Cognitive Recovery After Stroke: A Meta-analysis and Metaregression of Intervention and Cohort Studies.

BACKGROUND: Cognition affects poststroke recovery, but meta-analyses of cognition have not yet provided a comparison of observational and intervention evidence. OBJECTIVE: To describe the trajectory of poststroke cognition and the factors that moderate it across intervention and observational cohorts. METHODS: Six databases were searched up to January 2020. Studies describing quantitative changes in cognition in adults poststroke were included. Interventions were classified into pharmacological, therapist-led, nonroutine/alternative, and usual care. Summary estimates were compared via hierarchical mixed-effects models. Age, recovery stage, stroke etiology, cognitive domain targeted in studies, and intervention types were investigated as moderators of cognition. Recovery stage and intervention were further analyzed in a multiplicative metaregression model. RESULTS: A total of 43 intervention trials and 79 observation cohorts involving 28 222 stroke participants were included. Heterogeneity was significant (τ2 = 0.09; CI = 0.01-0.21, P < .001) with no evidence of publication bias. Cognitive recovery was greater in intervention trials (g = 0.47; CI = 0.37-0.58) than observational cohorts (g = 0.28; CI = 0.20-0.36) across all moderators analyzed. Nonroutine/alternative and pharmacological trials achieved the best overall results (g = 0.57, CI = 0.42-0.73, and g = 0.52, CI = 0.30-0.74, respectively), followed by therapist-led (g = 0.46; CI = 0.17-0.74), and usual care (g = 0.28; CI = 0.11-0.45) interventions. Medium recovery effects (ie, g ≥ 0.5) were observed in examining first-ever stroke, executive function, visuo-perceptual, consciousness, and psychomotor skills, 61 to 180 days poststroke, in participants aged 65 to 70 years. CONCLUSION: Cognitive recovery is possible using different controlled interventions in all recovery stages, with smaller benefits ≥2 years poststroke. Longer-term studies are needed to determine the role of nonroutine/alternative therapies and the association between cognitive recovery and performance in everyday activities.

Pre-existing Comorbidity Burden and Patient Perceived Stroke Impact.

BACKGROUND: Pre-existing comorbidities can compromise recovery post-stroke. However, the association between comorbidity burden and patient-rated perceived impact has not been systematically investigated. To date, only observer-rated outcome measures of function, disability, and dependence have been used, despite the complexity of the impact of stroke on an individual. AIM: Our aim was to explore the association between comorbidity burden and patient-rated perceived impact and overall recovery, within the first-year post-stroke, after adjusting for stroke severity, age, and sex. METHODS: The sample comprised 177 stroke survivors from 18 hospitals throughout Australia and New Zealand. Comorbidity burden was calculated using the Charlson Comorbidity Index. Perceived impact and recovery were measured by the Stroke Impact Scale index and Stroke Impact Scale overall recovery scale. Quantile regression models were applied to investigate the association between comorbidity burden and perceived impact and recovery. RESULTS: Significant negative associations between the Charlson Comorbidity Index and the Stroke Impact Scale index were found at three months. At the .25 quantile, a one-point increase on the Charlson Comorbidity Index was associated with 6.80-points decrease on the Stroke Impact Scale index (95%CI: -11.26, -2.34; p = .003). At the median and .75 quantile, a one-point increase on the Charlson Comorbidity Index was associated, respectively, with 3.58-points decrease (95%CI: -5.62, -1.54; p = .001) and 1.76-points decrease (95%CI: -2.80, -0.73; p = .001) on the Stroke Impact Scale index. At 12 months, at the .25 and .75 quantiles, a one-point increase on the Charlson Comorbidity Index was associated, respectively, with 6.47-points decrease (95%CI: -11.05, -1.89; p = .006) and 1.26-points decrease (95%CI: -2.11, -0.42; p = .004) on the Stroke Impact Scale index. For the Stroke Impact Scale overall recovery measure, significant negative associations were found only at the median at three months and at the .75 quantile at 12 months. CONCLUSION: Comorbidity burden is independently associated with patient-rated perceived impact within the first-year post-stroke. The addition of patient-rated impact measures in personalized rehabilitation may enhance the use of conventional observer-rated outcome measures.

Characterisation of aggression in Huntington's disease: rates, types and antecedents in an inpatient rehabilitation setting.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To systematically review aggression in an inpatient Huntington's cohort examining rates, types and antecedents. BACKGROUND: Although the prevalence of aggression in Huntington's disease is high, research into this problematic behaviour has been limited. Few studies have investigated the nature of aggressive behaviour in Huntington's disease or antecedents that contribute to its occurrence. DESIGN: A systematic, double-coded, electronic medical file audit. METHODS: The electronic hospital medical records of 10 people with Huntington's disease admitted to a brain disorders unit were audited for a 90-day period using the Overt Aggression Scale-Modified for Neurorehabilitation framework, yielding 900 days of clinical data. RESULTS: Nine of 10 clients exhibited aggression during the audit period. Both verbal (37·1%) aggression and physical aggression were common (33·8%), along with episodes of mixed verbal and physical aggression (15·2%), while aggression to objects/furniture was less prevalent (5·5%). The most common antecedent was physical guidance with personal care, far exceeding any other documented antecedents, and acting as the most common trigger for four of the nine clients who exhibited aggression. For the remaining five clients, there was intraindividual heterogeneity in susceptibility to specific antecedents. CONCLUSION: In Huntington's sufferers at mid- to late stages following disease onset, particular care should be made with personal care assistance due to the propensity for these procedures to elicit an episode of aggression. However, given the degree of intraindividual heterogeneity in susceptibility to specific antecedents observed in the present study, individualised behaviour support plans and sensory modulation interventions may be the most useful in identifying triggers and managing aggressive episodes. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Rates of aggression in Huntington's disease inpatients can be high. Knowledge of potential triggers, such as personal care, is important for nursing and care staff, so that attempts can be made to minimise distress for patients and maximise the personal safety of care staff.

Chronic behavior disturbance and neurocognitive deficits in neuro-Behcet's disease: a case study.

Behcet's disease is a vasculitis and multisystem inflammatory syndrome. Neurological abnormalities occur in a subset of patients. This report presents a case of neuro-Behcet's disease characterized by an initial onset of behavior changes prior to diagnosis, which evolved into a chronic behavioral syndrome. Neuroimaging investigations revealed progressive periventricular white matter and brainstem atrophy and lesions in the basal ganglia and deep white matter tracts, while neuropsychological investigations revealed reductions in information processing, executive functioning, and memory. The case indicates that behavior changes may be the first symptoms to emerge in Behcet's, before other defining features of the disease.

Aggression in Huntington's disease: a systematic review of rates of aggression and treatment methods.

Aggression is commonly reported in individuals with Huntington's disease (HD). While correlating factors for aggression are often speculated about, features that are associated with, and contribute to, aggression in this population have not been clearly determined. This systematic review investigates rates of aggression and treatment options for aggression in HD. A number of key findings were revealed. Studies reporting on rates of aggression revealed that its prevalence is high, falling between 22 and 66 percent in the majority of studies. Aggression may be more common in males with HD, and is also found in higher rates in individuals who experience frequent falls, have obsessive-compulsive symptoms and suicidal ideation. There is little research investigating antecedents for aggression in HD. A wide variety of psychotropic medications have been reported in the literature to treat individuals with HD and aggressive behaviour. However, due to methodological limitations, no treatment recommendations can be made, based on the current literature. Two non-medication therapies have been investigated, behaviour support and sensory modulation intervention. However, again, due to methodological limitations with these studies, further research is needed before they can be recommended as frontline interventions. This review highlights the need for further methodologically rigorous studies investigating the treatment of aggression in HD.