International journal of geriatric psychiatry
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Int J Geriatr Psychiatry · Jan 2006
Multicenter StudyDementia patients caregivers quality of life: the PIXEL study.
Alzheimer's disease and related syndromes have heavy social and human consequences for the patient and his family. Beyond the neuropsychiatric effects of specific therapies for dementia, one of today's challenges is the quality of life for both patients and their informal caregivers. ⋯ Caregivers' and patients' quality of life are related and both share a community of distress.
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Int J Geriatr Psychiatry · Dec 2005
The TE4D-Cog: a new test for detecting early dementia in English-speaking populations.
The screening test usually used to detect dementia (Mini Mental State Examination, MMSE) is limited by a ceiling effect and high false positive rates, as are other similar instruments. There is therefore a need for a more sensitive and specific screening tool to aid early detection and diagnosis of dementia. ⋯ The TE4D-Cog is easy to administer, short and acceptable. Results are independent of age, gender and level of education. The TE4D-Cog may therefore be a useful alternative to the MMSE as a dementia screening instrument.
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Int J Geriatr Psychiatry · Dec 2005
Delirium-O-Meter: a nurses' rating scale for monitoring delirium severity in geriatric patients.
Delirium is a common psychiatric disorder in general hospital elderly patients. Several delirium screening tests exist. Few nurse based delirium severity measures are available. The aim of this study was to evaluate the Delirium-O-Meter, a new nurses' behavioural rating scale that is an efficient and sensitive measure of delirium severity. ⋯ The newly constructed DOM is a brief and valid nurses' behavioural rating scale that can be useful for measuring different aspects of delirium and for efficiently monitoring delirium severity in elderly patients.
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Int J Geriatr Psychiatry · Oct 2005
Comparative StudyA comparison of the efficacy of donepezil in Parkinson's disease with dementia and dementia with Lewy bodies.
Parkinson's disease with dementia (PDD) and dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) overlap in phenomenology and neurochemical deficits. We hypothesised they would not differ in their response to the cholinesterase inhibitor donepezil. ⋯ Donepezil produced similar improvements in cognition and behaviour in DLB and PDD. This supports the hypothesis that the two disorders are closely related clinically and neurobiologically. Larger scale, placebo controlled clinical trials are needed to provide an evidence base to guide the clinical use of cholinesterase inhibitors in Lewy body disease.
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Int J Geriatr Psychiatry · Aug 2005
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter StudyEffect of timed bright light treatment for rest-activity disruption in institutionalized patients with Alzheimer's disease.
Disturbances in rest-activity rhythm are prominent and disabling symptoms in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Nighttime sleep is severely fragmented and daytime activity is disrupted by multiple napping episodes. In most institutional environments, light levels are very low and may not be sufficient to entrain the circadian clock to the 24-hour day. ⋯ One hour of bright light, administered to subjects with AD either in the morning or afternoon, did not improve nighttime sleep or daytime wake compared to a control group of similar subjects. However, exposure to one-hour of bright light in either the morning or afternoon may provide sufficient additional input to the circadian pacemaker to facilitate entrainment to the 24-hour day.