults.

Objective: This study aimed to explore the perspective of general practitioners (GPs) on the potentials and barriers of eHealth interventions for brain health.

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Background: Many risk factors for dementia have been identified, but the timing of risk is less well understood. Here, we analyzed risk factors in a case-control study covering 10 years before an incident dementia diagnosis.

Methods: We designed a case-control study using insurance claims of outpatient consultations of patients with German statutory health insurance between January 1, 2012, and December 31, 2022.

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To provide an overview of ongoing cohorts including severely mentally ill patients to study collateral effects of pandemics.Systematic literature search.None of the ongoing German health cohorts includes people with severe mental illness (SMI).

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Introduction: The societal costs of dementia and cognitive decline are substantial and likely to increase during the next decades due to the increasing number of people in older age groups. The aim of this multicenter cluster-randomized controlled trial was to assess the cost-effectiveness of a multi-domain intervention to prevent cognitive decline in older people who are at risk for dementia.

Methods: We used data from a multi-centric, two-armed, cluster-randomized controlled trial ( trial, ID: DRKS00013555).

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Purpose: We investigated the effects of a multidomain lifestyle intervention conducted in older adults at increased risk for dementia on participants' diet.

Methods: Secondary analyses of the cluster-randomized AgeWell.de-trial, testing a multidomain intervention (optimization of nutrition and medication, enhancement of physical, social and cognitive activity) in older adults at increased dementia risk.

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Purpose: Loneliness is a pervasive phenomenon that is linked to adverse health outcomes. Unemployed individuals with mental illnesses (UMIs) constitute a high-risk group, with substantial implications for both health and vocational (re)integration. This study aims to gain deeper insights into the relationships between psychological problems and symptoms of psychopathology and loneliness in UMIs.

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Introduction: Modifiable risk factors play an important role in preventing dementia and reducing its progression. Regular physical activity already in midlife, which relies on intact multisensory balance control, can help to decrease the risk of dementia. However, our understanding of the relationship between postural balance and cognitive functions remains limited.

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Aim was to investigate to what extent cognitive functioning differs by three socioeconomic conditions: low income, being without employment, and living alone. A total of N = 158,144 participants of the population-based German National Cohort (NAKO) provided data on socioeconomic conditions and completed cognitive tests. Multivariable confounder-adjusted regression analyses indicated that cognitive functioning was lower in those with low income (b = -0.

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Article Synopsis
  • A study was conducted to investigate the X-chromosome's role in Alzheimer's Disease (AD), which had been overlooked in previous genome-wide association studies.
  • The research included 115,841 AD cases and 613,671 controls, considering different X-chromosome inactivation (XCI) states in females.
  • While no strong genetic risk factors for AD were found on the X-chromosome, seven significant loci were identified, suggesting areas for future research.
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Background: Neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer's disease (AD), have been linked to alterations in tryptophan (TRP) metabolism. However, no studies to date have systematically explored changes in the TRP pathway at both transcriptional and epigenetic levels. This study aimed to investigate transcriptomic, DNA methylomic (5mC) and hydroxymethylomic (5hmC) changes within genes involved in the TRP and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) pathways in AD, using three independent cohorts.

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Background: Research shows that unemployed individuals are more often affected by mental illness, and that mental illness can impede an individual's work ability, creating a significant obstacle to (re)entering the workforce.

Aims: The objective of this study is to examine the relationships between psychological symptoms and work ability in unemployed individuals with mental illnesses (UMIs). This will enable us to identify the symptoms that are most relevant for future research and application.

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Background: The participation of representatives of patients and relatives in the development of guidelines is of central importance for the quality, feasibility and acceptance of guidelines. In Germany this has not been sufficiently implemented in the discipline of psychiatry, although in practice there are many examples for the benefits of the expertise of people with psychiatric experience.

Objective: The article describes the development and a first process evaluation of a trialogical working group (AG Impuls) accompanying the guideline process.

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Bundesgesundheitsblatt Gesundheitsforschung Gesundheitsschutz

November 2024

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Background: Documented risk factors and prodromal features of dementia in primary care practices may support dementia prevention and early detection in routine care.

Objective: To identify documented prodromal features and risk factors of dementia before the incident dementia diagnosis in German primary care practices.

Methods: This case-control study used documented diagnoses (risk factors, prodromal features) and prescriptions of primary care practices for 73,717 patients with dementia disease and 73,717 matched controls (ratio 1:1).

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Objective: People with mental illness should live independently in the community. This study analyzed the housing situation and the use and need of psychiatric housing facilities of people with severe mental illness.

Methods: Data from a cross-sectional study with 397 people with severe mental illness from two Bavarian districts were used and analyzed descriptively.

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Background: The impact of social isolation on social cognition is not entirely clear.

Objective: The aim of the study is to investigate the association between social isolation and social cognition.

Methods: In a population-based sample of 83 individuals aged 50+ years without dementia, we assessed the relationship between social isolation (measured by the Lubben Social Network Scale - LSNS-6) and performance on emotional recognition (measured by the Emotion Recognition Task (ERT)) and on Theory of Mind (ToM) abilities (measured by the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET)), two core aspects of social cognition.

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Background: Self-help can play an important supplementary role in the treatment of people with severe mental illness; however, little is known about the utilization of the various approaches.

Objective: This study describes the use of various self-help options by patients with severe mental illness and examines potential predictors.

Material And Methods: As part of the observational cross-sectional study on patients with severe mental illness (IMPPETUS, N = 397), trained staff collected sociodemographic, illness-associated and treatment-associated data between March 2019 and September 2019.

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Given the high prevalence of overweight and obesity and high comorbidity of depressive symptoms, there is a need for low-threshold, accessible care approaches for people with overweight/obesity aimed at improving mental health. Internet and mobile-based interventions (IMI) represent an innovative complementary treatment option. This review systematically searches for IMI aimed at improving mental health in people with overweight/obesity.

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Article Synopsis
  • The COVID-19 pandemic led to studies on how it affected people's mental health, with mixed results; some felt worse, while others stayed stable.
  • The study focused on 135,445 people in Germany to see how age and past mental health issues affected depression and anxiety during the early pandemic.
  • Results showed people with past mental health problems felt the same after the pandemic began, but younger folks without those issues felt worse, highlighting the need for better support strategies.
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  • Poststroke cognitive impairment is common, but the exact changes in cognitive function following a first stroke compared to pre-stroke levels are not fully understood.
  • The study aimed to track cognitive performance over time in stroke survivors versus individuals without strokes, using data from 14 international cohorts of older adults.
  • Results showed that incident stroke led to a significant immediate drop in overall cognitive skills and accelerated decline in cognitive abilities over time.
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Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates how cardiometabolic multimorbidity (CMM) and depression affect cognitive function in older adults, aiming to understand their individual and combined impacts.
  • It harmonizes data from 14 international cohort studies and utilizes various scales to assess CMM and depression among participants who did not have dementia at the start of the study.
  • Findings include the analysis of over 30,000 older adults, revealing that both CMM and depression are linked to cognitive decline, with further validation through additional studies across different settings.
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Background: Blood-based biomarkers offer a promising, less invasive, and more cost-effective alternative for Alzheimer's disease screening compared to cerebrospinal fluid or imaging biomarkers. However, they have been extensively studied only in memory clinic-based cohorts. We aimed to validate them in a more heterogeneous, older patient population from primary care.

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