A study on the positive affect among dementia caregivers / 中国实用护理杂志

Objective To explore the positive affect of dementia caregivers.Methods Questionnaire method was used to investigate seventy-six dementia caregivers (the dementia group)and seventy-six non-dementia caregivers(the control group).Results The total score and the score of each dimension in the dementia group was significantly lower than those got from the control group.Conclusions Dementia caregivers can feel the positive affect from dementia patients.Compared with non-dementia caregivers,dementia caregivers feel lower positive affect,especially positive feedback from dementia patients.

The effects of cognitive training on mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's disease patients / 中华物理医学与康复杂志

Objective To determine the efficacy of individual cognitive training (CT) in the treatment of cognitive and neuropsychiatric symptoms in patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer disease ( AD). Methods A randomized, controlled, rater-blind clinical trial recruited 32 AD patients. AH patients were assigned to a CT group (n = 16) or a control group (a time and attention control, n = 16) for 10 weeks. All outcome measures were administered at baseline and follow-up. The cognitive status was evaluated using the Mini Mental State examination (MMSE) , a clock-drawing test (CDT) , Fuld's object memory evaluation (FOME) , a rapid verbal retrieval (RVR) , digit span assessments (DS) , block designing (BD), and the A version of the trail making test (TMTA). The patients' functional status was evaluated using an activities of daily living (ADL) scale. Any psychological and behavioural disorders were evaluated with the Neuropsychiatry Inventory ( NPI). Results Patients receiving CT showed greater average improvements in NPI total score, TMT-A score and MMSE total score than the controis at week 10. There was no statistically significant benefit for CT-treated patients in terms of ADL score. Conclusions Cognitive training can raise the NPI total scores and MMSE total scores of patients with mild to moderate AD.

A diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging for studying white matter changes in patients with mild cognitive impairment / 中华内科杂志

Objectives To measure the microstructural differences in the brains of participants with amnestic mild cognitive impairment ( aMCI) and compare with a control group using a magnetic resonance diffusion tensor imaging ( DTI) technique with fully automated image analysis tools. Methods A standardized clinical and neuropsychological evaluation was conducted on each subject 31 participants (15 participants with aMCI, 16 healthy elderly adults) underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based DTI. To control the effects of anatomical variation, the diffusion images of all participants were registered to standard anatomical space. Voxel-by-voxel comparisons showed significant regional reductions in white matter regions of fractional anisotropy (FA) in the participants with aMCI as compared with the controls. Results Significantly decreased FA value measurements (P<0. 001) were observed in the right frontal white matter in participants with aMCI. Moreover, there was a statistically significant difference between the patients with aMCI and controls in considering the small regions of bilateral superior frontal gyrus white matter (P < 0.001). Conclusions White matter damage of frontal lobe may play an important role in histopathologic changes associated with amnestic mild cognitive impairment

Characteristics of hippocampal 3-dimensional magnetic resonance imaging in amnestic mild cognitive impairment / 中华神经科杂志

Objective To identify the characteristics of hippocampal 3-dimensional MRI in patients diagnosed as having subtypes of amnestic mild cognitive impairment(aMCI)using hippocampal surfacebased analytic technique.Methods Fifry aMCI patients and 16 healthy controls who were equivalent in age and education(NC)were recruited.Every subiect carried out a 3-dimensional MRI scan.After the imaging data were acquired.the borders of the hippocampus were manually traced in coronal vlew using the software of InsightSNAP1.4.1. Hippocampal volume was computed automatically and statistically analysed.Hippocampal 3-dimension MRI were transformed into 3-dimension parametric surface mesh models of 400×200 prids.Hippocampal radial distance measures which was the distance from the surface point to the central axis were statistically compared between two groups.The radial atrophy significance maps were acquired and adjusted for multiple comparisons.Hippocampal morphological difference maps of aMCI in contrast with NC were acquired.Results The average normalized volume of left hippocampus were(3247.5±600.2)mm3 in aMCI patients and(3467.9±451.3)mm3 in NC subjects.The average normalized volume of right hippocampus were(3416.8±699.1)mm3 in aMCI patients and(3469.1±358.9)mm3 in NC subjects.Comparison of hippocampal volume did not differ significantly between aMCI patients and NC subjects(t=1.161,P=0.255;U=0.178,P=0.859).By using hippocampal surface-based morphologic analytic technique,3-dimension hippocampal morphological difference maps between two groups were acquired,showing significant atrophy on the lateral and inferior hippocampal surface which corresponded to CA1 and subiculum hippocampal subfields bilaterally in aMCI patients compared with NC subjects. Conclusions aMCI patients do not have significant volume loss in the hippocampus. Through hippocampal surface-based morphologic analyses, partial regional atrophy of hippocampus at some degree is found, mainly localizing in the lateral and inferior hippocampal regions which correspond to CA1 and subiculum hippocampal subfields bilaterally in aMCI compared with NC. These results may reflect the early image marker in aMCI.