Digital Dance for People With Parkinson's Disease During the COVID-19 Pandemic : A Feasibility Study

Background: Dance as a treatment to support physical, cognitive and emotional functioning, has gained increased acceptance as a healthcare intervention for people with Parkinson's Disease (PD). The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has been far reaching with devastating effects for at-risk populations. To find alternative and safe treatment delivery options during the pandemic has been of utmost importance. The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to evaluate the feasibility and the experience of digital dance for people with PD (Dance for PD©) and to examine change in self-reported quality of life, psychological health, subjective cognitive complaints and mental fatigue. Methods: 23 participants with PD (mean age 70) partook in 10-h weekly digital Dance for PD sessions. Feasibility outcome measures were assessed at post-test. Web-based questionnaires examining quality of life, subjective memory complaints, depression, anxiety and mental fatigue were administered at pre- and post-test. Moreover, nine participants partook in focus group discussions at post-test. Results: The results showed an acceptable feasibility to home-based digital Dance for PD, where 86% of the dance classes were completed, only minor negative side effects were reported (i.e., sore joints), and all experienced the dance classes as motivating and safe to do at home. The majority also reported positive effects on mood and physical functioning. The results from the questionnaires showed significant improvements in depressive symptoms (p = 0.006) and quality of life (p < 0.001) at post-test. In the focus groups, participants indicated that digital dance was a beneficial and enjoyable activity with a strong added value during the COVID-19 pandemic. Nevertheless, they experienced that digital dance missed some important elements of live dance. Conclusions: This study showed that digital Dance for PD is feasible and holds promise as a viable and safe method to keep people with PD dancing even when physical meetings are not possible. Beyond the pandemic, digital dance could be applied to a wide variety of patient groups including rural populations and patients for whom transportation may not be feasible for practical or financial reasons. Trial Registration: Retrospectively registered at ClinicalTrials.gov on 25/06/2021 with the following registration number: NCT04942392

Cognitive function in clinical burnout: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Clinical burnout has been associated with impaired cognitive functioning; however, previous findings have been heterogeneous and the specific domains that are affected and the magnitude of impairment is unclear. The aim of this systematic review and multivariate meta-analysis was to assess cognitive function in clinical burnout and identify the pattern and severity of cognitive dysfunction across cognitive domains. We identified 17 studies encompassing 730 patients with clinical burnout and 649 healthy controls. Clinical burnout was associated with small to moderate impairments in episodic memory (g = -0.36, 95 % CI -0.57 to -0.15), short-term and working memory (g = -0.36, 95 % CI -0.52 to -0.20), executive function (g = -0.39, 95 % CI -0.55 to -0.23), attention and processing speed (g = -0.43, 95 % CI -0.57 to -0.29) and fluency (g = -0.53, 95 % CI -1.04 to -0.03). There were no differences between patients and controls in crystallized (k = 6 studies) and visuospatial abilities (k = 4). Our findings suggest that clinical burnout is associated with cognitive impairment across multiple cognitive domains. Cognitive dysfunction needs to be considered in the clinical and occupational health management of burnout to optimize rehabilitation and prognosis

Cognitive function in clinical burnout : a systematic review and meta-analysis

Clinical burnout has been associated with impaired cognitive functioning; however, inconsistent findings have been reported regarding the pattern and magnitude of cognitive deficits. The aim of this systematic review and multivariate meta-analysis was to assess cognitive function in clinical burnout as compared to healthy controls and identify the pattern and severity of cognitive dysfunction across cognitive domains. We identified 17 studies encompassing 730 patients with clinical burnout and 649 healthy controls. Clinical burnout was associated with impaired performance in episodic memory (g = −0.36, 95% CI −0.57 to −0.15), short-term and working memory (g = −0.36, 95% CI −0.52 to −0.20), executive function (g = −0.39, 95% CI −0.55 to −0.23), attention and processing speed (g = −0.43, 95% CI −0.57 to −0.29) and fluency (g = −0.53, 95% CI −1.04 to −0.03). There were no differences between patients and controls in crystallized (k = 6 studies) and visuospatial abilities (k = 4). Our findings suggest that clinical burnout is associated with cognitive impairment across multiple cognitive domains. Cognitive dysfunction needs to be considered in the clinical and occupational health management of burnout to optimise rehabilitation and support return-to-work

Association of glucocerebrosidase polymorphisms and mutations with dementia in incident Parkinson's disease

PINE was supported by Parkinson’s UK (grant numbers G0502, G0914, G1302), Scottish Government Chief Scientist Office, BMA Doris Hillier Award, the BUPA Foundation, NHS Grampian Endowments, and RS MacDonald Trust. The Norwegian ParkWest study has been funded by the Research Council of Norway (grant number 177966), the Western Norway Regional Health Authority (grant number 911218), Stavanger University Hospital Research Funds (grant number 501611), and the Norwegian Parkinson’s Disease Association. Janete Chung and Kristin Aaser Lunde are supported by the Western Norway Regional Health Authority (grant numbers 911859 and 911830). The NYPUM study has been funded by the Swedish Medical Research Council, the Swedish Parkinson’s Disease Association, the Swedish Parkinson Foundation, Erling Persson Foundation, Kempe Foundation and the Västerbotten County Council. The funding sources had no role in the design and conduct of the study: collection, management, analysis, and interpretation of the data; preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript: and decision to submit the manuscript for publication.Peer reviewedPostprin