Bojsengreenberg9811
The extent of neurodegeneration underlying essential tremor (ET) remains a matter of debate. Despite various extents of cerebellar atrophy on structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), previous studies have shown substantial heterogeneity and included a limited number of patients. Novel automated pipelines allow detailed segmentation of cerebellar lobules based on structural MRI.
To compare the volumes of cerebellar lobules in ET patients with those in healthy controls (HCs) using an automated segmentation pipeline.
Structural MRI scans of ET patients eligible for deep brain stimulation (
= 55) and of age-matched and gender-matched HCs (
= 55, from the IXI database) were segmented using the automated CEREbellum Segmentation pipeline. Lobule-specific volume differences between the ET and HC groups were evaluated using a general linear model corrected for multiple tests.
Total brain tissue volumes did not differ between the ET and HC groups. ET patients demonstrated reduced volumes of lobules I-II, left Crus II, left VIIB, and an increased volume of right X when compared with the HC group.
A large cohort of ET patients demonstrated subtle signs of decreased cerebellar lobule volumes. These findings oppose the hypothesis of localized atrophy in cerebellar motor areas in ET, but not the possibility of cerebellar pathophysiology in ET. Prospective investigations using alternative neuroimaging modalities may further elucidate the pathophysiology of ET and provide insights into diagnostic and therapeutic approaches.
A large cohort of ET patients demonstrated subtle signs of decreased cerebellar lobule volumes. These findings oppose the hypothesis of localized atrophy in cerebellar motor areas in ET, but not the possibility of cerebellar pathophysiology in ET. Prospective investigations using alternative neuroimaging modalities may further elucidate the pathophysiology of ET and provide insights into diagnostic and therapeutic approaches.Aging affects the vestibular system and may disturb the perception of verticality and lead to increased visual dependence (VD). Studies have identified that abnormal upright perception influences the risk of falling. The aim of our study was to evaluate subjective visual vertical (SVV) and VD using a mobile virtual reality-based system for SVV assessment (VIRVEST) in older adults with falls and evaluate its relationship with clinical balance assessment tools, dizziness, mental state, and depression level. This study included 37 adults >65 years who experienced falls and 40 non-faller age-matched controls. Three tests were performed using the VIRVEST system a static SVV, dynamic SVV with clockwise and counter-clockwise background stimulus motion. VD was calculated as the mean of absolute values of the rod tilt from each trial of dynamic SVV minus the mean static SVV rod tilt. Older adults who experienced falls manifested significantly larger biases in static SVV (p = 0.012), dynamic SVV (p less then 0.001), and VD (p = 0.014) than controls. The increase in static SVV (odds ratio = 1.365, p = 0.023), dynamic SVV (odds ratio = 1.623, p less then 0.001) and VD (odds ratio = 1.460, p = 0.010) tilt by one degree significantly related to falls risk in the faller group. Fallers who had a high risk of falling according to the Tinetti test exhibited significantly higher tilts of dynamic SVV than those who had a low or medium risk (p = 0.037). In the faller group, the increase of the dynamic SVV tilt by one degree was significantly related to falls risk according to the Tinetti test (odds ratio = 1.356, p = 0.049). SVV errors, particularly with the dynamic SVV test (i.e., greater VD) were associated with an increased risk of falling in the faller group. The VIRVEST system may be applicable in clinical settings for SVV testing and predicting falls in older adults.
Cholesterol levels have been associated with age-related cognitive decline, however, such an association has not been comprehensively explored in people with Parkinson's disease (PD). To address this uncertainty, the current cross-sectional study examined the cholesterol profile and cognitive performance in a cohort of PD patients.
Cognitive function was evaluated using two validated assessments (ACE-R and SCOPA-COG) in 182 people with PD from the Australian Parkinson's Disease Registry. Total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), and Triglyceride (TRG) levels were examined within this cohort. The influence of individual lipid subfractions on domain-specific cognitive performance was investigated using covariate-adjusted generalised linear models.
Females with PD exhibited significantly higher lipid subfraction levels (TC, HDL, and LDL) when compared to male counterparts. While accounting for covariates, HDL levels were strongly associated with poorer performance across multiple cognitive domains in females but not males. Conversely, TC and LDL levels were not associated with cognitive status in people with PD.
Higher serum HDL associates with poorer cognitive function in females with PD and presents a sex-specific biomarker for cognitive impairment in PD.
Higher serum HDL associates with poorer cognitive function in females with PD and presents a sex-specific biomarker for cognitive impairment in PD.Dementia is a global public health problem and its impact is bound to increase in the next decades, with a rapidly aging world population. Dementia is by no means an obligatory outcome of aging, although its incidence increases exponentially in old age, and its onset may be insidious. In the absence of unequivocal biomarkers, the accuracy of cognitive profiling plays a fundamental role in the diagnosis of this condition. In this Perspective article, we highlight the utility of brief global cognitive tests in the diagnostic process, from the initial detection stage for which they are designed, through the differential diagnosis of dementia. We also argue that neuropsychological training and expertise are critical in order for the information gathered from these omnibus cognitive tests to be used in an efficient and effective way, and thus, ultimately, for them to fulfill their potential.Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, older adults have been found to be a highly vulnerable group, with a higher prevalence of severe cases and negative outcomes. Research has focused on the reasons why older adults are at greater risk; Sleep-related factors have been suggested as one possible explanation for this. AS1842856 order An individual's sleep pattern undergoes significant changes over the course of their life. In older adults a specific sleep profile can be observed, one characterized by advanced sleep timing, a morningness preference, longer sleep-onset latency, shorter overall sleep duration, increased sleep fragmentation, reduced slow-wave sleep and, increased wake time after sleep onset. Additionally, an increased prevalence of sleep disorders can be observed, such as obstructive sleep apnea and insomnia. Previous research has already linked sleep disorders (especially sleep apnea) with COVID-19, but few studies have focused specifically on the older population. We believe that the intrinsic sleep patterns of older adults, and the prevalence of sleep disorders in this population, may be important factors that could explain why they are at a greater risk of negative COVID-19 outcomes. In this review, we discuss the relationship between sleep and COVID-19 among older adults, focusing on three different aspects (1) Sleep-related issues that might increase the likelihood of getting infected by SARS-COV-2; (2) Sleep disturbances that might increase the predisposition to worse COVID-19 prognosis and outcomes; and (3) COVID-19-related aspects affecting community-dwelling older adults, such as social isolation, quarantine, and home confinement, among others, that might impact sleep.Tinnitus can be a burdensome condition on both individual and societal levels. Many aspects of this condition remain elusive, including its underlying mechanisms, ultimately hindering the development of a cure. Interdisciplinary approaches are required to overcome long-established research challenges. This review summarizes current knowledge in various tinnitus-relevant research fields including tinnitus generating mechanisms, heterogeneity, epidemiology, assessment, and treatment development, in an effort to highlight the main challenges and provide suggestions for future research to overcome them. Four common themes across different areas were identified as future research direction (1) Further establishment of multicenter and multidisciplinary collaborations; (2) Systematic reviews and syntheses of existing knowledge; (3) Standardization of research methods including tinnitus assessment, data acquisition, and data analysis protocols; (4) The design of studies with large sample sizes and the creation of large tinnitus-specific databases that would allow in-depth exploration of tinnitus heterogeneity.Normative aging and Alzheimer's disease (AD) propagation alter anatomical connections among brain parcels. However, the interaction between the trajectories of age- and AD-linked alterations in the topology of the structural brain network is not well understood. In this study, diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) datasets of 139 subjects from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) database were used to document their structural brain networks. The 139 participants consist of 45 normal controls (NCs), 37 with early mild cognitive impairment (EMCI), 27 with late mild cognitive impairment (LMCI), and 30 AD patients. All subjects were further divided into three subgroups based on their age (56-65, 66-75, and 71-85 years). After the structural connectivity networks were built using anatomically-constrained deterministic tractography, their global and nodal topological properties were estimated, including network efficiency, characteristic path length, transitivity, modularity coefficth early anatomic changes associated with AD.Older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) have a high risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. Gait performance is a potential clinical marker for the progression of MCI into dementia. However, the relationship between gait and brain functional connectivity (FC) in older adults with MCI remains unclear. Forty-five subjects [MCI group, n = 23; healthy control (HC) group, n = 22] were recruited. Each subject performed a walking task (Task 01), counting backward-walking task (Task 02), naming animals-walking task (Task 03), and calculating-walking task (Task 04). The gait parameters and cerebral oxygenation signals from the left prefrontal cortex (LPFC), right prefrontal cortex (RPFC), left motor cortex (LMC), right motor cortex (RMC), left occipital leaf cortex (LOL), and right occipital leaf cortex (ROL) were obtained simultaneously. Wavelet phase coherence was calculated in two frequency intervals low frequency (interval I, 0.052-0.145 Hz) and very low frequency (interval II, 0.021-0.052 Hz). Results showed that the FC of RPFC-RMC is significantly lower in interval I in Task 03 compared with that in Task 02 in the MCI group (p = 0.001). Also, the right relative symmetry index (IDpsR) is significantly lower in Task 03 compared with that in Task 02 (p = 0.000). The IDpsR is positively correlated with the FC of RPFC-RMC in interval I in the MCI group (R = 0.205, p = 0.041). The gait symmetry such as left relative symmetry index (IDpsL) and IDpsR is significantly lower in the dual-task (DT) situation compared with the single task in the two groups (p less then 0.05). The results suggested that the IDpsR might reflect abnormal change in FC of RPFC-RMC in interval I in the MCI population during Task 03. The gait symmetry is affected by DTs in both groups. The findings of this study may have a pivotal role in the early monitoring and intervention of brain dysfunction among older adults with MCI.
