Factors affecting cognitive frailty improvement and progression in Taiwanese older adults.

Background: Knowledge of predictors of cognitive frailty (CF) trajectories is required to develop preventive strategies to delay or reverse the progression from CF to dementia and other adverse outcomes. This 2-year prospective study aimed to investigate factors affecting the progression and improvement of CF in older Taiwanese adults.

Methods: In total, 832 community-dwelling people aged ≥ 65 years were eligible.

Risk factors of knee reinjury after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate whether the return to level I sports, concomitant injuries, foot-related problems, and other factors would increase the risk of knee reinjury after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR).

Methods: This study used a prospective cohort study design. Online enrolment from August 2018 to January 2019 in ACL Community Indonesia recruited 148 patients who had undergone ACLR less than one month prior to injury.

Effects of home-based computerized cognitive training and tai chi exercise on cognitive functions in older adults with mild cognitive impairment.

Background: A randomized trial was conducted to investigate the effects of computerized cognitive training (CCT) and tai chi exercise (TCE) vs. health education (HE) on cognitive functions in 189 older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI).

Methods: Cognitive functions were assessed by the five-domain Mattis Dementia Rating Scale (MDRS) (attention, initiation/perseveration, construction, conceptualization, and memory) and the modified Telephone Interview of Cognitive Status (TICS-M), while the timed up and go (TUG), Tinetti's balance, activities of daily living (ADLs), and Activities-specific Balance Confidence (ABC) were also evaluated.

Predictors of incident reversible and potentially reversible cognitive frailty among Taiwanese older adults.

Background: Few studies emphasize on predictors of incident cognitive frailty (CF) and examine relationships between various gait characteristics and CF. Therefore, we conducted a 2-year prospective study to investigate potential predictors, including gait characteristics, of incident reversible CF (RCF) and potentially RCF (PRCF) among Taiwanese older adults.

Methods: Eligible participants were individuals aged ≥ 65 years, who could ambulate independently, and did not have RCF/PRCF at the baseline.

Potentially inappropriate medication use, polypharmacy, and falls among hospitalized patients.

Aim: This matched case-control study investigated potentially inappropriate medication (PIM) use, polypharmacy, and other potential risk factors for falls among hospitalized older adults in Taiwan.

Methods: During an 18-month study period, 131 case patients who experienced a fall during hospitalization in an acute-care hospital were identified and matched by the time of day, hospital ward, and age to controls (five for each case) who were selected through random systematic sampling. Data on demographics, medical characteristics, and all orally and intravascularly administered medications during hospitalization prior to a fall were collected.

Specific cognitive domains and frailty trajectories among older Taiwanese adults.

: To investigate the associations of specific cognitive functions and with the frailty trajectory among older Taiwanese adults. At baseline, 730 community-dwelling older adults were recruited from outpatient clinics of a general hospital. Frailty status was defined using phenotype criteria.

Risk Factors for Recurrent Violent Injuries Among African Women in The Gambia.

Introduction: Violence against women remains a major public health concern in African countries. We conducted a matched case-control study to identify risk factors for recurrent violent injuries among African women in The Gambia, a small West African country.

Methods: During the 12-month study period, we recruited study participants from eight emergency departments in the metropolitan areas of the municipality of Kanifing and the West Coast region.

Validation of the Indonesian version of the foot and ankle score in patients with chronic lateral ankle instability.

Background: This study aimed to examine the psychometric performance of the Foot and Ankle Outcome Score (FAOS) used in Indonesian patients with chronic lateral ankle instability (CLAI).

Methods: The FAOS was translated into Indonesian through standardized procedures. Among 224 patients with unilateral CLAI recruited from 14 physical therapy clinics during a 1-year period, reliabilities, construct validities, and responsiveness levels of the FAOS were examined.

Gender Differences in Personal and Situational Risk Factors for Traumatic Brain Injury Among Older Adults.

Objective: To investigate differences between older men and women in Taiwan in personal and situational risk factors for sustaining a traumatic brain injury (TBI) versus soft-tissue injury (STI) due to a fall.

Design: Matched case-control study.

Participants And Settings: Cases were defined as patients with a primary diagnosis of TBI due to a fall and were identified from those 60 years or older who visited the emergency department (ED) of 3 university-affiliated hospitals in 2015.

Effects of Kinesio Taping and Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation Combined With Active Stretching on Hamstring Flexibility.

Adhitya, IPGS, Yu, W-Y, Bass, P, Kinandana, GP, and Lin, M-R. Effects of Kinesio taping and transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation combined with active stretching on hamstring flexibility. J Strength Cond Res 36(11): 3087-3092, 2022-Active stretching (AS), Kinesio taping (KT), and transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) are frequently used to ameliorate pain and improve the ranges of motion (ROM) of athletes; however, the effectiveness of KT and TENS combined with AS in ameliorating short hamstring syndrome is yet to be determined.

Variations in situational risk factors for fractures of the distal forearm, hip, and vertebrae in older women.

Background: Situational factors during a fall among three common types of fractures of the distal forearm, hip, and vertebrae among older women in Taiwan were investigated.

Methods: In 2016 ~ 2017, study participants were identified from those aged ≥65 years who visited emergency departments due to a fall in two university-affiliated hospitals in Taipei. In addition to individual characteristics, situational factors during the fall (location, activity, change of center of mass, fall mode, fall direction, initiating a protective response, and being hit) were collected.

Risk Factors for Injuries From Physical Violence in African Women in the Gambia.

Background: Physical violence against women is a major public health problem in African countries; however, no studies have focused on factors associated with violent injuries to women in Africa.

Objectives: A matched case-control study was conducted to investigate risk factors for injuries from physical violence against African women in The Gambia.

Methods: Over a 12-month study period, study participants were recruited from emergency departments of eight government-managed health care facilities.

Effects of Computerized Cognitive Training and Tai Chi on Cognitive Performance in Older Adults With Traumatic Brain Injury.

Objective: To compare the effects of computerized cognitive training (CCT) and tai chi (TC) with usual care (UC) on cognitive functions and secondary outcomes in older adults with traumatic brain injury.

Participants And Settings: Ninety-six patients aged 55 years and older who had a diagnosis of traumatic brain injury requiring hospital admission.

Design: Randomized controlled trial.

Risk Factors for Recurrent Injuries from Physical Violence Among African Men in The Gambia.

While men are known to be at high risk of recurrent injuries from physical violence, the risk factors in African men have not been investigated. We conducted a matched case-control study to identify factors associated with recurrent injuries from physical violence in The Gambia. Eligible participants were injured male patients aged ≥ 15 years.

Psychometric Comparisons of the Quality of Life after Brain Injury between Individuals with Mild and Those with Moderate/Severe Traumatic Brain Injuries.

This study compared psychometric properties of the Taiwanese version of the Quality of Life after Brain Injury (QOLIBRI) between patients with mild and those with moderate/severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). Of 683 participants, 548 had sustained a mild injury with Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) scores of 13-15, and 135 had a moderate/severe injury with GCS scores of 3-12. The QOLIBRI comprises six domains: Cognition, Self, Daily Life and Autonomy, Social Relationships, Emotions, and Physical Problems.

Risk Factors for Traumatic Brain Injuries During Falls in Older Persons.

Objective: To identify risk factors for traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) during falls in older Taiwanese people.

Participants: Case patients consisted of 113 patients aged 60 years or older with a moderate/severe TBI due to a fall. Two control groups: (1) 339 older patients with a soft-tissue injury; and (2) 113 with a mild-TBI due to a fall.

Polygonum viviparum L. induces vasorelaxation in the rat thoracic aorta via activation of nitric oxide synthase in endothelial cells.

Background: In the past several decades, Polygonum viviparum L. (PV) was reported to have antibacterial, antiulcer, antioxidant, antitumor, anti-inflammatory, and antiarthritic properties. The anti-inflammatory pathway was recently elucidated through cytosolic nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) activation and heme oxygenase (HO)-1 protein expression.

Polygonum viviparum L. inhibits the lipopolysaccharide-induced inflammatory response in RAW264.7 macrophages through haem oxygenase-1 induction and activation of the Nrf2 pathway.

Background: Polygonum viviparum L. (PV) is a member of the family Polygonaceae and is widely distributed in high-elevation areas. It is used as a folk remedy to treat inflammation-related diseases.

Protective effect of guggulsterone against cardiomyocyte injury induced by doxorubicin in vitro.

Background: Doxorubicin (DOX) is an effective antineoplastic drug; however, clinical use of DOX is limited by its dose-dependent cardiotoxicity. It is well known that reactive oxygen species (ROS) play a vital role in the pathological process of DOX-induced cardiotoxicity. For this study, we evaluated the protective effects of guggulsterone (GS), a steroid obtained from myrrh, to determine its preliminary mechanisms in defending against DOX-induced cytotoxicity in H9C2 cells.

Effects of fall injury type and discharge placement on mortality, hospitalization, falls, and ADL changes among older people in Taiwan.

A longitudinal study was conducted to investigate the effects of injury type and discharge placement on mortality, falls, hospital admissions, and changes in activities of daily living (ADLs) over a 12-month period among older fallers. Of 762 community-dwelling people aged 65 years or older who visited an emergency department (ED) of a general hospital in Taiwan due to a fall, 273 sustained a hip fracture, 157 had a vertebral fracture, 47 had a distal forearm fracture, 102 had a traumatic brain injury, and 183 had soft-tissue injuries. Results showed that, compared to patients with a soft-tissue injury, those with TBI had significantly higher risks of dying (rate ratio (RR)=3.

Examination of assumptions in using time tradeoff and standard gamble utilities in individuals with spinal cord injury.

Objective: To examine how the time tradeoff (TTO) and standard gamble (SG) utilities perform at different lengths of life expectancy and across patient characteristics such as risk attitudes and injury severity in individuals with traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI).

Design: Survey.

Setting: Structured telephone interviews of patients after discharge from 4 teaching hospitals.

Effect of Sanguis draconis (a dragon's blood resin) on streptozotocin- and cytokine-induced β-cell damage, in vitro and in vivo.

The study was to examine the effects of Sanguis draconis ethanol extract (SDEE) on streptozotocin (STZ)- and cytokine-induced β-cell damage. In vitro, SDEE did not cause cytotoxicity below 200 μg/ml, and can prevent STZ (5mM)-induced cell death and apoptosis below 100 μg/ml on RIN-m5F cells. SDEE inhibits IL-1β/IFN-γ-stimulated NO, TNF-α release, and iNOS expression.

Myrrh mediates haem oxygenase-1 expression to suppress the lipopolysaccharide-induced inflammatory response in RAW264.7 macrophages.

Objectives: To elucidate a novel anti-inflammatory mechanism of myrrh against lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced inflammation.

Methods: RAW264.7 macrophages were cultured in DMEM and then cells were treated with LPS or LPS plus a myrrh methanol extract (MME) for 24h.

Effectiveness of different types of motorcycle helmets and effects of their improper use on head injuries.

Background: Differences among three helmet types and the ineffectiveness of improper helmet use in preventing head injuries are speculated about but are seldom explored with evidence. A case-control study was conducted to examine how different helmet types and improper helmet use affected protection against head injuries among motorcyclists in Taiwan.

Methods: Case motorcyclists comprised 435 persons who sought emergency care due to head injuries at a medical centre in west-central Taiwan over an 8-month period and 23 motorcyclists who died from head injuries at the scene of the crash; 458 motorcyclists who had non-head injuries were used as the control group, and their crashes occurred within 1 hour earlier or later than the corresponding cases.

Incidence rate and risk factors of missed injuries in major trauma patients.

This study was designed to determine the incidence rate and risk factors of missed injuries in major trauma patients in the emergency department (ED). Hospital records of all 976 trauma patients visiting the ED and admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) of a medical center in Taiwan from 2006 to 2007 were reviewed. Missed injuries were defined as those not identified in the ED but recognized later in the ICUs.