Association of Indoor Environment with the Intention to Enter Nursing Homes among Older Adults with Functional Limitations in Japan.

Objectives: The indoor environment refers to the conditions within a building, including thermal comfort, air quality, lighting, and noise levels. However, the association between the indoor environment and the intention to enter nursing homes among older adults with functional limitations remains unclear. Therefore, this study examined the association of indoor environmental factors with intention to enter nursing homes within this population.

Association Between Cancer Screening Patterns and Carer Literacy in Individuals With Cognitive Decline: An Observational Study.

Objective: The incidence rates of dementia, mild cognitive impairment, and cancer increase with age, posing challenges to affected individuals and their families. However, there are currently no clear cancer screening guidelines for individuals with cognitive impairment. This study analyzed the impact of carer health literacy on screening behaviors in this population.

Arts and cultural engagement and subsequent social deficits among older adults: A three-year longitudinal study using the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study.

Arts and cultural engagement has the potential to reduce social deficits such as loneliness and social isolation. However, as most evidence is from Western countries, less is known whether the protective association of engagement with social deficits can also be seen in different cultural settings such as Asia. We explored the associations of arts and cultural engagement, focusing on engagement continuity and type, with loneliness and social isolation among older adults in Japan, one of the fastest-ageing countries.

Socioeconomic Status Transition Throughout Life and Risk of Dementia.

Importance: Socioeconomic status (SES) is associated with dementia. However, the role of SES transitions in dementia is less explored; such evidence would be useful to understand whether social mobility is associated with healthy longevity at older ages.

Objective: To investigate the association of lifetime SES transition with risk of dementia.

Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia and Mortality Risk Among People With Cognitive Impairment: An 8-year Longitudinal Study From the NCGG-STORIES.

Background: Behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) are common among people with dementia from the early stages and can appear even in mild cognitive impairment (MCI). However, the prognostic impact of BPSD is unclear. This study examined the association between BPSD and mortality among people with cognitive impairment.

Development of a short form of the Japanese version of the Caregiver Reaction Assessment (CRA-J-10) among informal caregivers of older adults.

Aim: To support informal caregivers, a simple assessment tool capturing the multidimensional nature of caregiving experiences, including negative and positive aspects, is required. We developed a short form of the Japanese version of the Caregiver Reaction Assessment (CRA-J), a multidimensional assessment scale for caregiver experiences.

Methods: The internet survey involved 934 Japanese informal caregivers aged 20-79 years (mean age = 58.

Dyadic Art Appreciation and Self-Expression Program (NCGG-ART) for People with Dementia or Mild Cognitive Impairment and Their Family Caregivers: A Feasibility Study.

Background: Non-pharmacological interventions effective for depressive mood and bilateral relationships among persons with cognitive impairment (PwCI) and their family caregivers (FCGs) have not been established.

Objective: To examine the feasibility of a newly developed group-based art appreciation and self-expression program (NCGG-ART) for dyads of PwCI and their FCGs.

Methods: This pilot randomized control trial included 34 dyads of PwCI diagnosed with mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease or mild cognitive impairment, and their FCGs, from an outpatient rehabilitation service (Holistic Physio-Cognitive Rehabilitation [HPCR]).

Relationship between mortality and vitality in patients with mild cognitive impairment/dementia: An 8-year retrospective study.

Aim: The study aimed to investigate the association of vitality, as measured using the vitality index (Vix), with the survival outcomes of older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or dementia.

Methods: We analyzed data from 3731 patients in the National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology - Life Stories of Individuals with Dementia cohort from July 2010 to September 2018. The main focus was to correlate Vix scores with the time from the initial visit to death.

Decision-making involvement and onset of cognitive impairment in community-dwelling older care recipients: a 2-year longitudinal study.

Background: The decision-making of older adults and people with dementia is attracting more attention among healthcare professionals. While cognitive impairment has been examined as a factor related to decision-making, it can also be assumed that involvement in decision-making leads to the maintenance of cognitive function. This study examined the association of the decision-making process with the onset of cognitive impairment.

Moderating effect of country-level health determinants on the association between hobby engagement and mental health: cross-cohort multi-level models, meta-analyses, and meta-regressions.

Background: Theories from anthropology, evolutionary psychology, and sociology have focused on the potential adaptive benefits of hobby engagement for mental health in older adults. However, previous studies have used data from single countries, potentially biased by specific measurement and methodological approaches, cohort effects, or cultural specificities. Whether there are genuine benefits for mental health in older adults cross-culturally remains unknown.

Role of Interacting and Learning Experiences on Public Stigma Against Dementia: An Observational Cross-Sectional Study.

Overcoming dementia stigma is a global challenge. Contact and education on dementia may be promising approaches for reducing public stigma; however, the current evidence is insufficient. This study examined the moderating factors associated with the public stigma against dementia, focusing on experiences of interacting with and learning about people with dementia.

Hobby engagement and mental wellbeing among people aged 65 years and older in 16 countries.

Growing aging populations pose a threat to global health because of the social and psychological challenges they experience. To mitigate this, many countries promote hobby engagement to support and improve mental health. Yet, it remains unclear whether there is consistency in benefits across different national settings.

Association of Social Isolation and Loneliness With Chronic Low Back Pain Among Older Adults: A Cross-sectional Study From Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study (JAGES).

Background: Per the biopsychosocial model, pain, especially chronic low back pain, which often presents with nonspecific pain, requires a comprehensive approach involving social factors. However, the association of social factors, including social isolation and loneliness, with this condition remains unclear. This study examined the cross-sectional association of social isolation and loneliness with chronic low back pain among older adults.

Mortality Risks and Causes of Death by Dementia Types in a Japanese Cohort with Dementia: NCGG-STORIES.

Background: Prognosis-related information regarding dementia needs to be updated, as changes in medical and long-term care environments for patients with dementia in recent decades may be improving the prognosis of the disease.

Objective: We aimed to investigate the mortality, cause of death, and prognostic factors by types of dementia in a Japanese clinic-based cohort.

Methods: The National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology-Life Stories of People with Dementia consists of clinical records and prognostic data of patients who visited the Memory Clinic in Japan.

An approach to psychosocial health among middle-aged and older people by remote sharing of photos and videos from family members not living together: A feasibility study.

Background: As an approach to the psychosocial health of people in later adulthood, information and communication technology (ICT) is attracting attention. However, because there is still a disparity issue in ICT use, particularly for older people, considering age-friendly digital interventions is important. We examined the feasibility of an intervention by an age-friendly digital service, remote sharing of photos/videos from families not living together, for psychosocial health in middle-aged and older people.

Functional disability trajectories at the end of life among Japanese older adults: findings from the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study (JAGES).

Background: this study aimed to identify distinct subgroups of trajectories of disability over time before 3 years of death and examine the factors associated with trajectory group membership probabilities among community-dwelling Japanese older adults aged 65 years and above.

Methods: participants included 4,875 decedents from among community-dwelling Japanese older adults, aged ≥ 65 years at baseline (men: 3,020; women: 1,855). The certified long-term care levels of the national long-term care insurance (LTCI) system were used as an index of functional disability.

Pneumonia and subsequent risk of dementia: Evidence from the Japan Gerontological evaluation study.

Background: Recently, several studies reported that pneumonia might increase the risk of cognitive decline and dementia due to increased frailty.

Objectives: This study aims to examine the association between a history of pneumonia and subsequent dementia risk.

Methods: Participants were 9952 aged 65 years or older Japanese men and women from the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study prospective cohort study, followed up from 2013 to 2019.

The role of social resources and trajectories of functional health following stroke.

Stroke is a major cause of disability in old age. Research has revealed that social resources available after the onset of stroke can mitigate functional prognosis. However, most studies have conceptualized resources as static rather than dynamic and have not measured changes in social resources from the pre-to post-stroke periods.

Establishment of the Japanese version of the dementia stigma assessment scale.

Aim: Reducing stigma against dementia is a global challenge, but the assessment scale is not well established. We examined the validity and reliability of the Japanese version of the assessment scale of public stigma against dementia.

Methods: This study recruited 819 adults aged 20-69 years (mean age = 45.