Health-related quality of life and mild behavioral impairment in older adults without dementia.

Background: The Mild Behavioral Impairment Checklist (MBI-C) was developed to assess neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS) and to identify mild behavioral impairment (MBI). This study validated the Taiwanese version of the MBI-C and examined its association of health-related quality of life (HR-QoL).

Methods: We recruited 242 older individuals without dementia (129 amnestic mild cognitive impairment, 113 cognitively normal).

Cardiovascular Disease Risk Burden, Cognitive Impairments and Incident Dementia among Community-Dwelling Middle-Aged and Older Adults: An 8-Year Longitudinal Follow-up Study.

Objectives: To evaluate the associations between cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk burden (estimated by the World Health Organization (WHO) algorithm) and cognitive impairments (e.g., incident dementia, global and domain-specific impairments) among CVD-, dementia- and disability-free, community-dwelling middle-aged and older adults during an 8-year follow-up.

Treatment Efficacy of Pharmacotherapies for Frontotemporal Dementia: A Network Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

Background: The neuropsychiatric symptoms of frontotemporal dementia (FTD) have a profound negative impact on disease outcomes and care burden. Available pharmacotherapies might be supported by small-scale randomized controlled trials (RCTs); however, clinical recommendations might not be conclusive.

Methods: We systematically searched several databases from inception to April 30, 2022, for RCTs of drug therapy in patients with FTD and neuropsychiatric symptoms (primary outcome).

Efficacy of Blue LED Phototherapy on Sleep Quality and Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia: A Double-Blind Randomized Controlled Trial.

Introduction: People with dementia often experience behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD), which are a major cause of caregiver burden and institutionalization. Therefore, we conducted a double-blind, parallel-group randomized controlled trial to examine the efficacy of blue-enriched light therapy for BPSD in institutionalized older adults with dementia.

Methods: Participants were enrolled and randomly allocated into blue-enriched light therapy (N = 30) or the conventional light group (N = 30) for 60 min in 10 weeks with five sessions per week.

Advanced brain age in community-dwelling population with combined physical and cognitive impairments.

We investigated whether advanced brain biological age is associated with accelerated age-related physical and/or cognitive functional decline: mobility impairment no disability (MIND), cognitive impairment no dementia (CIND), and physio-cognitive decline syndrome (PCDS). We constructed a brain age prediction model using gray matter features from the magnetic resonance imaging of 1482 healthy individuals (aged 18-92 years). Predicted and chronological age differences were obtained (brain age gap [BAG]) and analyzed in another 1193 community-dwelling population aged ≥50 years.

Examining the relationship between personality traits, work experience, burnout, and intention to stay among home care aides in Taiwan.

Background: Home care aides play an important role in providing long-term care services, but there is currently an insufficient supply of workers to meet the growing demand in Taiwan due to the increasing number of older adults and people with disabilities requiring care. There are numerous factors that influence the retention of home care aides. Previous research has indicated that taking employees' individual personalities into account can enhance task delegation and organizational efficiency within an organization.

D2 Receptors and Sodium Ion Channel Blockades of the Basolateral Amygdala Attenuate Lithium Chloride-Induced Conditioned Taste Aversion Applying to Cancer Chemotherapy Nausea and Vomiting.

Cancer patients regularly suffer from the behavioral symptoms of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting. Particularly, it is involved in Pavlovian conditioning. Lithium chloride (LiCl) was used as the unconditioned stimulus (US) and contingent with the tastant, for example, a saccharin solution (i.

Sebacic Acid as a Potential Age-Related Biomarker of Liver Aging: Evidence Linking Mice and Human.

The aging process is complicated and involves diverse organ dysfunction; furthermore, the biomarkers that are able to reflect biological aging are eagerly sought after to monitor the system-wide decline associated with the aging process. To address this, we performed a metabolomics analysis using a longitudinal cohort study from Taiwan (N = 710) and established plasma metabolomic age using a machine learning algorithm. The resulting estimation of age acceleration among the older adults was found to be correlated with HOMA-insulin resistance.

Prostate Health Index Density Outperforms Prostate-specific Antigen Density in the Diagnosis of Clinically Significant Prostate Cancer in Equivocal Magnetic Resonance Imaging of the Prostate: A Multicenter Evaluation.

Purpose: We compare Prostate Health Index, Prostate Health Index density, and PSA density in predicting clinically significant prostate cancer in MRI-guided prostate biopsy.

Materials And Methods: This is a multicenter evaluation of prospectively maintained prostate biopsy databases at 10 urology centers. Men with Prostate Health Index and MRI-guided targeted and systematic prostate biopsy performed and without prior prostate cancer diagnosis were included.

Intrinsic capacity differs from functional ability in predicting 10-year mortality and biological features in healthy aging: results from the I-Lan longitudinal aging study.

This study aimed to explore the biological features and mortality risk of intrinsic capacity (IC) and functional ability (FA). Based on data from 1839 participants from the I-Lan Longitudinal Aging Study, multivariable Cox proportional hazard models were used to evaluate the predictive ability of IC (range 0-100) and FA (range 0-100) on 10-year mortality. Of 2038 repeated measurements for IC within a 7-year observational period, multivariable logistic regression was used to compare biological features of participants with maintained, improved and rapidly deteriorated IC.

Clinical and genetic characterization of NIPA1 mutations in a Taiwanese cohort with hereditary spastic paraplegia.

Objective: NIPA1 mutations have been implicated in hereditary spastic paraplegia (HSP) as the cause of spastic paraplegia type 6 (SPG6). The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical and genetic features of SPG6 in a Taiwanese HSP cohort.

Methods: We screened 242 unrelated Taiwanese patients with HSP for NIPA1 mutations.

Left Ventricular Apical Aneurysm in Fabry Disease: Implications for Clinical Significance and Risk Stratification.

Background A previously underrecognized phenotype of left ventricular apical aneurysm (LVAA) has been increasingly identified in Fabry disease. This study explored LVAA's clinical prevalence and its prognostic implications over a long-term follow-up. Methods and Results We retrospectively analyzed 268 consecutive patients with Fabry disease at a tertiary medical center.

Anti-tumor necrosis factor-α is potentially better than tumor necrosis factor-α as the biomarker for sarcopenia: Results from the I-Lan longitudinal aging study.

Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α is a proinflammatory cytokine involved in the pathogenesis of sarcopenia, but its short half-life and inconsistent reproducibility limit the potential of TNF-α to be an ideal sarcopenia biomarker. Anti-TNF-α, a natural consequent autoantibody to TNF-α, is an indicator of relatively prolonged TNF-α exposure, has more stable concentrations than TNF-α and should be a better alternative as a biomarker of sarcopenia. Data from 484 participants from the I-Lan Longitudinal Aging Study were used for this study, and sarcopenia was defined by the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia 2019 consensus.

Sex-specific impacts of social isolation on loneliness, depressive symptoms, cognitive impairment, and biomarkers: Results from the social environment and biomarker of aging study.

Objectives: To investigate sex-specific associations between social isolation and psychological outcomes and biomarkers among community-dwelling middle-aged and older adults using a nationally representative population-based cohort study.

Methods: Data from 757 participants from the Social Environment and Biomarkers of Aging Study (SEBAS) were retrieved for analysis, and all participants were stratified by sex. The associations between social isolation and psychological outcomes (loneliness, depressive symptoms, and cognitive impairment) at the 4-year follow-up were examined by multivariate logistic regression models, and associations between social isolation and biomarkers at the 4-year follow-up were examined by multivariate generalized linear models (GLMs).

Ophthalmic characteristics and retinal vasculature changes in Williams syndrome, and its association with systemic diseases.

Background: We aim to characterise the ophthalmic findings and retinal vasculature changes in patients with WS, and to analyse the correlation between ophthalmic manifestations and the associated systemic diseases.

Methods: This retrospective case-control study included 27 WS patients and 28 age-matched healthy participants. Stellate pattern of iris, central macular thickness (CMT), foveal width, retinal vessel diameter, superficial vascular density (SVD) of macula and foveal avascular zone (FAZ) were compared between WS patients and healthy participants.

Cerebral small vessel disease is associated with concurrent physical and cognitive impairments at preclinical stage.

Background: Physio-cognitive decline syndrome (PCDS) is a clinical construct of concurrent physical mobility and cognitive impairments in non-demented functional preserved elderly who are at risk of dementia and disable. The present study aimed to evaluate whether cerebral small vessel disease (SVD) is associated with this phenotype of accelerated aging.

Methods: We stratified a non-demented non-stroke community-based population aged 50 or older into four groups: robust, isolated cognitive impairment no dementia (CIND), isolated physical mobility impairment no disable (MIND) and PCDS groups.

Bleb-related infection after primary trabeculectomy: medical chart reviews from 1993 to 2021.

Background: To investigate the incidence of and risk factors for bleb-related infection (BRI) in patients who underwent mitomycin C-augmented primary trabeculectomy.

Methods: We reviewed the medical charts of consecutive patients who had received primary trabeculectomy in Taipei Veterans General Hospital. We recorded the demographic and clinical characteristics of patients before, during and after surgery.