RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Apathy is common in people with cognitive impairment. It leads to different consequences, such as more severe cognitive deficits, rapid functional decline, and decreased quality of life. Virtual reality (VR) interventions are increasingly being used to manage apathy in individuals with cognitive impairment. However, reports of VR interventions are scattered across studies, which has hindered the development and use of the interventions. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to systematically review existing evidence on the use of VR interventions for managing apathy in people with cognitive impairment with regard to the effectiveness, contents, and implementation of the interventions. METHODS: The PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines were followed. The PubMed, Embase, CINAHL, and PsycINFO databases were systematically searched for experimental studies published up to March 13, 2022, that reported the effects of VR interventions on apathy in older adults with cognitive impairment. Hand searching and citation chasing were conducted. The results of the included studies were synthesized by using a narrative synthesis. Their quality was appraised by using the Effective Public Health Practice Project quality assessment tool. However, because the VR interventions varied in duration, content, and implementation across studies, a meta-analysis was not conducted. RESULTS: A total of 22 studies were identified from the databases, of which 6 (27%) met the inclusion criteria. Of these 6 studies, 2 (33%) were randomized controlled trials, 1 (17%) was a controlled clinical trial, and 3 (50%) were quasi-experimental studies. Individual studies showed significant improvement in apathy and yielded within-group medium to large effect sizes. The level of immersion ranged from low to high. Minor adverse effects were reported. The VR content mostly included natural scenes, followed by city views and game-based activities. A background soundtrack was often used with natural scenes. Most (5/6, 83%) of the studies were conducted in a residential care setting and were implemented by health care professionals or researchers. Safety precautions were taken in most (5/6, 83%) of the studies. CONCLUSIONS: Although preliminary evidence shows that VR interventions may be effective and feasible for alleviating apathy in people with cognitive impairment, the methodological limitations in the included studies make it difficult to reach a firm conclusion on these points. The implementation of the interventions was highlighted and discussed. More rigorous studies are encouraged. TRIAL REGISTRATION: PROSPERO International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews CRD42021268289; https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?ID=CRD42021268289.
RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Infections caused by the pandemic H1N1 2009 influenza virus range from mild upper respiratory tract syndromes to fatal diseases. However, studies comparing virological and immunological profile of different clinical severity are lacking. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 74 patients with pandemic H1N1 infection, including 23 patients who either developed acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) or died (ARDS-death group), 14 patients with desaturation requiring oxygen supplementation and who survived without ARDS (survived-without-ARDS group), and 37 patients with mild disease without desaturation (mild-disease group). We compared their pattern of clinical disease, viral load, and immunological profile. RESULTS: Patients with severe disease were older, more likely to be obese or having underlying diseases, and had lower respiratory tract symptoms, especially dyspnea at presentation. The ARDS-death group had a slower decline in nasopharyngeal viral loads, had higher plasma levels of proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines, and were more likely to have bacterial coinfections (30.4%), myocarditis (21.7%), or viremia (13.0%) than patients in the survived-without-ARDS or the mild-disease groups. Reactive hemophagocytosis, thrombotic phenomena, lymphoid atrophy, diffuse alveolar damage, and multiorgan dysfunction similar to fatal avian influenza A H5N1 infection were found at postmortem examinations. CONCLUSIONS: The slower control of viral load and immunodysregulation in severe cases mandate the search for more effective antiviral and immunomodulatory regimens to stop the excessive cytokine activation resulting in ARDS and death.