INTRODUCTION There are few intervention studies that demonstrated linking social participation to lower risk of cognitive decline. We examined prospectively the protective effect of a community intervention program promoting social participation on the incidence of cognitive disability. METHODS The baseline was established in a survey of community-dwelling older people aged 65 years old or mo...

OBJECTIVE To investigate the role of the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene val66met polymorphism in the association between stroke and depression. METHOD Five hundred community residents aged >65 years without stroke or depression at baseline were re-evaluated after 2 years. Disability (World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule, WHODAS II), cognitive function (Mini-...

Examined the effectiveness of a cognitive behavioral intervention to help adolescents with cystic fibrosis (CF) cope with daily stressors. Five youths were referred for the therapy by medical staff because of perceived problems with anxiety or coping. Treatment impact was assessed on measures of coping, anxiety, perceptions of functional disability, and parental reports of behavior. A multiple ...

BACKGROUND The global epidemiological shift of disease burden towards long-term conditions means understanding long-term outcomes of cardiovascular disease is increasingly important. More people are surviving stroke to experience its long-term consequences, but outcomes in people living more >10 years after stroke have not been described in detail. METHODS Data were collected for the populati...

AIMS To determine whether neonatal plasma catecholamine concentrations can be used to predict (a) death plus disability and (b) motor and cognitive impairment at 5 years of age. METHODS A cohort comprised 136 preterm infants from two randomised controlled trials of neonatal sedation (1989-1992). Adrenaline (epinephrine) and noradrenaline (norepinephrine) were measured at baseline (first day) ...

BACKGROUND The natural history of cognitive impairment in multiple sclerosis (MS) and its relationship with disease activity is not well known. In this study, we evaluate a prospective cohort of 44 MS patients who were followed every 3 months for 2 years. Cognitive evaluation was done at baseline and by the end of the study using the Brief Repeatable Battery-Neuropsychology. Clinical evaluation...

BACKGROUND Frailty is considered to be a clinical syndrome characterized by decreased physiological reserves associated with a greater risk of health-related problems, hospitalization, and death. The current study examined hospitalization, falls, cognitive decline and disability between robust, prefrail and frail elderly in one year. METHODS 110 participants aged 65 or more who visited two se...

In order to characterise the overall clinical picture of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) a better understanding of all relevant comorbidities is required. It is increasingly recognised that COPD is a multi-component disease, but little attention has been paid to its effects on cognitive function. Cognitive dysfunction is associated with increased mortality and disability; however, ...

BACKGROUND Multiple sclerosis (MS) has a highly heterogenic course making prediction of long term outcome very difficult. OBJECTIVE The objective was to evaluate current and identify additional clinical factors that are linked to long term outcome of relapsing-remitting MS assessed by disability status 10 years after disease onset. METHODS This observational study included 793 patients with...

BACKGROUND Many older persons experience multiple transitions between states of disability and independence, but little is known about the effect of prior disability history on subsequent functional transitions. Our objective was to determine the effect of prior disability on subsequent transitions between no disability, mild disability, severe disability, and death. METHODS For 60 months, 75...