Agitation is a common neuropsychiatric symptom in patients with Alzheimer’s dementia, resulting in significant burden to patients and caregivers. This study was conducted to better understand caregiver perspectives on the frequency and severity of agitation behaviors, captured by the Cohen-Mansfield Agitation Inventory, and to assess what constitutes a meaningful change in these behaviors.

This was a qualitative, non-interventional, descriptive study conducted in the United States. Semi-structured 1:1 interviews were completed with non- professional caregivers of patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) (i.e., family caregivers providing unpaid, informal care) who met the following inclusion criteria: ≥21 years old; caring for an individual with clinically confirmed AD; noticed agitation behaviors including emotional distress, excessive movements, verbal aggression, physical aggression; spent ≥4 days a week for ≥2 hours with the person with AD; and willing to participate in the virtual interview in English. Interview transcripts were analyzed thematically through detailed line-by-line inductive and deductive coding approaches using the ATLAS.ti software.

Thirty caregivers participated. Participants’ mean age was 64 (±13) years. Most participants were Caucasian/white (77%), non-Hispanic or Latinx (97%), and female (70%). Approximately half were providing care to their spouse (53%), and the remainder for a parent or parent-in-law. Several key themes on what constitutes ‘meaningful change’ emerged. All caregivers tied a meaningful change in agitation behaviors to a change in behavior frequency (becoming less frequent or stopping entirely). Beyond frequency, themes describing meaningful change included: change in behavior intensity; apparent intent to disturb or cause harm to self or others; potential to cause serious harm; amount of harm caused; more “normal” behavior; shorter episode duration; and less worry, frustration, or isolation. Additionally, a shift from verbally aggressive behavior to physically aggressive behavior was considered an escalation in agitation severity and meaningful worsening. Thus, unique to physical aggression, a meaningful change was described as a de-escalation to verbal aggression.

Caregivers report several themes on what constitutes meaningful improvement or worsening of agitation behaviors in individuals with AD. A change in the frequency of agitation behaviors was consistently reported by caregivers as important, with decreased frequency perceived as a meaningful improvement.

Agitation is a common neuropsychiatric symptom in Alzheimer’s dementia. The Cohen-Mansfield Agitation Inventory (CMAI) assesses the frequency of 29 agitation behaviors in elderly persons. The frequency of each behavior is rated from 1–7 (1=never, 2=less than once a week, 3=once or twice a week, 4=several times a week, 5=once or twice a day, 6=several times a day, 7=several times an hour), typically reported as a single total score. This post hoc analysis explored the efficacy of brexpiprazole on the frequency of individual agitation behaviors.

Post hoc analyses were conducted for two 12-week, randomized, double- blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-arm, fixed-dose trials of brexpiprazole in patients with agitation in Alzheimer’s dementia (NCT01862640, NCT03548584). Data are reported using descriptive statistics for brexpiprazole (2 or 3 mg/day) and placebo, for patients who completed 12 weeks of treatment.

In the first fixed-dose trial (brexpiprazole 2 mg/day, n=120; placebo, n=118), baseline behavior frequency was similar between groups (range 1.12 to 4.92). At baseline, the most frequently observed behavior was “general restlessness” (brexpiprazole, 4.92; placebo, 4.82; approximately “once or twice a day”), and the least frequently observed behaviors were “biting” (brexpiprazole, 1.12) and “making physical sexual advances” (placebo, 1.14). At Week 12, the average reduction in mean frequency was -0.73 (brexpiprazole) and -0.60 (placebo), with a greater numerical reduction for 21/29 behaviors with brexpiprazole versus placebo. In the second fixed-dose trial (brexpiprazole 2 or 3 mg/day, n=192; placebo, n=103), baseline behavior frequency was similar between groups (range 1.12 to 5.22), and higher than in the first trial due to study inclusion criteria. At baseline, the most frequently observed behavior was “general restlessness” (brexpiprazole, 5.22; placebo, 5.09; approximately “once or twice a day”), and the least frequently observed behaviors were “making physical sexual advances” (brexpiprazole, 1.13) and “intentional falling” (placebo, 1.12). At Week 12, the average reduction in mean frequency was -0.78 (brexpiprazole) and -0.54 (placebo), with a greater numerical reduction for 26/29 behaviors with brexpiprazole versus placebo.

In this post hoc analysis, brexpiprazole was associated with numerically greater reduction in the frequency of most individual agitation behaviors versus placebo.

Seamless transition to the community and a shorter Length of Stay (LOS) at hospitals are considered priorities in many health care systems. In Hong Kong, Hospital Admission Risk Reduction Program for the Elderly (HARRPE)1 - a risk prediction tool has been used by hospitals to facilitate discharge of older patients and minimize the need for hospital or emergency re-admission. Older patients score > 0.2 and present greater social-care needs than medical issues will be followed up by a community NGO, in service partnership with the hospital, through an 8-week, home-based, Intensive Discharge Support Program (IDSP)2. Apart from evaluating the success in admission risk reduction, this study was also to assess the program’s effects on patients’ health status and well-being for both discharged patients and family carers, and to understand the underlying supportive mechanism of IDSP.

A mixed-method approached was used, as establishing control groups was not feasible due to both ethical and practical concerns. Structured interviews integrating standardized instruments were employed to evaluate changes in outcome variables pre-and-post IDSP intervention for both the discharged patients and their carers. To complement the quantitative data, two focus groups involving 9 carers were organized to explore the essential and critical service elements of the discharge program, including their effects on promoting patients’ wellbeing or alleviating caregiver burden.

48 patient-carer dyads were recruited from the discharge program, with 35 pairs (73%) successfully completed both pre-and-post IDSP interviews. 68.6% of the discharged elders had no hospital readmission during the 8-week in IDSP. While there were statistically significant improvement in ADL, IADL (p<0.001), the environment domain of WHOQOL(p<0.05), and 3 other domains measured by the Health Status Questionnaire (HSQ-12), namely social functioning, role limitation due to mental health and level of fatigue (p<0.05) among the patient group, there was only one outcome variable – the environment domain of WHOQOL showed significant improvement (p≤0.01) among carers. Focus group discussions also highlighted the importance of using a family-based approach in providing discharge support.

This Discharge support program which emphasizes hospital-community collaboration seems beneficial to older patients’ timely recovery and smooth transition back to community.

We aimed to examine differences in the severity of neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS) subsyndromes according to education level among patients with amnestic-mild cognitive impairment (a-MCI) and to identify patient demographics related to NPS subsyndromes.

Overall, 140 patients with a-MCI were included. We divided the patients into three groups according to their educational level (primary education, middle education, and high education) and compared their demographics. To explore the severity of NPS subsyndromes according to educational level, we used the Neuropsychiatric Inventory-Questionnaire (NPI-Q) after adjustments for the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score. Finally, NPS subsyndromes that were identified as being related to educational level were further explored using a general linear model (GLM).

Significant differences in several demographics were observed among the three groups. Among the NPS subsyndromes, the scores for aggressiveness were significantly higher in the primary and high education groups than in the middle education group, while the apathy/eating problem scores were significantly higher in the primary education group than in the other groups. The GLM analyses showed that aggressiveness was related to marital status and the Zarit Caregiver Burden Interview (ZBI-J) score, while apathy/eating problems was related to the instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) percentage, the ZBI-J score, and the education level in years.

Among NPS subsyndromes, aggressiveness and apathy/eating problems differed according to education level in patients with a-MCI. A GLM analysis suggested that not only education level, but also various other factors should be considered when determining the need for NPS interventions.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak was declared a public health emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO) on 30 January 2020. COVID-19 circuit breaker (CB) was implemented in our country from April 2020 to June 2020 to curb the outbreak. Healthcare Institutions were tasked to reduce ‘non-essential’ outpatient appointments. This research aimed to capture the responses of elderly patients and caregivers to the deferment of appointments. It also attempted to identify psychiatric symptoms which might be exacerbated during the pandemic.

This retrospective review captured patients’ mental state and caregivers’ responses and preferences for subsequent reviews; reasons for their decisions; as well as mental state findings post CB.

Records of 323 patients with a mean age of 79.24 ± 8.02 were analyzed. 50% were diagnosed with dementia (18% severe, 38% moderate, 44% mild); 23% depression; 11% anxiety and 16% psychosis. 64% documented stable mental state before CB. There was no statistical difference in the diagnoses and stability of mental state or decisions to defer. 77% agreed to defer whereas 7% preferred to retain appointments. Those who brought forward appointments (1%) reported insomnia with increased mood and anxiety symptoms. Post-CB mental state showed 57% of patients remained stable; 15% had increased mood symptoms and 11% reported worsening cognition.

Patients with stable mental state before CB were more agreeable to defer appointments regardless of psychiatric diagnoses. Amongst those with dementia, caregivers reported distress with patients’ inability to comprehend need for safe-distancing measures and closure of day care programs. Some caregivers were concerned about increased food intake, lack of physical and social activity. 11% showed increase forgetfulness and 15% suffered increase in mood and anxiety symptoms post-CB.

Despite the cohort’s advanced age, 57% remained stable during CB. The anticipation of challenges in abiding by the safe-distancing measures with supporting documents of patients with mental illness allowed us to improve our psychoeducation efforts of our community. Cognition, mood and anxiety symptoms were exacerbated as a result of the safe distancing and movement restrictions during the pandemic.

The objective of this study is to describe the diagnostic agreement between physicians and liaison psychiatry units (LPU) in 7 general hospitals of Spain for elderly patients and to analyze possible factors related to it.

This is an observational., cross-sectional, multicenter study. We obtained data from a sample of 165 patients (≥65 years) admitted to 7 general hospitals in Spain referred from different departments to each liaison psychiatry unit. Data was collected for a month and a half period. Psychiatric evaluations were performed while the patients were on wards.

We obtained a sample of 165 patients (78 women, 88 men) with a mean age of 76,03 years old (42.10% <75 years, 57,83% ≥ 75 years). Most of them were married and they lived accompanied (67,27%). Only 5,45% lived in a nursing home.

In 55.15% the main reason to referral was anxiety/depression symptoms. 42,42% had no psychiatry medical background. After LPU visit a new diagnosis was done in 56.96%. Main diagnoses were adjustments disorders (26,66%), delirium (20,6%) and no psychiatric pathology (14,54%)

Cohen’s kappa statistics were used to estimate the agreement between the diagnoses made by LPU and the diagnoses considered by the referring doctors. We obtained a moderate global agreement (kappa= 0,4971) between observers (0,424 for <75 years, 0,557 for ≥65 years) Moderate agreement was found for alcohol or substance abuse (kappa= 0,41) and low agreement was found for affective disorders (kappa= 0,3278) and delirium/ psychological and behavioral symptoms in dementia (Kappa= 0,2341).

We analyzed factors which might affect de agreement between physicians and LPU such is group of age, functional impairment, comorbidity by Charlson index and previous diagnosis of dementia.

Further longitudinal studies might help in the future to analyze the factors related to agreement between doctors and might help to establish educational programs

Pharmacogenomic testing for antidepressant medication selection is widely available, and patients with treatment-resistant depression regularly inquire about it. Psychiatrists and primary care providers have little guidance on when to obtain pharmacogenomic testing. We reviewed the characteristics and outcomes of a sample of geriatric patients who received this testing.

Retrospective review of patients ages 65 and older with ICD-10 diagnoses of depressive disorders (F32.0-F33.9), followed at Mayo Clinic Rochester, who received pharmacogenomic testing between 1/1/2018 and 12/31/2022 to guide antidepressant medication selection. Patients were included if there were Patient Health Questionnaire 9-item (PHQ-9) depression rating scores up to 3 months before and 3 months after pharmacogenomic testing. Demographic information, cytochrome P-450 CYP2D6 and CYP2C19 phenotypes, PHQ-9 scores, ordering provider (psychiatrist or primary care provider), and resulting medication changes were collected. Paired t-tests compared differences between before and after PHQ-9, with statistical significance p<0.05.

Approximately 1% of patients with a depressive disorder received pharmacogenomic testing. After limiting to patients with PHQ-9 before and after testing, 287 patients met inclusion criteria. 66% were female, mean age 72.3 yrs (±SD 5.7, range 65.0-90.7), and 95% were Caucasian. CYP2D6 phenotypes were 9% poor, 48% intermediate, 39% extensive (normal), 3% rapid metabolizer. CYP2C19 phenotypes were 3% poor, 25% intermediate, 39% extensive, 33% rapid metabolizer. Mean PHQ-9 before testing was 10.8 (±SD 6.4), and after testing was 9.8 (±SD 6.5) (p=0.0041). Data collection regarding ordering provider and medication changes were still pending.

The clinical utilization of pharmacogenomic testing appeared to be low. CYP2D6 and CYP2C19 phenotypes were as expected (except for more 2C19 rapid metabolizers), suggesting treatment resistance was less likely related to these genetic factors. There was a statistically significant decrease of 1 point in the mean PHQ-9, which would not be clinically significant. However, many other factors still need to be explored, such as details about medications and gene-medication interactions, ordering provider’s knowledge about pharmacogenomic testing, whether medication changes were made, aging factors influencing pharmacokinetics, medical and psychosocial burdens, and other concurrent treatments. Further research will hopefully allow more practical guidance on whether and when to obtain pharmacogenomic testing.

In the past decade, researchers and advocates have taken important steps toward understanding the full costs of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. However, our current approach to framing these costs does not fully consider the behavioral symptoms of dementia, notably agitation. Agitation in Alzheimer’s disease contributes to negative social and financial outcomes for people with the condition, their care partners, and health systems. When left untreated, the negative impact of these outcomes is exacerbated, yet the full scale of this impact is unknown. “Cost Considerations of Untreated Agitation” seeks to propose a framework to help in evaluating the variables that impact these costs.

We created a model that investigates each stage of Alzheimer’s disease with agitation. This model assesses direct, indirect, and intangible costs of the disease. Direct costs include professional caregiving, non-pharmacological intervention, nursing home costs, healthcare professional consultations, and hospitalizations. Indirect costs included loss of income and value of unpaid caregiving. Intangible costs include the mental health impact of agitation on individuals living with Alzheimer’s and their care partners. Additionally, we used quality-adjusted life years to measure disease burden and health outcomes. Finally, we leveraged qualitative research to overlay the experience of care partners and individuals with lived experience to bring their voice to this work.

Results are a tentative framework and describe what additional research and input is necessary in order to create a version with which one can assess the comprehensive costs of untreated agitation in Alzheimer’s. This framework will include perspectives and feedback from individuals with lived experience, care partners, and key opinion leaders in Alzheimer’s research from across the world.

Agitation has severe consequences on individuals, families, and health systems. Oftentimes one of the first symptoms of Alzheimer’s or dementia, agitation can increase the caregiving responsibilities, trigger placement into nursing homes, and cause severe emotional and physical toll on care partners. We cannot understand the full costs of dementia or AD until we account for untreated agitation vis-à-vis a multi-symptom assessment, therefore an accepted framework is necessary in order to fully consider the costs of untreated agitation.

In 2014, IPA advanced the field of Alzheimer’s care by offering a definition of agitation. Yet, as the definition rightly notes, agitation “can bear very different meanings to different people.” This becomes more complex as we consider how different cultural and socioeconomic communities talk about agitation – both within their communities and outside them.

“Articulating Agitation: Towards Culturally Competent Care” seeks to better understand how people living with dementia (PLWD) and care partners talk about agitation from a multi-cultural perspective. This project focuses on discussions of agitation within Black, LGBTQ+, and white American populations.

This project prioritizes the first-hand testimony of people with lived experience, both PLWD and care partners. We conducted a series of interviews with members from Black, LGBTQ+, and white communities in 2021 and 2022 to gain authentic testimony. Interviews were led by members of the respective communities, with our research team on “listen only” mode.

There are notable differences in how each community talks about agitation – including identifying early symptoms; conversations with families, communities, and HCPs; and determining pathways for care and treatment. From our conversations with members of the Black community we heard statements like, “what goes on in the house stays in the house, we don’t discuss [dementia] with other people” and “our people don’t trust a lot of stuff being put out there by doctors and scientists”. From the LGBTQ+ community we heard statements like “I definitely felt that we weren’t taken as seriously or heard because we were two women”. All underscore the sweeping implications of history, stigma, bias, and culture on how diverse communities experience and respond to agitation and care.

Culturally competent care for agitation among PLWD and care partners requires HCPs and other supporters to balance two things at once: the standard diagnostic definition of agitation, but also the cultural humility and openness to listen and seek to understand how PLWD and care partners express their experiences and observations with agitation.

We present a case that shows a very favourable response of the antidepressant vortioxetine in the functional and cognitive recovery in a patient with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and its role as a pain modulator.

This is an observational study using a clinical case. An 80-year-old female patient admitted to the Postacute care unit for recovering her functional baseline following surgical intervention for a hip fracture. On admission, the main symptom was residual pain at the level of the operated lower limb, as well as allodynia and a tingling sensation, which did not subside with conventional analgesia. During admission she also presented, insomnia, daytime hypersomnolence, bradypsychia, and emotional instability in the form of easy crying. It is worth mentioning that prior to admission the patient presented with multiple nonspecific somatic complaints, such as fatigue, headache, myalgia, and arthralgia, adding over time, great difficulty in planning and performing household tasks. The functional progress of the patient during admission was very slow, mainly due to the combination of lack of engagement, together with episodes of irritability, restlessness and suffering from fear of falling syndrome. Given the suspicion of previously undiagnosed Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, exacerbated by the decline in her functional baseline after surgery, treatment was started with vortioxetine in addition to non-pharmacological measures and psychotherapy, obtaining excellent results in approximately 4 weeks.

Great effectiveness of vortioxetine in the treatment of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and in the control of concomitant pain (despite that indication is not included in the molecule's data sheet). The patient followed a very favourable evolution achieving, on discharge, an ad integrum recovery of her functional state.

As presented in this case, treatment with multimodal antidepressant treatment (vortioxetine) could have positive impact for patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, achieving improvements in the affective-cognitive aspect and controlling the pain related to this syndrome, avoiding polypharmacy.

of this presentation are to:

• Describe the Chronic Grief Management Intervention-Video (CGMI-V) – an ongoing stage I clinical trial

• Describe the profile of the study sample using baseline data

to pilot-test the CGMI-V for establishing effect sizes in caregiver outcomes including chronic grief, symptoms of depression and anxiety, positive states of mind, satisfaction with care in the facility and conflict with staff.

Participants were randomized to either a control condition or to CGMI-V, a manualized intervention delivered on-line over eight consecutive weeks to family caregivers of persons diagnosed with dementia who were placed in long-term care. Caregivers were measured with standardized demographic and situational surveys (baseline only) and with the following instruments at weeks 8 and 24:

• Knowledge of Alzheimer’s (FKAT)

• Marwit-Meuser Caregiver Grief Inventory (MM-CGI)

• CES-D 20

• Family Perception of Caregiver Role

• Family Perception of Caregiving Tool

• State Trait Anxiety Instrument

• Positive States of Mind

Recruitment was conducted via direct contacts with facilities, radio and online advertising.

For the purposes of this presentation, we are reporting only baseline demographic and situational characteristics of the entire sample. Enrollment closed in November, 2022. The study remains open for follow-up only. The final sample size is 99 participants (Intervention=50; Control=49) recruited from across 14 states in the USA.

Sample characteristics illuminate similarities across dementia caregivers who placed family members with dementia in long-term facilities across 14 states in the USA. These findings may inform future grief interventions.

The present study aims to determine the prevalence estimates of MBI and specific MBI domains in a large sample of the general population, by degree of cognitive impairment (CI).

A representative community sample of individuals aged 55+ (n=4803) (ZARADEMP Study) was studied. MBI, and specific MBI domains, were assessed according to ISTAART-AA MBI criteria, using the Geriatric Mental State (GMS). In accordance with these criteria, clinically significant anxiety, depression, and dementia were excluded. For the standardized degree of CI Perneczky et al. ́s criteria were applied: normal (MMSE 30), questionable (MMSE 26-29), mild CI (MMSE 21-25), moderate-severe CI (MMSE <21).

The prevalence of MBI, and specifically the domain Decrease Motivation (DM), increased progressively and significantly by degree of CI, the differences being significant between all cognitive groups. After control by age and education, DM was 2- and 4.5-times more frequent in subjects with mild CI (10.6%) and moderate-severe CI (18.3%), respectively, than in cognitive normal (5.8%). Affective Dysregulation (AD) was 1.7-times more frequent in mild CI (26.4%) (vs 20.4% in normal). Impulsive Dyscontrol (ID) was 2- and 7.9-times more frequent in mild CI (8%) and moderate-severe CI (23.5%) than in cognitive normal (4.7%). And Abnormal Perception and Thoughts (APT) was 6-times more frequent in moderate-severe CI (10%) (vs 1.4% in cognitive normal).

Our results confirm an increase of MBI prevalence across the spectrum of CI. However, each specific domain of MBI shows a different pattern of association with CI. Our results support the relevance of studying MBI domains independently.

Anxiety and depressive disorders are among the most frequently diagnosed mental health problems in older adults. Despite the availability of effective treatments, underutilization of mental health care services is problematic and more pronounced in the older population compared to young adults. Stigma of mental illness may be one explanation for this underutilization as it may impede help-seeking and participation in treatment. The objective of this study was to compare older and young adults on different types of stigma related to depression and anxiety while adjusting for potentially confounding variables.

Young adults aged 18 to 36 years (n = 96) and older adults aged 60 years and over (n = 103) completed questionnaires measuring self-stigma, personal stigma, and perceived stigma related to anxiety and depression.

We found that older adults have higher levels of personal stigma but lower levels of perceived stigma and self-stigma than young adults.

The results provide some support for the idea that older adults have greater stigma for mental illness and suggest the importance of age-differentiated interventions for reducing the stigma of mental illness.

Only a small proportion of older adults with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) seek professional help. One reason is the lack of access to mental health professionals licensed to provide psychotherapy. One way to improve access to psychotherapy is through guided self- help (GSH). GSH based on the principles of cognitive-behavior therapy (GSH-CBT) can be guided by trained lay providers (LPs). The purpose of this poster is to report preliminary results from a multisite randomized controlled trial testing the efficacy of a GSH-CBT guided by LPs for GAD in older adults.

The sample included 150 participants (≥ 60 years old) with a diagnosis of threshold or subthreshold GAD randomly assigned to: 1) GSH-CBT guided by LPs (n = 75) or 2) waiting list (n = 75). The GSH-CBT lasted 15 weeks. Participants used a manual presenting weekly reading and at-home exercises. They also received weekly support calls (30 minutes maximum) by LPs (undergraduate psychology students) supervised by psychologists. Repeated-measures regression models were used to compare changes in the groups before and after 15 weeks on three outcomes: severity of GAD symptoms (Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item; GAD-7), tendency to worry (Penn State Worry Questionnaire; PSWQ), and level of anxiety (Geriatric Anxiety Inventory; GAI).

At the first assessment, both groups were similar in terms of age, sex, level of education, marital status, occupation, and did not differ significantly on outcomes. The GSH- CBT group decreased significantly on all three outcomes (GAD-7: -4.8, 95% CI [-5.7, -3.8], PSWQ: -11.7; 95% CI [-13.6, -9.9], GAI: -5.3 95% CI [-6.5, -4.1]) while the waiting list group remained stable over 15 weeks (GAD-7: -0.3, 95% CI [-1.2, 0.6], PSWQ: 0.7; 95% CI [-1.2, 2.5], GAI: -0.7 95% CI [-1.9, -0.5]).

GSH-CBT guided by LPs appears to be an effective intervention for reducing severity of GAD symptoms, tendency to worry, and level of anxiety in older people with GAD. Further analyses will be conducted to test whether the intervention differs in efficacy between participants with a threshold vs. subthreshold GAD. The maintenance of long-term gains (6 and 12 months after the intervention) will also be tested.

Cognitive Reserve (CR) developed from observation that several individuals show fewer cognitive impairment compared to others with the same brain injuries or neuropathology. Cognitive reserve is a potentially modifiable characteristic. Most of studies on cognitive reserve were conducted on chronic progressive diseases such as dementia. This study aims to define the role of cognitive reserve in geriatric delirium cases.

This case-control study was conducted in the acute geriatric inpatient of Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital, Jakarta, Indonesia on June to September 2019 that consisted of 33 subjects with delirium and 33 controls. The measurement of cognitive reserve was done using the Indonesian adaptation of Cognitive Reserve Index questionnaire (CRIq) with 3 subscales, i.e. Education, Work Activity and Leisure Time.

We found that the CRIq scores of delirium patients were lower compared to the non-delirium controls both on total and each subscores, with a statistically significant mean difference (p<0,01). Patients with low-medium cognitive reserve also more likely to develop delirium compared to those with medium-high cognitive reserve (OR 9; 95% CI 2.86 to 28.22).

Low cognitive reserve may serve as a risk factor for delirium in the elderly. The measure of CRI in the geriatric inpatients unit can be used to determine those at risk of developing delirium. Further research are warranted to elaborate potentially modifiable variables of cognitive reserve to minimize the risk of delirium.

BPSD is typically treated as a singular entity. Yet it is heterogeneous and challenges simple phenotyping by behavioral inventory. Some investigators recognize BPSD more as ‘obstreperous,’ disruptive behavior, or unwanted behavior. Others conceptualize it as a neuropsychiatric entity with an underlying pathobiology, or as the expression of an unmet need. Treatments for BPSD have been challenging since before the first clinical trials with chlorpromazine.

We systematically reviewed interventional studies to understand the successes, limitations, and knowledge gaps in terms of methodology that might misinform practice. Questions addressed included: What do these studies look like? How is BPRS operationalized, and does it vary between studies? What interventions have been tested? How are we measuring eligibility and outcomes? Are there methodological factors that influence the outcomes and validity of these trials? Are the trials methods fit for purpose and how can we better test interventions?

From a search yielding 6497 candidate studies, we included 474 of which 413 were randomized, 340 parallel group, 197 double-blinded, 51 unblinded. About 30% were in nursing homes only and 20% outpatient only. Most NH studies were drug studies; most outpatient studies were non-pharmacological. Over time, study durations consolidated to 6–12-week treatment periods and samples grew exceptionally large, involving 400 to 1200 participants.

Of studies that specified a target, 171 were for ‘agitation.’ 50 investigated sleep disturbance, 25 apathy, 25 depression, 21 psychosis. 150 described only ‘BPSD’ or ‘neuropsychiatric symptoms.’ Two-thirds of the agitation studies were single drug interventions; most used a scale score cut-off to define agitation. Important characteristics, secular trends in design, and quality of the BPSD studies will be detailed.

The important trends in methods for interventions and assessment of BPSD are not necessarily toward quality. Eligibility criteria have become designed for convenience, are misspecified relying on the same scales used for outcomes, although randomization is the rule, allocation concealment and treatment blinding is poor. There is marked autoregression of outcomes. Studies have become larger and designed to detect small effects even when clinical meaning is uncertain. BPSD studies need reconsideration and a few simple fixes to better discover effective treatments. Only a little care is needed to improve the quality and reliability of studies. This includes study management that is independent of patient selection and outcomes and from most procedures, and truly blinded assessments.

The aim of this study was to examine the structural change in the hippocampal subfields in early-onset (EO) mild cognitive impairment (MCI) patients associated with the APOE ε4 carrier state.

This study had 50 subjects aged 55-63 years, all of whom were diagnosed with amnestic MCI at baseline via the Korean version of the Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Packet (CERAD-K). The EO-MCI patients were divided into the MCI continued (MCIcont) and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) converted (ADconv) groups 2 years later. The volumes of hippocampal subfields were measured for all the subjects. The calculations were based on the change of the volumes between the 2-year-interval brain Magnetic resonance image (MRI) scans between MCIcont and ADconv groups according to the Apolipoprotein ε4 (APOE ε4) carrier state.

There was a significant correlation between APOE ε4 allele and structural changes in several hippocampal subfields. The volume reduction in cornus ammonis 1 (CA1) field and subiculum, especially in the APOE ε4 carriers. The significance was more prominent in ADconv group.

These results suggest that the possession of APOE ε4 allele may lead to significantly greater predilection for the structural changes in hippocampal subfields, showing significant changes, especially in the ADconv patients compared with MCIcont patients.