The effect of a multimodal intervention program on cognitive and daily function of older persons residing in rural communities: A pilot study.

This pilot study aimed to explore the effects of a 12-week multimodal intervention program, comprising cognitive training and cognitive-stimulation, on cognitive performance and daily function of older adults in rural communities. Fifty-one participants were equally assigned to the multimodal intervention, cognitive-stimulation, and no-intervention control groups. Cognition and daily function were assessed using the Korean version of neuropsychological test battery and instrumental activities of daily living at baseline and at the 12-week follow-up assessment, respectively. Compared with the two other groups, the multimodal intervention group showed significant improvement in global cognitive function, attention, and executive function. A significant group-by-time interaction in instrumental activities of daily living was observed among the groups, with a greater improvement observed in the multimodal intervention group and little changes or decreases over time in the other groups. This study suggested the beneficial effects of a multimodal intervention on cognitive and behavioral improvement in older adults.

An Analytical Study on Research Trends in Auriculotherapy in Korea / 기본간호학회지

Purpose@#This study was done to analyze research articles and explore research trends in auriculotherapy between 2010 and 2019 in Korean academic journals. @*Methods@#Domestic databases including KMbase, RISS, KISS, and NDSL were searched for studies published between 2010 and 2019. Research trends were analyzed according to The STandards Reporting Interventions in Clinical Trials of Acupuncture (STRICTA) guidelines including research design, control group type, and intervention details from a total of 78 domestic papers. Descriptive statistics were analyzed by frequency and percentage. @*Results@#Most studies were conducted in nursing. Regarding research design, a quasi-experimental design with a no-treatment control group was most common. There were 12 conditions with 4 participant categories. The most common intervention was four-point acupuncture-buried therapy. Interventions conducted weekly with cessation of 2 days for 6 weeks were popular. Regarding dropouts, few studies reported side-effects, with personal reasons being the most frequently reported. However, 50% of the studies failed to provide adequate information regarding intervention details according to the STRICTA guidelines, such as the practitioner background, ear point used for intervention, and a flow diagram. @*Conclusion@#Interventional studies on auriculotherapy have been steadily increasing and have included more diversified conditions. Future studies should investigate the effects of auriculotherapy with more rigorous design, and report more detailed information regarding interventions.

Impact of Cognitive Aging on Health-Related Quality of Life in Menopausal Women

ObjectivesMenopause is a well-known risk factor for accelerating cognitive aging in women. This study aimed to assess differences in cognitive function and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) according to menopausal status to determine whether the menopause significantly affects the relationship between cognitive function and HRQOL.MethodsThis was a cross-sectional comparative study with a convenience sample of 178 Korean women including 89 naturally menopausal women (65 ± 10 years) and 89 non-menopausal women (45 ± 8 years) who met the eligibility criteria and completed neuropsychological tests and self-report questionnaires about their HRQOL, cognitive function, depression, and sleep quality. Multiple regression analyses were performed within and between groups according to menopausal status.ResultsMenopausal women had significantly worse scores on neuropsychological performance and HRQOL than non-menopausal women. A better neuropsychological performance (β = 0.34) was solely associated with a better HRQOL in menopausal women, whilst socioeconomic variables were associated with HRQOL in non-menopausal women.ConclusionMenopause is an important risk factor for HRQOL, and the association between cognition and HRQOL may differ according to menopausal status. When developing programs for target groups to improve daily functioning and HRQOL, healthcare professionals need to pay more attention to this relationship.

Different Effects of Cognitive and Non-exercise Physical Leisure Activities on Cognitive Function by Age in Elderly Korean Individuals

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to examine the effects of various leisure activities on cognitive impairment in young-old (aged 65–74 years) and old-old (aged ≥ 75 years) adults. METHODS: In total, 10,279 elderly Korean individuals from the 2014 Korean National Survey on Older Adults’ cohort were enrolled in our study. Cognitive impairment was assessed using the standardized score of the Mini-Mental State Examination for Dementia Screening, whereas leisure activities were recorded via self-reporting of the extent and type of leisure activity the subjects involved in over the past year. Multivariate logistic regression was used to assess the effect of leisure activities on cognitive impairment, while controlling for potential covariates. RESULTS: The subjects were more likely to participate in cognitive activities than in non-exercise physical activities. After controlling for selected covariates, involvement in cognitive activities was found to be a significant predictor of cognitive impairment in both the groups, whereas involvement in non-exercise physical activities was not a predictor of cognitive impairment in individuals aged ≥ 75 years. Moreover, depressive symptoms, rural residence, and hearing difficulties were common predictors of cognitive impairment among elderly-Korean-individuals. CONCLUSION: Leisure activity involvement may help delay cognitive impairment, which is often concomitant with aging. Hence, an early intervention service may significantly benefit both young-old and old-old individuals.