International psychogeriatrics
-
Despite well-documented evidence of the psychological effects of caring for a relative with dementia, little is known about the bereavement experiences of family carers. The aim of this study was to explore the key psychological changes associated with carers' adjustment to bereavement and "life after care." ⋯ Feelings of loneliness and loss are amongst the key emotional reactions shaping carers' adjustment to bereavement. Most carers are able to adapt to loss; however, a minority experience increased psychological distress after the death of their loved one. A small percentage of carers continues caring for other dependants. Further research is required to identify how carers of people with dementia adapt to bereavement and how this increasing number of individuals can be best supported.
-
In old age, both apathy and depression have been associated with an increased cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. This study evaluated the mediating role of cardiovascular risk factors in the relationship of apathy and mood symptoms with incident CVD. ⋯ Physical inactivity, smoking, and DM account for nearly one-fourth of the variation reflecting the link between apathy symptoms and incident CVD. This illustrates the relevance of unfavorable health behaviors and assessment of DM in older individuals with apathy. The majority of the effect of apathy symptoms on incident CVD is caused by other, yet unknown, factors.
-
Despite growing numbers of older-adult illicit drug users, research on this topic is rare. This study examined the relationship between marijuana and/or other illicit drug use and major depressive episode (MDE) and serious suicidal thoughts among those aged 50+ years in the USA. ⋯ Health and mental health (MH) service providers should pay close attention to the potential reciprocal effects of marijuana and other illicit drug use and MDE and suicidal thoughts among late middle-aged and older adults.
-
The diagnostic relevance of subjective memory complaints (SMCs) in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) remains to be unresolved. The aim of this study is to determine clinical correlates of SMCs in MCI. Furthermore, we examined whether there are the differences due to different aspects of complaints (i.e. prospective memory (PM) versus retrospective memory (RM) complaints). ⋯ This study suggests that SMCs are more associated with depressive symptoms and IADL problems than with cognitive performance in individuals with MCI. Furthermore, while PM and RM complaints are related to both depressive symptoms and IADL, the differences between these main contributors suggest that RM complaints based on IADL could be more associated with the organically driven pathological features of MCI.
-
In spite of the recognized physical and psychosocial effects of caring for patients with Parkinson's disease (PD), caregiver burden (CB) in this setting is poorly understood. The objective of this research was to identify factors that were associated with CB in an Australian population of PD caregivers using a novel instrument - the Parkinson's Disease Caregiver Burden (PDCB) questionnaire. ⋯ We found psychiatric and cognitive factors to be the most relevant factors in the perception of burden in PD caregivers. On top of this, we found deficits in the domain of visuoconstruction predicted burden - a relationship not yet described in literature. Targeting depression and anxiety in this setting as well as identifying caregivers at high risk of burden may give clinicians the chance to optimize care of patients with PD through the caregiver.