RESUMEN
Stroke is an acute cerebrovascular condition causing damage to cranial nerves and requires subsequent rehabilitation treatment. In clinical practice, the effectiveness of rehabilitation is usually subjectively assessed by experienced physicians or using global prognostic scales. Several brain imaging techniques, such as positron emission tomography, functional magnetic resonance imaging, and computed tomography angiography, can be applied in rehabilitation effectiveness evaluation, but their complexity and long measurement times limit the activity of patients during measurement. This paper proposes an intelligent headband system based on near-infrared spectroscopy. An optical headband continuously and noninvasively monitors changes in hemoglobin parameters in the brain. The system's wearable headband and wireless transmission provide convenience of use. According to the change of hemoglobin parameters during rehabilitation exercise, several indexes were also defined to evaluate the state of cardiopulmonary function and further build the neural network model of the cardiopulmonary function evaluation. Finally, the relationship between the defined indexes and the cardiopulmonary function state were investigated and the neural network model for the cardiopulmonary function evaluation was also applied in the rehabilitation effect evaluation. The experimental results show the cardiopulmonary function state could reflect on most of the defined indexes and the output of neural network model, and the rehabilitation therapy could also improve the cardiopulmonary function.
RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Studies have reported conflicting evidence regarding whether chemotherapy leads to dementia. This study aimed to determine whether chemotherapy increases dementia risk in Taiwanese patients with colorectal cancer (CRC). METHODS: Data from the Taiwan Cancer Registry and National Health Insurance Research Database were used. Patients newly diagnosed as having CRC between 2007 and 2015 without prior history of dementia or neurodegenerative disorders were identified. Based on whether they underwent chemotherapy, patients were divided into chemotherapy and non-chemotherapy groups. Those who later developed dementia were identified using validated diagnostic codes. The Fine and Gray subdistribution hazard model for all-cause dementia with competing risk of death was applied for all patients or each stratified group. RESULTS: A total of 76,130 patients with CRC were included, with 45,872 (60.25%) in the chemotherapy group and 30,258 (39.75%) in the non-chemotherapy group. A higher incidence of dementia was observed in the non-chemotherapy group compared with the chemotherapy group (3.75% vs. 2.40%, p < 0.0001), but the risk of dementia did not differ between the groups (adjusted subdistribution hazard ratio [HRSD] = 0.97, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.88-1.06, p = 0.492). In the stratified analysis, chemotherapy was a risk factor for dementia in patients aged > 80 years (adjusted HRSD = 1.20, 95% CI: 1.03-1.40, p = 0.0190), whereas gender, clinical cancer stage, comorbidities, surgery, and radiation therapy had no impact on the risk of dementia. CONCLUSION: Chemotherapy increased the risk of dementia in elderly patients with CRC, highlighting the necessity to monitor their cognitive function after chemotherapy.
