Search results for "Mental state"

Conscious and Uncoscious Mental States in Nietzsche’s Philosophy of Mind

2013

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor correlates with functional and cognitive impairment in non-disabled older individuals.

2015

We used a complete battery of geriatric and psychometric tests to evaluate whether plasma-borne brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a master molecule in neuroplasticity, is associated with the severity of functional and cognitive impairment in non-disabled older individuals. There was a significant positive correlation between BDNF plasma concentrations and the Barthel index, a measurement of the ability of individuals to perform the activities of daily living (p=0.03) and the concentration subcategory measured with the mini mental state examination (MMSE) test (p = 0.01). Furthermore, plasma BDNF inversely and significantly correlated with the blood eosinophil count (p = 0.01), the t…

Prognostic Role of CSF β-amyloid 1–42/1–40 Ratio in Patients Affected by Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

2021

The involvement of β-amyloid (Aβ) in the pathogenesis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) has been widely discussed and its role in the disease is still a matter of debate. Aβ accumulates in the cortex and the anterior horn neurons of ALS patients and seems to affect their survival. To clarify the role of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) Aβ 1–42 and Aβ 42/40 ratios as a potential prognostic biomarker for ALS, we performed a retrospective observational study on a cohort of ALS patients who underwent a lumbar puncture at the time of the diagnosis. CSF Aβ 1–40 and Aβ 1–42 ratios were detected by chemiluminescence immunoassay and their values were correlated with clinical features. We found a signi…

Oropharyngeal dysphagia in elderly population suffering from mild cognitive impairment and mild dementia: Understanding the link

2020

Abstract Purpose To evaluate the prevalence of oropharyngeal dysphagia in elderly patients suffering from minimal or mild cognitive decline. Patients and methods We retrospectively collected the data of patients suffering from mild cognitive impairment or mild dementia and were undergoing management for suspected oropharyngeal dysphagia, in our department. All our patients were subjected to Mini Mental State Examination test, MD Anderson dysphagia inventory and caregiver mealtime and dysphagia questionnaire. We performed a mealtime observation study and endoscopic evaluation of swallowing in all our patients. Following evaluation, we then analysed the data statistically. Results Out of 708 …

The working day in medicine: lessons from the air.

2003

This article discusses whether it would be wrong to explain a mistake involving medical responsibility on the basis of an opinion that the professional was not in the optimum physical or mental state at the moment the mistake took place.

Evaluation of Health Outcomes in Elderly Patients With Asthma and COPD Using Disease-Specific and Generic Instruments

2001

Abstract Objectives To compare the effects of asthma and COPD on health status (HS) in elderly patients, and to assess the correlation between disease-specific and generic instruments assessing HS. Design Multicenter, cross-sectional, observational study. Setting The Salute Respiratoria nell'Anziano (respiratory health in the elderly) Study network of outpatient departments. Patients One hundred ninety-eight asthma patients and 230 COPD patients ≥ 65 years old. Measurements HS was assessed by the Saint George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) and five generic outcomes: Barthel's index, 6-min walk test, mini mental state examination, geriatric depression scale (GDS), and quality-of-sleep in…

Aging and Disability Affect Misdiagnosis of COPD in Elderly Asthmatics

2003

Study objectives: This study investigated to what extent a diagnosis of COPD is erroneously made or the disease remains unrecognized in elderly asthmatic patients, and identified factors leading to misdiagnosis and underdiagnosis of asthma in such patients. Design: A multicenter study involving 24 Italian pulmonary or geriatric institutions. Patients: One hundred twenty-eight asthmatic patients (98 women, 76.6%) aged 73 6.4 years (mean SD) were selected from the cohort of the Salute Respiratoria nell’Anziano (respiratory health in the elderly) study. Methods: All patients underwent a clinical evaluation that included clinical history and spirometry with a bronchodilator test. A diagnosis of…

Visual hallucinations and agitation in Alzheimer's Disease due to memantine: report of three cases

2007

Memantine, a non-competitive N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist, is currently the only drug proposed for the treatment of moderate to severe Alzheimer’s disease.1 It has been shown to have neuroprotective effects by inhibiting the excitotoxic effect of NMDA glutamate receptors.2 Memantine has a tolerability profile similar to placebo.1 However, the worsening of psychotic symptoms in patients with Lewy body dementia (LBD) treated with memantine has been recently reported.3 We describe three patients with probable Alzheimer’s disease who developed worsening or de novo visual hallucinations and agitation after memantine treatment. Patient 1 was a 65-year-old woman with a 2-year hi…

A non-reductionist Physiologism. Nietzsche on Body, Mind and Cosciousness

2013

This paper addresses the following questions from the point of view of Nietzsche’s philosophy: What is the mind, and which kind of relationship does it hold to the body? Accordingly, the aim of this paper is to show that Nietzsche’s philosophy suggested a view of the mind that allows to outline an alternative stance to both mentalism and physicalism, as well as to both dualism and reductionism. It is argued that Nietzsche’s rehabilitation of the body as the specific seat of the mind in opposition to the Cartesian supremacy of the Ego still is of a great interest for contemporary philosophy, since it is not equivalent either to a reversed form of Cartesian dualism or to a physicalist reducti…

The combined effect of lower extremity function and cognitive performance on perceived walking ability among older people : a 2-year follow-up study

2018

Background We studied the combined effects of cognitive performance and lower extremity function on self-reported walking modifications and walking difficulty and on self-reported walking difficulty incidence over a 2-year follow-up. Methods A total of 848 community-dwelling older people aged 75-90 years participated at baseline, 816 at the 1-year follow-up, and 761 at the 2-year follow-up. Baseline lower extremity function was measured with the Short Physical Performance Battery (<10 vs. ≥10) and cognitive performance with the Mini-Mental State Examination (<24 vs. ≥24). Difficulty in walking 2 km was self-reported and categorized into no difficulties, no difficulties but walking modificat…