Triple aim improvement for individuals, services and society in dementia care : The DementiaNet collaborative care approach.

BACKGROUND: A redesigning of primary care is required to meet dementia patients' needs. In the Netherlands, current dementia care still falls short in areas including ad hoc collaboration, lack of feedback on quality to professionals involved, and insufficient implementation of established multidisciplinary guidelines. OBJECTIVE: DementiaNet is a collaborative care approach, which aims to reduce the burden of the disease on individuals, healthcare services and society via network-based care that encourages collaboration, enhances knowledge and skills and stimulates quality improvement cycles. MATERIAL AND METHODS: DementiaNet was developed to support primary care networks through implementation of five core processes: network-based care, clinical leadership, quality improvement cycles, interprofessional practice-based training and communication support tools, following a stepwise tailor-made approach. Alongside this, a mixed method study was designed to evaluate innovation and effectiveness. RESULTS: Currently, 18 networks have been formed. These vary in quality of care and strength of collaboration due to local circumstances. Initial activities and goals of each network also vary, ranging from acquaintance to shared care plans. Ongoing research will identify barriers, facilitators and merits of the approach in increasing quality of care and ultimately improving outcomes for patient, carer, health service and society. CONCLUSION: Initial results show that clinical practice varies and the DementiaNet approach can lead to quality improvement. Complexity and variety of local care requires complex interventions and evaluation methods that account for this in order to safeguard the value for practice. Strict methodology lessens external validity.

Cannabinoids in late-onset Alzheimer's disease.

Given the lack of effective treatments for late-onset Alzheimer's disease (LOAD) and the substantial burden on patients, families, health care systems, and economies, finding an effective therapy is one of the highest medical priorities. The past few years have seen a growing interest in the medicinal uses of cannabinoids, the bioactive components of the cannabis plant, including the treatment of LOAD and other physical conditions that are common in older people. Several in vitro and in vivo studies have demonstrated that cannabinoids can reduce oxidative stress, neuroinflammation, and the formation of amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, the key hallmarks of LOAD. In addition, in population-based studies, cannabinoids reduced dementia-related symptoms (e.g., behavioral disturbances). The current article provides an overview of the potential of cannabinoids in the treatment of LOAD and related neuropsychiatric symptoms in older people. We also discuss the efficacy, safety, and pharmacokinetics of cannabinoid-based drugs in older people with dementia.

Efficacy and safety of medical cannabinoids in older subjects: a systematic review.

This systematic review aims to integrate the evidence on indications, efficacy, safety and pharmacokinetics of medical cannabinoids in older subjects. The literature search was conducted using PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL and Cochrane Library. We selected controlled trials including solely older subjects (≥65 years) or reporting data on older subgroups. 105 (74%) papers, on controlled intervention trials, reported the inclusion of older subjects. Five studies reported data on older persons separately. These were randomized controlled trials, including in total 267 participants (mean age 47-78 years). Interventions were oral tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) (n=3) and oral THC combined with cannabidiol (n=2). The studies showed no efficacy on dyskinesia, breathlessness and chemotherapy induced nausea and vomiting. Two studies showed that THC might be useful in treatment of anorexia and behavioral symptoms in dementia. Adverse events were more common during cannabinoid treatment compared to the control treatment, and were most frequently sedation like symptoms. Although trials studying medical cannabinoids included older subjects, there is a lack of evidence of its use specifically in older patients. Adequately powered trials are needed to assess the efficacy and safety of cannabinoids in older subjects, as the potential symptomatic benefit is especially attractive in this age group.

Sleep matters in Parkinson's disease: use of a priority list to assess the presence of sleep disturbances.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Despite their high prevalence and clinical impact, sleep disorders in Parkinson's disease appear to receive insufficient attention in clinical practice. We compared the importance of sleep disorders relative to other symptoms and daily issues. Furthermore, we determined whether relevance as perceived by patients correlated with the subjective presence of sleep disruption scored with a rating scale. METHODS: We studied a cohort of 153 consecutive patients (95 men) who were referred for problems other than sleep to our referral center. Prior to their visit, patients ranked their individual top five clinical priorities (of 23 items), indicating the most problematic domains for which they requested medical attention. Additionally, nocturnal sleep quality and excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) were assessed with validated questionnaires. RESULTS: The top three important domains according to the patient were movement (79.9%), medication (73.2%), and physical condition (63.4%). Sleep was the sixth most frequently reported item, marked by 37.9% of the patients. Amongst the patients who scored sleep as a priority, 47 (81%) had a poor sleep quality (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index > 5). Although EDS was present in almost 30% of patients, a minority of them put it on their priority list. CONCLUSION: A priority list can be used to prioritize patient-centered quality of life issues. Our results show that sleep is a clinical priority for about one-third of patients. Surprisingly, EDS was usually not prioritized by patients during the consultation, underscoring the need to use ratings scales alongside subjective priorities.

Multidisciplinary care for patients with Parkinson's disease.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a chronic and progressive neurodegenerative disorder with a complex phenotype, featuring a wide variety of both motor and non-motor symptoms. Current medical management is usually monodisciplinary, with an emphasis on drug treatment, sometimes supplemented with deep brain surgery. Despite optimal medical management, most patients become progressively disabled. Allied health care may provide complementary benefits to PD patients, even for symptoms that are resistant to pharmacotherapy or surgery. This notion is increasingly supported by scientific evidence. In addition, the role of allied health care is now documented in recent clinical practice guidelines that are available for physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech-language therapy. Unfortunately, adequate delivery of allied health care is threatened by the insufficient expertise among most therapists, and the generally low patient volumes for each individual therapist. Moreover, most allied health interventions are used in isolation, with insufficient collaboration and communication with other disciplines involved in the care for PD patients. Clinical experience suggests that optimal management requires a multidisciplinary approach, with multifactorial health plans tailored to the needs of each individual patient. Although the merits of specific allied health care interventions have been scientifically proven for other chronic disorders, only few studies have tried to provide a scientific basis for a multidisciplinary care approach in PD. The few studies published so far were not yet convincing. We conclude by providing recommendations for current multidisciplinary care in PD, while highlighting the need for future clinical trials to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of a multidisciplinary team approach.

Weight loss in neurodegenerative disorders.

Unintended weight loss frequently complicates the course of many neurodegenerative disorders and can contribute substantially to both morbidity and mortality. This will be illustrated here by reviewing the characteristics of unintended weight loss in the three major neurodegenerative disorders: Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and Huntington's disease. A common denominator of weight loss in these neurodegenerative disorders is its typically complex pathophysiology. Timely recognition of the underlying pathophysiological process is of crucial importance, since a tailored treatment of weight loss can considerably improve the quality of life. This treatment is, primarily, comprised of a number of methods of increasing energy intake. Moreover, there are indications for defects in the systemic energy homeostasis and gastrointestinal function, which may also serve as therapeutic targets. However, the clinical merits of such interventions have yet to be demonstrated.