Current research on alexithymia in elderly people in nursing institutions: a scoping review

To describe and analyze the research status of alexithymia in elderly people in nursing institutions,and summarizes the existing research results and shortcomings.The literature in PubMed,CochraneLibrary,Web of Science,EBSCO,Proquest,Scopus,Sinomed,CNKI,WanFang,VIP was computer searched,and the time frame was build to October 30,2023.A total of 15 articles were included,comprising 10 in Chinese and 5 in English.Among them,14 articles were cross-sectional studies reporting the prevalence and influencing factors of communication disorders in elderly people residing in nursing homes.A total of three assessment tools were used.Additionally,three articles described preventive or intervention measures targeting alexithymia.Alexithymia has a high incidence and severity among elderly individuals in nursing institutions.Currently,there are only a few assessment tools available,and experimental studies are notably scarce.Future research should focus on enhancing the understanding of alexithymia in this population by developing and validating more comprehensive assessment tools,diversifying research methodologies,and conducting intervention studies that consider the various influencing factors.

Application of horticulture therapy as a health intervention for elderly people in nursing homes:a scoping review

Objective:To review the scope of interventional studies on horticultural therapy(HT)applied to elderly people in nursing institutions to support the efficient implementation of HT among this target group.Methods:In accordance with the scoping review framework proposed by the Joanna Briggs Institute(JBI),the Pub Med,JSTOR,Web of Science,CNKI,and Wanfang databases were searched.Data from the retrieved literature were summarized and analyzed.Results:In all,18 studies were included in this review.The target population groups of interventions included self-supporting elderly people,cognitively impaired elderly people,elderly people with negative emotions,and elderly people with frailty living in nursing institutions.HT interventions,including planting,craft activities,derivative activities,and outdoor viewing activities,are implemented indoors,outdoors,or in mixed settings.The most common duration of the intervention was 8 weeks,the most common frequency was once per week,and the most common session duration was 60 min.Conclusions:The measurements used in HT interventions included assessments of physical,psycho-mental,and social health;quality of life;and activity effects.Future studies should include partially dependent groups and completely dependent groups of elderly individuals,interventions that last at least 6 months,scientifically designed activity intensity and safety-guarantee plans,and outcomeevaluation indicators such as compliance and intervention benefits.

Coping review of dementia fear studies among middle-aged and elderly people in the community

This study used Arksey and O’Malley’s scoping review methodology as a framework and searched the following databases:PubMed,Embase,EBSCO,CINAHL,Web of Science,Cochrane Library,Scopus,CNKI,Wanfang,VIP,and the Chinese Biomedical Literature Database.The database is open to December 20,2023,and documents related to the fear of dementia among the elderly in the community are described and analyzed to provide a reference for future research in this field.At the same time,we screened,extracted,and summarized relevant information from 21 included documents(16 in English and 5 in Chinese),which consisted of 16 cross-sectional studies,2 quasi-experimental studies,2 randomized controlled studies,and 1 longitudinal study.Sixteen of the included documents mentioned the incidence or level of dementia fear among the elderly in the community,2 addressed the adverse effects of dementia fear,and 4 reported prevention and intervention measures for dementia fear.In total,there are 8 assessment tools,and the influencing factors are categorized into sociodemographic characteristics,psychological and behavioral characteristics,sociocultural background factors,and health and dementia-related factors.The final conclusion is that the fear of dementia is common among the elderly in the community.In the future,the application of research tools should be expanded among middle-aged individuals,with considerations for other types of dementia in mind.It is recommended to conduct large-scale,multi-center randomized controlled trials while confirming the intervention’s effect on different types of middle-aged and elderly individuals,focusing on the long-term impact of these intervention measures to promote healthy aging.

Living experience and care needs of Chinese empty-nest elderly people in urban communities in Beijing,China:A qualitative study

Background:Empty-nest elders have considerable needs for daily living,health care,and social support in China.The growing need for care of an aging population requires to be met through adequate policy decision making by government.Aim:To explore care needs of Chinese empty-nest elderly people and to provide reference information for relevant authorities in making care-supporting policies.Method:A descriptive qualitative study design was adopted.Twenty-five senior citizens in urban communities who were not living with their children were recruited from three communities in different districts of Beijing.In-depth interviews with a semi-structured questionnaire were used to collect data.A qualitative content analysis method was used to analyze data.Results:A major care need by the empty-nest elderly was home-based care.In view of their physical condition,need of support and their own security problems,they would like to have aging-in-place,home-based care by housemaid employment,or have institutionalized care in the future.However,they had some concerns about institutionalized care.Conclusions:A combination of home-based and community-based care is a suitable mode of care for the empty-nest elderly,and institutionalized care is an expected supplementary form of care.

Analysis on Long-Term Care and Influencing Factors of Empty-Nest Differently Abled Elderly People in China —Based on the Data from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey

Purpose: This study aimed to understand the actual needs of empty-nest differently abled elderly people and analyze their long-term care status including the factors affecting choice of care mode so adequate resources can be allocated to meet their healthcare needs. Methods: An empty-nest group was compared with a non-empty-nest group based on data from the 2014 Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey. Individual characteristics, family characteristics, and sociological factors were considered as independent variables, and long-term care model was the dependent variable in the three binary logistic regression method. Results: Age, gender, marriage, and disability were the most important factors influencing the choice of long-term care mode, including the willingness of the differently abled elderly. Family care can no longer meet the needs of the severely disabled elderly. Long-term care for such elderly people should be undertaken by professional and specialized social institutions. Conclusion: Multi-level services should be provided according to the elderly peoples’ needs, and the skill and expertise of professional personnel of care institutions should be strengthened. The government should deploy fund-raising initiatives, actively use the power of non-governmental organizations, and strive to resolve the financial issues faced by the empty-nested elderly people with disability.

Utility of “loco-check,” self-checklist for “locomotive syndrome” as a tool for estimating the physical dysfunction of elderly people

Aim: A new concept of locomotive syndrome has been proposed by the Japanese Orthopaedic Association. The aim of this study is to clarify the utility of its self-checklist, “loco-check,” as a tool for estimating the physical dysfunction of elderly people. Methods: Subjects were 1124 community-dwelling Japanese people, 557 men and 567 women, aged 40-89 years. Information about the seven “loco-check” items was obtained from present inquiry sheets. Physical functions were examined by grip strength, knee extension strength, walking speed and one-leg standing time with open eyes. The averages of these test values, controlled for age and BMI, were compared between the “loco-check” (+) group and the “loco-check” (-) group. Also we examined about the trend of decline of physical function, together with SF36 physical function subscale score, as the number of the items chosen increased. Results: Adjusted average values of all four physical function examinations in the “lococheck” (+) group were significantly lower than those of the “loco-check” (-) group (all, p . Also the adjusted average values of the majority of four tests were significantly lower in those who checked each of the “loco-check” items than those who did not, for most of the items. It was also revealed that the more items subjects checked, the lower the adjusted average values were, except for one-leg standing time. It was also the case with SF36 physical function subscale score. Conclusion: We showed the utility of “loco-check” as a simple tool not only for noticing the physical dysfunction of elderly people, but also for estimating the extent of it, except for balancing ability, particularly by counting the number of checked items.

Can statins reduce risk of lung cancer,especially among elderly people? A meta-analysis

Objective： As the most common cause of cancer mortality throughout the world, lung cancer has drawn people＇s attention on how to reduce the risk with chemopreventive ways. Many epidemiological studies have shown inconsistent effects of statins on lung cancer, but some observational studies have showed that statins had protective effect on lung cancer among elderly people. So we preformed this meta-analysis to find whether statins were chemopreventive. Methods： We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE and Web of Science databases from inception to September, 2013. A total of 23 studies were selected, including 15 observational studies and 8 randomized controlled trials （RCTs）. Both fixed and random-effects models were used to calculate pooled estimates in primary and sensitivity analyses. We used Q and 12 statistics to assess statistical heterogeneity, and evaluated publication bias by Begg＇s test and Egger＇s test. Results： No association between statins and lung cancer risk was identified either in the meta-analysis among RCTs [relative risk （RR）： 0.95, 95% confidence interval （95% CI）： 0.85-1.06] or observational studies （RR： 0.89, 95% CI： 0.77-1.04）. We also selected 6 observational studies that all researched on elderly people. The result of meta-analysis showed that there was still no protective effect between statins and lung cancer among elderly people （RR： 1.03, 95% CI： 0.96-1.11）. Conclusions： Our results did not support a protective effect of statins on the overall lung cancer risk and the lung cancer risk among elderly people. More well-designed RCTs are needed to enhance our understanding of the chemopreventive effect of statins on lung cancer.

Quality of life and hope in elderly people with cancer

The aim of this study was to describe the charac-teristics in Quality of Life (QoL) and hope in eld-erly people newly diagnosed with cancer, and to compare the results for those who survived six months after diagnosis with those who did not. The design of the study was a quantitative study in-cluding drop-out analysis. Data were collected pro-spectively from a group of 101 older people with cancer. The core questionnaire EORTC QLQ-C30 was used to measure QoL and Nowotny’s Hope Scale (NHS) was employed to measure hope. Par-ticipants who died within six months of diagnosis had significantly lower QoL and had more com-plaints about symptoms compared to those who survived. However, hope did not differ significantly between those who died and those who survived. Despite lower QoL score among those who died they were able to deal with their difficult situation and maintain hope in late life. This capacity seems to be an important component of hope in the elderly;thus it is essential to strengthen hope.

Intelligent Video Surveillance System for Elderly People Living Alone Based on ODVS

Intelligent video surveillance for elderly people living alone using Omni-directional Vision Sensor (ODVS) is an important application in the field of intelligent video surveillance. In this paper, an ODVS is utilized to provide a 360° panoramic image for obtaining the real-time situation for the elderly at home. Some algorithms such as motion object detection, motion object tracking, posture detection, behavior analysis are used to implement elderly monitoring. For motion detection and object tracking, a method based on MHoEI(Motion History or Energy Images) is proposed to obtain the trajectory and the minimum bounding rectangle information for the elderly. The posture of the elderly is judged by the aspect ratio of the minimum bounding rectangle. And there are the different aspect ratios in accordance with the different distance between the object and ODVS. In order to obtain activity rhythm and detect variously behavioral abnormality for the elderly, a detection method is proposed using time, space, environment, posture and action to describe, analyze and judge the various behaviors of the elderly in the paper. In addition, the relationship between the panoramic image coordinates and the ground positions is acquired by using ODVS calibration. The experiment result shows that the above algorithm can meet elderly surveillance demand and has a higher recognizable rate.

Measuring the Cognitive Impact of Laughter on Elderly People with Mild Cognitive Impairment in Japan

Objective: To evaluate the effect of laughter on cognition in elderly with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) through an appropriately designed intervention. Methods: The intervention involved watching a Japanese comedy routine (Manzai) for approximately twenty minutes, once a week for ten weeks. Participants were asked to paint, as a simple exercise, in addition to watching the show. Twenty-seven patients with MCI from the convalescent ward of a general hospital in the Kansai region of Japan. We measured cognition by evaluating five cognitive function domains before (baseline) and after the intervention. We used the Wilcoxon signed rank test, a distribution-free method, to compare baseline and post-intervention data. Ethical Consideration: Participants were given a document explaining the study. Only those who officially agreed to participate were enrolled. Results: Mean age of patients was 85.0 ± 2.8 years;average education was 8.6 ± 2.8 years. Three cognitive function domains had significantly different average scores after the intervention: 1) Exercise: 44.4 ± 8.9 points at baseline, 36.3 ± 10.2 post-intervention (p = 0.014);2) Word memory: 40.6 ± 7.2 at baseline, 43.1 ± 8.8 post-intervention (p = 0.002);and 3) Animal name recollection: 35.3 ± 8.4 at baseline, 38.1 ± 9.0 post-intervention (p = 0.003). Discussion: The intervention led to significantly higher cognitive scores in exercise, word memory, and animal name recollection domains, suggesting that interventions focused on laughter and simple exercise may improve cognition in elderly patients with MCI.

Blood Glucose Sensor Systems for Elderly People

Electrochemical blood glucose sensors were developed with use of enzymes and an electron mediator.Electrodes were patterned on a resin plate,and a reagent layer containing an enzyme and an electron mediator was disposed on the electrodes in a dried state.A sample chamber to which the soluble reagent layer was exposed was assembled with the enzyme-loaded electrodes to hold a certain volume of blood in the sensor.The fabricated sensors enabled rapid and precise measurements of blood glucose of oneself.The sensor systems combined with the customized hand-held meter especially for the sensor were maintenance-free chiefly due to disposable sensors,and would be simple and easy enough to be operated by elderly people.

Effectiveness and safety of subthreshold vibration over suprathreshold vibration in treatment of muscle fatigue in elderly people

Muscle fatigue is common in many populations,particularly elderlies.Aging increases the incidence of muscle fatigue and delays its recovery.There is a huge debate about the current treatments for muscle fatigue,particularly in elderlies.Recently,it has been discovered that mechanoreceptors have an important role as a sensory system in sensing muscle fatigue which could enhance the body's response to muscle fatigue.The function of mechanoreceptors could be enhanced by applying either suprathreshold or subthreshold vibration.Although suprathreshold vibration improves muscle fatigue,it can cause desensitization of cutaneous receptors,discomfort,and paresthesia,which are barriers to clinical use.Subthreshold vibration has been approved as a safe and effective method of training for mechanoreceptors;however,its use and effectiveness in muscle fatigue have never been tested or explained.Possible physiological effects of subthreshold vibration in the treatment of muscle fatigue include:(1)Enhancing the function of mechanoreceptors themselves;(2)Increasing the firing rate and function of alpha motor neurons;(3)Increasing blood flow to fatigued muscles;(4)Decreasing the rate of muscle cell death in elderlies(sarcopenia);and(5)Driving motor commands and allow better performance of muscles to decrease fatigue incidence.In conclusion,the use of subthreshold vibration could be a safe and effective treatment for muscle fatigue in elderlies.It could enhance recovery from muscle fatigue.Finally,Subthreshold Vibration is safe and effective in treating muscle fatigue in comparison to suprathreshold vibration.

Virtual Nursing Using Deep Belief Networks for Elderly People (DBN-EP)

The demand for better health services has resulted in the advancementof remote monitoring health, i.e., virtual nursing systems, to watch and supportthe elderly with innovative concepts such as being patient-centric, easier to use,and having smarter interactions and more accurate conclusions. While virtual nursing services attempt to provide consumers and medical practitioners with continuous medical and health monitoring services, access to allied healthcare expertssuch as nurses remains a challenge. In this research, we present Virtual NursingUsing Deep Belief Networks for Elderly People (DBN-EP), a new framework thatprovides a virtual nurse agent deployed on a senior citizen’s home, workplace, orcare centre to help manage their health condition on a continuous basis. Using thismethod, healthcare providers can assign various jobs to nurses by utilizing a general task definition mechanism, in which a task is defined as a combination ofmedical workflow, operational guidelines, and data gathered from a remotelymonitored virtual nursing system. Practitioners are in charge of DBN-EP andmake treatment decisions for patients. This allows a DBN-EP to act as a personalized full-time nurse for a client by carrying out practitioner support activitiesbased on information gathered about the client’s health. An electronic PersonalHealth Record (ePHR) system, such as a specialized web portal and mobile apps,could provide such patient information to elderly person family members and carecentres. We created a prototype system using a DBN-EP system that allows traditional client applications and healthcare provider systems to collaborate. Finally,we demonstrate how this system may benefit the elderly through a result anddebate.

Comparison of Factors Related to Elderly People’s Purpose of Life in Japan and Thailand

Purpose: In the present study, the features of “purpose of life” of elderly persons in Japan and Thailand are clarified by focusing on this concept and its related factors, and through the comparison of the results of Japan and Thailand. Methods: The Japanese subjects consist of the elderly aged 60 or older. The Thai subjects consist of the elderly aged 60 or older who live in Thailand. A sum of 250 subjects (men and women) per country will be studied. They were asked about their individual attribution and maintenance of healthy condition. Moreover, 19 items were examined as events leading to life purpose. These items were measured using the Philadelphia Geriatric Center Morale Scale, General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) and Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL). Results: Data from 200 elderly people (male: 67, female: 133) in Thailand and 234 elderly people (male: 49, female: 185) in Japan were used in the analysis. Regarding an “Events Leading to Life Purpose,” it was suggested that “activities to enhance learning and culture” and “neighbors and friends, and socializing with acquaintances” helped both in Japan and Thailand. Moreover, “elderly persons’ club activities” and “child” were effective in Thailand, while “spouse” and “grandchild” were effective in Japan. Moreover, Model 1 (event, disease → purpose of life → mental health, and IADL) that became purpose of life for both countries was adopted. Conclusion: In order to improve older adults’ mental health and ADL by improving “purpose of life”, it is required to increase the events leading to life purpose and to prevent illness for both countries. In particular, “activities to enhance learning and culture” and “neighbors and friends, and socializing with acquaintances” was the activity which raises “purpose of life”. Then, “elderly persons’ club activities” and “child” were effective in Thailand, while “spouse” and “grandchild” were effective in Japan.

Public Square Dancing Intervention on Subjective Well-Being of Middle-Aged and Elderly People:A Meta-Analysis

Objective:To understand the influence of public square dancing on the subjective well-being of middle-aged and elderly people.Methods:According to the principle of Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses(PRISMA)guidelines,we search Chinese databases,such as CNKI,Wanfang Data,and VIP,and English databases,such as Proquest,Web of Science,Pubmed,Cochrane,and ScienceDirect,and collect relevant articles at home and abroad from 2006 to December 2019 for meta-analysis in January 2020.Result:A total of 10 articles were included.The meta-analysis results showed that the well-being of middle-aged and elderly people in the public square dancing intervention group was significantly higher than that of the other exercise group and control group(both P<0.01).The results of the subgroup analysis showed the following:Different durations of intervention significantly influence the intervention effect(P<0.01).No difference was found between the effect of the mixed-gender intervention and the individual female intervention(P>0.05).No significant difference was found between the groups with weekly intervention frequency(P>0.05).Conclusion:Public square dancing intervention is effective for middle-aged and elderly people’s subjective well-being.Neither mixed intervention nor the times of weekly intervention have an impact on the intervention effect.However,the length of duration of intervention influences the intervention effect.

The Poverty Alleviation Model for the Solitary Elderly People in the Poor Mountainous Areas of Southwest China: Analysis of "Five Batches Project" in Xundian County

The solitary elderly people in rural areas are not only an important part of the rural population,but also an important issue that can not be ignored in the battle to get rid of poverty. In recent years,according to the working thinking of ' accurate statistics,scientific arrangement,classified implementation,and rapid progress',Xundian County has gone through joint exploration and practice at the county and township levels,and has found out the path of work of ' Five Batches Project' to solve the problem of poverty alleviation for the solitary elderly people and make them live in their own homes. This has effectively solved the problem of safe and stable housing for 4 443 solitary elderly people in the county. It has found a new way to solve the housing problem of the solitary elderly people. At the end of 2017,the incidence of poverty in the county dropped to 0. 35%,and it was successfully listed as one of the first counties in Yunnan Province to get rid of poverty. Based on field research and interviews,this paper analyzes and summarizes the concrete methods,main achievements,practical experience,lessons and reference of the poverty alleviation model of ' Five Batches Project' in Xundian County to solve the problem of housing for the elderly,in order to provide necessary reference for the poor counties in Yunnan Province and other similar provinces( cities,autonomous regions) to solve the problem of housing for ' solitary elderly people' in Yunnan Province.

Behavioral Risk Factors for Chronic Non-Communicable Diseases in Adults and Elderly People in the City of Ribeirão Preto—SP

Aims: to analyze the presence and simultaneity of behavioral risk factors for chronic non-communicable disease (NCD) in adults and the elderly. Methods: quantitative, cross-sectional and observational study. Healthy and unhealthy eating are classified according to the frequency of food consumption. Smoking is expressed by the percentage of smokers. Harmful alcohol consumption by the percentage of individuals who consumed alcoholic beverages at least once in the last 30 days. Classification of the level of physical inactivity required to practice at least 150 minutes of physical activity. Results: the sample constituted 719 people, 535 adults and 184 elderly. The behavioral risk factor reported by most adults 499 (93.3%) and elderly 156 (84.8%) was unhealthy eating. Frequency 72% higher of smoking, four times higher of harmful alcohol consumption and 10% higher of unhealthy food among adults when compared to the elderly. The simultaneity between risk factors was 39% greater in adults than in the elderly. Discussion: risk factors evaluated in this study are key aspects of the development of NCDs. Adults have 2.43 times the chance of presenting two risk factors and 7.73 times the chance of presenting three in relation to the elderly. Conclusion: To achieve more effective and differentiated results, knowing and directing measures to control behavioral risk factors, whether isolated or concurrent, requires specific knowledge.

Survey on the Use of Information and Communication Technology Tools in Educating Caregivers of Elderly People with Dementia —Analysis from Ichushi and PubMed

This study aimed to clarify the use of computer simulations in educating caregivers of elderly people with dementia. Thesaurus words in articles indexed in Ichushi and PubMed were analyzed using commercially available “Trend Search” text-mining software developed by FUJITSU. The analysis maps relational words in the articles, with line size and distance between words showing the strength of the relation. For ethical purposes, articles were anonymized for analysis. The search was conducted using the query phrases “elderly people with dementia AND simulation”, and retrieved four articles from Ichushi (2007-2010) and 16 from PubMed (1992-2012). The search results revealed that little research has been done on this subject, and highlighted opportunities to further investigate the use of ICT tools in educating caregivers of elderly people with dementia.

The Impact of a Pet, in This Case a Dog, on Physical Activity, Independence, Social Contacts, Health and Quality of Life of Elderly People

In a rural area near Munich, 52 persons aged 65 years and older were interviewed in person about health and social life circumstances. Findings: Dog owners take significantly longer walks than people who do not own dogs, averaging more than 120 minutes daily (p < 0.0001). On average, people who do not own a dog walked 38 minutes, cat owners 17 minutes. 94% of the dog owners were active daily compared to 14% of those who do not own a dog. Dog owners go to the doctor on average 5.3 times per year, people who do not own a dog 7.8 times. There was no difference between the two groups in regard to the use of medication. 80% would not move to a residential home for the elderly because of the dog, and 87% would want to take the dog along. 50% of the dog owners and 41% of those who do not own a dog had on average more than 3 contacts with other people, 6% of the dog owners and 23% of those who do not own a dog had less than one contact per day. 19% of the dog owners and 36% of those who do not own a dog would describe themselves as reserved in dealings with people. 71% stated that the dog had been very useful to help them overcome the loss of a person close to them. The W-5 [Wellbeing Five score] for dog owners was an average value of 75%, for those who did not own a dog 71%. Depression was uniformly distributed in both groups. The BMIs in both groups were similar. There was no correlation to the length of the daily walk.

Determination of a Cut-Off Point of a Scale for Achievement Motive in Geriatrics That Predicts the Frequency of Undertaking Instrumental Activities of Daily Living in Community-Dwelling Elderly People

Background: Among elderly people, rehabilitation is important for reducing the risk of falls and hospitalization and to maintain an independent life for longer. Motivation is a factor for elderly people to lead an active daily life and leave home more frequently. Purpose: The purposes of this study were to determine the optimal cut-off point in the Scale for Achievement Motive in Geriatrics (SAMG) that could identify individuals as inactive or active, based on the Frenchay Activities Index (FAI), and to compare characteristics between active and inactive groups classified by the cut-off point. Methods: A cross-sectional study of 285 community-dwelling elderly people measured SAMG and FAI and physical function. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was used to calculate the area under the curve (AUC) that was the optimal cut-off point for the SAMG total score, with the associated sensitivity and 1-specificity when compared with the FAI results. Demographic parameters and physical function were compared between two groups defined by cut-off point. Results: The AUC was 0.78, the optimal cut-off for SAMG total score for indicating inactivity was ≤48, the sensitivity was 77.98% and the 1-specificity was 75.00%. The group with SAMG score >48 was characterized by a significantly higher proportion of women, fewer people sharing a house, and participation in more hobbies. Discussion: A cut-off point of 48 in the SAMG could be a predictive index of motivation toward goals for individuals with inactive daily activities. The group with score higher than the cut-off was characterized by more women, fewer people living together, and more hobbies than the group with lower scores.