Association between executive and physical functions in people with Parkinson's disease.

PURPOSE: People with Parkinson's disease (PD) can develop cognitive and physical impairments. There is limited evidence on the association between executive function and physical function in people with PD. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to investigate the association between the executive and physical functions in people with Parkinson's disease (PD) by comparing healthy controls. METHOD: Thirty-three patients diagnosed with PD and 33 healthy controls were included in the study. PD group was divided into two subgroups according to their scores on executive tests as high performers (PD-HPs; n = 17) and low performers (PD-LPs; n = 16). The severity of motor symptoms disease severity, executive function, global cognitive function, reaction time, hand function, functional capacity, physical activity, and balance confidence was assessed by the validated instruments. RESULTS: The PD group had less physical function and executive function compared to healthy controls (p < 0.05). The PD-LPs group had less physical and cognitive function than the PD-HPs group (p < 0.05). The executive functions were significantly correlated with almost all variables in both people with PD and healthy people, and correlations were moderate to strong (p < 0.05). However, the correlation coefficients were relatively higher in people with PD compared to healthy controls. CONCLUSION: There was a significant association between executive and physical function in people with PD. Future studies should be conducted to determine whether the treatment of one of these dysfunctions affects the other.

Investigating Wrist Joint Position Sense and Hand Functions in Children With Polyarticular Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis With Wrist Involvement.

Comparing the wrist joint position sense and hand functions between children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) and healthy controls, and determining possible relationships between these parameters in children with JIA were the aims of this study. Twenty children with polyarticular JIA with wrist involvement (JIAWrist+), 20 children with other subtypes of JIA without wrist involvement (JIAWrist-), and 20 healthy controls were included. Wrist joint position sense was evaluated by measuring joint repositioning error. Hand functions were assessed by using the Purdue Pegboard test, hand grip strength, pinch strength, and Duruoz Hand Index. Joint position sense and hand functions were diminished in the JIAWrist+ group compared with healthy control group (P < .05). Few moderate relationships were detected between hand functions and wrist joint position sense (P < .05). Improving proprioceptive acuity by appropriate training methods may have a role in enhancing hand functions.

Effect of cervical stabilization exercises on cervical position error in patients with axial spondyloarthritis: a randomized controlled pilot study.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of cervical stabilization exercises on cervical position error in patients with axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty-nine patients with axSpA were randomly allocated to two groups as exercise group (n = 20, 11 males) and control group (n = 19, 12 males). The exercise group performed a progressive home-based cervical stabilization exercise program, while the control group did not receive any exercise intervention. To control exercise adherence and progression, text messages and video instructions were delivered via a freeware and cross-platform messaging service on a weekly basis. All patients were evaluated regarding physical characteristics, disease activity (Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index), functional status (Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index), and spinal mobility (Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Metrology Index). Cervical position error was evaluated in flexion, extension, rotation, and lateral flexion directions. All evaluations were performed at baseline and after 6 weeks. RESULTS: Baseline physical and disease-related characteristics were similar between the groups (p > 0.05). After 6 weeks, significant improvements were observed in cervical position error in all directions in the exercise group (p < 0.05), whereas no improvements were detected in the control group (p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: A 6-week home-based cervical stabilization exercise program seems to be beneficial for improving impaired cervical proprioception in patients with axSpA.

The Turkish version of the SPPIC validated among informal caregivers with a Turkish immigrant background.

BACKGROUND: This study assesses the internal consistency and known group validity of the Turkish version of the SPPIC, a measurement instrument to assess the self perceived pressure from informal care in family caregivers of people with dementia that was originally in Dutch. METHODS: The feasibility, comprehensibility and appropriateness of the Turkish SPPIC were assessed during a pilot test. Internal consistency was examined based on data from 117 family caregivers with a Turkish immigrant background by calculating Cronbach's alpha and by conducting a single-factor Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). Known group validity was determined to obtain an understanding of the validity of the translated instrument, testing differences in the self-perceived pressure from informal care, depending on frequency of caregiving, living with a person with dementia and level of education. RESULTS: The pilot test showed that the translated SPPIC was considered to be feasible, comprehensible and appropriate. The internal consistency appeared to be strong (Cronbach's alpha: 0.94). The CFA indicated that the factor 'Self-perceived Pressure from Informal Care' explained varying levels of variance in the items of the SPPIC (ranging from .52 to .87). Family caregivers who provided care at least once a week and who shared a home with a person with dementia perceived a greater pressure from informal care (p = 0.007, p = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The Turkish translation of the SPPIC can be used in future research and practice to obtain insight into self-perceived pressure from informal care of family caregivers with Turkish immigrant backgrounds. At the same time it is recommended to conduct more research on how the measurement of self-perceived pressure from informal care in this group can be further improved.

Timed Up and Go Test With a Cognitive Task: Correlations With Neuropsychological Measures in People With Parkinson's Disease.

Background The Timed Up and Go (TUG) test is a simple and widely used clinical test for the assessment of lower extremity function, balance, mobility, and fall risk in various populations. The TUG has been found as a valid and reliable measure in people with Parkinson's disease (PD). Besides, the addition of a cognitive task to the TUG (TUG-cognitive) enhances predictive validity related to fall risk in people with PD. However, further investigation is needed about the correlations of the TUG-cognitive test with neuropsychological measures in people with PD. Methods Thirty-three people with PD [modified Hoehn and Yahr scale, median (min-max)=2.5 (1.0-3.0)] participated in this cross-sectional study. The TUG was administered in the traditional way and with a cognitive task (counting backward by three from any number between 20 and 100). Neuropsychological measures included the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), Trail Making Test (TMT), and the Simple Reaction Time (SRT) test for stepping. The self-reported number of falls in the last six months was also recorded. Results The TUG-cognitive [13.1 (SD=8.5) seconds] was significantly longer than the TUG-traditional [12.2 (SD=8.1) seconds] (p<0.01). The TUG-cognitive significantly correlated with the MoCA [(rho=-0.712), TMT part A (TMT-A; rho=0.722), TMT part B (TMT-B; rho=0.694), SRT (rho=0.794), and number of falls (rho=0.960)] (p<0.01). The TUG-traditional also significantly correlated with the MoCA (rho=-0.682), TMT-A (rho=0.684), TMT-B (rho=0.746), SRT (rho=0.755), and number of falls (rho=0.702) (p<0.01). Conclusion Both the TUG-cognitive and TUG-traditional strongly correlated with neuropsychological measures; while the correlations were slightly stronger for the TUG-cognitive, the difference was not significant. The TUG-cognitive can be used in the clinical practice as a simple and more informative alternative to the TUG-traditional in people with PD.

Mitigating language and cultural barriers in healthcare communication: Toward a holistic approach.

Due to ongoing globalization and migration waves, healthcare providers are increasingly caring for patients from diverse cultural and/or ethnic minority backgrounds. Adequate health communication with migrants and ethnic minorities is often more difficult to establish compared to people belonging to the majority groups of a given society, because of a combination of language and cultural barriers. To address this topic, in December 2018 a symposium was organized-under the auspices of the Amsterdam Center for Health Communication-during which speakers from both academia and professional practice discussed the current state-of-the-art and brought forward innovative solutions to improve intercultural communication in healthcare. Main questions that were discussed during this symposium included: "How can language barriers in intercultural health communication be mitigated?" and "Which innovations can contribute to improving intercultural health communication?" In this paper, we discuss some answers to these questions and propose that in order to enhance intercultural communication and healthcare for migrant and ethnic minority patients, a more holistic approach to studying when, how, and for what purposes (a combination of) communication strategies should be utilized in mitigating both language and cultural barriers to decrease health disparities and improve health care for migrant and ethnic minority patients.