Objectives: Various strategies such as adding cholinesterase inhibitors are used to reduce cognitive impairments during electroconvulsive therapy. In this study, we aimed to assess the effectiveness and safety of memantine as an N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor antagonist in the prevention of cognitive deficits due to ECT.
Methods: Thirty-eight adult patients with various mental disorders were randomized to memantine (10 mg/day initially and 20 mg/day at the end of the first week) or placebo during the ECT period. Mini Mental Status Examination, Digit Span Subtest, and backward memory span of Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale were used to assess the cognitive functions 24 hours before and after ECT. Subjective ratings of side effects were obtained in the first, second, and fourth week of the treatment.
Results: The mean Mini Mental Status Examination score relatively increased in the intervention group showing a significant improvement with memantine (P < 0.001). The direct digit span had decreased in the control group, whereas no significant change was observed in the intervention group (P < 0.001). Backward memory span test showed a decrease in the control group after the ECT sessions, whereas a relative increase was observed in the intervention group (P = 0.001). The most frequently reported side effects in the intervention group did not differ significantly from the control group.
Conclusions: This initial study showed that cognitive performance was enhanced in patients receiving memantine during ECT, indicating the possible role of the glutamatergic system in creating ECT-induced deficits. Larger long-term studies are necessary for understanding the role of the glutamatergic system in these disorders.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/WNF.0000000000000109 | DOI Listing |
JMIR Form Res
January 2025
Larner College of Medicine, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT, United States.
Background: Social media has become a widely used way for people to share opinions about health care and medical topics. Social media data can be leveraged to understand patient concerns and provide insight into why patients may turn to the internet instead of the health care system for health advice.
Objective: This study aimed to develop a method to investigate Reddit posts discussing health-related conditions.
JMIR Med Inform
January 2025
Department of Systems Design Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada.
Background: While expert optometrists tend to rely on a deep understanding of the disease and intuitive pattern recognition, those with less experience may depend more on extensive data, comparisons, and external guidance. Understanding these variations is important for developing artificial intelligence (AI) systems that can effectively support optometrists with varying degrees of experience and minimize decision inconsistencies.
Objective: The main objective of this study is to identify and analyze the variations in diagnostic decision-making approaches between novice and expert optometrists.
AIDS Care
January 2025
Department of Knowledge Management, Sociedad Integral de Especialistas en Salud (SIES Salud IPS), Bogotá, Colombia.
The most significant progress in addressing the HIV/AIDS epidemic has been the development of antiretroviral therapy (ART). However, ensuring a high degree of treatment adherence is necessary to prevent resistance and disease progression. We conducted a cross-sectional study to evaluate adherence to ART through the calculation of the medication possession ratio (MPR) and to identify risk factors for suboptimal adherence in a cohort of HIV-positive patients receiving care at a Colombian healthcare institution across 16 cities.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJAMA Cardiol
January 2025
Center for Health Incentives and Behavioral Economics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.
Importance: A comprehensive lipid panel is recommended by guidelines to evaluate atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease risk, but uptake is low.
Objective: To evaluate whether direct outreach including bulk orders with and without text messaging increases lipid screening rates.
Design, Setting, And Participants: Pragmatic randomized clinical trial conducted from June 6, 2023, to September 6, 2023, at 2 primary care practices at an academic health system among patients aged 20 to 75 years with at least 1 primary care visit in the past 3 years who were overdue for lipid screening.
JAMA
January 2025
Division of General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis.
Importance: Care management benefits community-dwelling patients with dementia, but studies include few patients with moderate to severe dementia or from racial and ethnic minority populations, lack palliative care, and seldom reduce health care utilization.
Objective: To determine whether integrated dementia palliative care reduces dementia symptoms, caregiver depression and distress, and emergency department (ED) visits and hospitalizations compared with usual care in moderate to severe dementia.
Design, Setting, And Participants: A randomized clinical trial of community-dwelling patients with moderate to severe dementia and their caregivers enrolled from March 2019 to December 2020 from 2 sites in central Indiana (2-year follow-up completed on January 7, 2023).
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