Benzodiazepine Use and the Risk of Dementia in the Elderly Population: An Umbrella Review of Meta-Analyses.

The prevalence of dementia among the elderly is high, and it is the leading cause of death globally. However, the relationship between benzodiazepine use and dementia risk has produced inconsistent results, necessitating an updated review of the evidence. To address this, we conducted an umbrella review of meta-analyses to summarize the available evidence on the association between benzodiazepine use and dementia risk and evaluate its credibility. We systematically evaluated the meta-analyses of observational studies that examined the connection between benzodiazepine use and dementia risk. For each meta-analysis, we collected the overall effect size, heterogeneity, risk of bias, and year of the most recent article and graded the evidence based on pre-specified criteria. We also used AMSTAR, a measurement tool to evaluate systematic reviews, to assess the methodological quality of each study. Our review included five meta-analyses encompassing 30 studies, and the effect size of the association between benzodiazepine use and dementia risk ranged from 1.38 to 1.78. Nonetheless, the evidence supporting this relationship was weak, and the methodological quality of the studies included was low. In conclusion, our findings revealed limited evidence of a link between benzodiazepine use and dementia risk, and more research is required to determine a causal connection. Physicians should only prescribe benzodiazepine for appropriate indications.

Artificial Intelligence in Dementia: A Bibliometric Study.

The applications of artificial intelligence (AI) in dementia research have garnered significant attention, prompting the planning of various research endeavors in current and future studies. The objective of this study is to provide a comprehensive overview of the research landscape regarding AI and dementia within scholarly publications and to suggest further studies for this emerging research field. A search was conducted in the Web of Science database to collect all relevant and highly cited articles on AI-related dementia research published in English until 16 May 2023. Utilizing bibliometric indicators, a search strategy was developed to assess the eligibility of titles, utilizing abstracts and full texts as necessary. The Bibliometrix tool, a statistical package in R, was used to produce and visualize networks depicting the co-occurrence of authors, research institutions, countries, citations, and keywords. We obtained a total of 1094 relevant articles published between 1997 and 2023. The number of annual publications demonstrated an increasing trend over the past 27 years. Journal of Alzheimer's Disease (39/1094, 3.56%), Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience (38/1094, 3.47%), and Scientific Reports (26/1094, 2.37%) were the most common journals for this domain. The United States (283/1094, 25.86%), China (222/1094, 20.29%), India (150/1094, 13.71%), and England (96/1094, 8.77%) were the most productive countries of origin. In terms of institutions, Boston University, Columbia University, and the University of Granada demonstrated the highest productivity. As for author contributions, Gorriz JM, Ramirez J, and Salas-Gonzalez D were the most active researchers. While the initial period saw a relatively low number of articles focusing on AI applications for dementia, there has been a noticeable upsurge in research within this domain in recent years (2018-2023). The present analysis sheds light on the key contributors in terms of researchers, institutions, countries, and trending topics that have propelled the advancement of AI in dementia research. These findings collectively underscore that the integration of AI with conventional treatment approaches enhances the effectiveness of dementia diagnosis, prediction, classification, and monitoring of treatment progress.

Proton Pump Inhibitors and Risk of Chronic Kidney Disease: Evidence from Observational Studies.

Previous epidemiological studies have raised the concern that the use of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) is associated with an increased risk of kidney diseases. To date, no comprehensive meta-analysis has been conducted to assess the association between PPIs and the risk of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Therefore, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to address the association between PPIs and CKD. The primary search was conducted in the most popular databases, such as PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. All observational studies evaluated the risk of CKD among PPI users, and non-users were considered for inclusion. Two reviewers conducted data extraction and assessed the risk of bias. Random-effect models were used to calculate pooled effect sizes. A total of 6,829,905 participants from 10 observational studies were included. Compared with non-PPI use, PPI use was significantly associated with an increased risk of CKD (RR 1.72, 95% CI: 1.02-2.87, p = 0.03). This updated meta-analysis showed that PPI was significantly associated with an increased risk of CKD. Association was observed in the same among moderate-quality studies. Until further randomized control trials (RCTs) and biological studies confirm these results, PPI therapy should not stop patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). However, caution should be used when prescribing to patients with high-risk kidney disease.

Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Hospital Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Hospital-Based Repeated Measures Study.

Although many studies have investigated burnout, stress, and mental health issues among health care workers (HCWs) during the COVID-19 pandemic, few have linked these relationships to chronic physiological illnesses such as cardiovascular diseases. This study assessed changes in cardiovascular risk factors in HCWs and other hospital workers during the COVID-19 pandemic and identified vulnerable groups at a higher risk of increased adverse cardiovascular conditions. Five hundred and fourteen hospital employees ≥ 20 years of age underwent physical examinations and laboratory testing once before and once after the first wave of the pandemic in Taiwan during 2020 and 2021. Their sociodemographic characteristics and cardiovascular risk factors, including blood pressure, blood biochemical parameters, and body mass index, were collected. The differences between pre- and post-pandemic measurements of their biophysical and blood biochemical parameters were analyzed using pairwise tests. The post-pandemic increases in their parameter levels and cardiovascular risk as a function of underlying factors were estimated from multivariate regressions. HCWs showed significant increases in levels and abnormal rates of BMI, blood pressure, plasma glucose, and total cholesterol after the pandemic. Post-pandemic increases in BMI, waist circumference, and blood pressure were higher in females than in males. Workers with higher levels of education or longer job tenure had greater increases in BMI, triglyceride, and total cholesterol levels than other workers. Females had a higher incidence of abnormal BMI and hypertension than males (adjusted odds ratios [AORs] of 8.3 and 2.9, respectively). Older workers' incidence of hypertension was higher than younger workers' (AOR = 3.5). Preventive strategies should be implemented for HCWs susceptible to cardiovascular diseases during emerging infectious disease outbreaks.

Factors Associated with the Patient/Client Use of Report Cards, Physician Rating Websites, Social Media, and Google for Hospital and Physician Selection: A Nationwide Survey.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the factors associated with the different uses of report cards, physician rating websites, social media, and Google, including awareness, physician finding, and decision-making based on reviews from the patient/client perspective. METHODS: We used computer-assisted telephone interviews to conduct a nationwide representative survey in Taiwan. RESULTS: The urbanization level of the area, income, and long-term health conditions were not associated with the three kinds of usage of the websites studied. Seeking health information was an important factor in the three kinds of website use. The employment industry was associated with awareness, and education level was associated with physician seeking and actions based on reviews. CONCLUSIONS: Different factors influenced the three kinds of usage: awareness, actual use (i.e., finding an appropriate physician), and decision-making based on reviews. Seeking health information is of primary importance regardless of how the websites are used. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: Policy-makers should focus on educating individuals working outside the health care sector to increase awareness of these websites and to assist individuals with low levels of education in increasing their use of these websites.