Collection and Analysis of Architectural Features in Streetscapes in South Texas

Background: The built environment of neighborhoods influences the health and well-being of residents. One approach to studying the impact of such a built environment on people\u27s health is through the study of the memorability of the architectural features (AFs) in streetscapes. In this direction, we raise the question: what AFs are more memorable? Understanding how AFs impact cognition will allow us to propose neighborhood designs that consider this finding to foster people\u27s health and well-being. However, AFs in streetscapes are not universal they need to be studied in specific historical, cultural, and geographical contexts. In order to analyze the memorability of the AFs in streetscapes in South Texas, we propose to create The Collection of Architectural Features (CAFs), which will hold annotated images of the architecture of South Texas”. Methods: The CAFs database is created with images that use a general schema of a set of AFs that is refined as images are added. These images are sourced from a combination of personal photography, and various reliable architectural image databases. This method is known as a design per prototype. CAFs holds annotated images of streetscapes in general and from the South of Texas. Each image will be selected by an expert, and classified by the architectural feature present in the image. Each image is subject to a detailed annotation process of the AFs present in the image, such as contrast colors, ornaments, vernacular material, rhythm, and others. In addition, each image will have a memorability score calculated through ResMem free software (Needell & Bainbridge, 2022). This annotated information serves as metadata for each image in the database, creating a comprehensive and searchable catalog of architectural elements. Frequency analyses, clustering, and principal component analysis (PCA) will be performed to classify and understand the understand the architectural features with higher memorability score. Results: The CAF database is progressively growing with a diverse collection of annotated images from South Texas. The detailed annotations, which include elements such as contrast color, ornaments, vernacular material, rhythm, patterns, details, memorability index, symmetry, and others, provide a basis for comprehensive analyses. Conclusions: We expect that the CAFs database will constitute a robust resource for studying the impact of Afs on cognition. The CAFs database will not only serve as a valuable tool for academic research but also to provide a solid foundation for policymakers, urban planners, and community leaders

Reduction of Cognitive Decline in Patients with or at High Risk for Diabetes

Purpose of review—The incidence of Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders is expected to triple by 2050. People with type 2 diabetes and prediabetes have a higher risk of cognitive dysfunction, including Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia. Controversy remains about when and how to prevent and treat cognitive dysfunction in people with or at high risk of diabetes. Recent findings—In our review of ongoing clinical trials, we have found that there has been an increase in the number of studies assessing the efficacy of pharmacological and non-pharmacological approaches to prevent or slow down cognitive impairment among people with or at high risk of diabetes. Summary—Despite the considerable risk of cognitive impairment in people with diabetes and prediabetes, there is not enough evidence to support a specific treatment to prevent or slow mild cognitive impairment, or progression to Alzheimer’s disease or related disorders. Several ongoing trials are attempting to identify the usefulness of several compounds, as well as lifestyle changes including exercise and diet. Direct mechanisms linking diabetes to cognitive decline have not been elucidated

Design of a Test for Research on Architectural Features of Streetscape

Background: The architectural experience may impact people’s behavior, health, and well-being, engaging several neural networks. Sensory-motor networks mediate motor responses such as approach and avoidance and spatial navigation in response to stimuli. Limbic networks process feelings and emotions. Memory-related networks support personal experiences, education, and culture. The interaction between architecture and brain sciences is known as neuroarchitecture which promises to offer biologically inspired insights into the design of spaces. We are interested in the study of neuroarchitecture applied to the streetscapes of neighborhoods in South Texas. The primary purpose of this study is to design a cognitive test to assess what architectural features are more memorable. Methods: The primary aim of the proposed test is to assess the content of memories of architectural features of the neighborhood streetscapes. One approach is through visual and mental imagery. Visual mental imagery is used to reactivate long-term memory and manipulate the visual representation of the stimulus in the absence of the corresponding visual stimulus, giving rise to the experience of “seeing with the mind’s eyes.” Visual mental images are produced by interrogating the long-term memory (reactivating neural representations) about how visual objects look and maintaining them with the aid of working memory to inspect and manipulate them. The proposed test is based on an interview with questions that evoke visual mental imagery of the street, drawings, and verbal descriptions of the street. We hypothesize that the architectural features that are more memorable would be reflected in the drawings and verbal descriptions of the street. To account for the diversity of visual imagery abilities, we will apply the Vividness of Visual Imagery Questionnaire (Marks, 1973). We will systematically compare the street image from Google Street View vs. the drawing and the verbal description from the same segment, and different scores systems will be explored to test reliability and accuracy. Results: It will be presented results in three conditions. We will first use the segments of the Canva Street View app to select the streets. In this condition, we will go to those street segments and apply the test (interview). In a second condition, we will choose an aleatory sample of people to interview and use the test in a lab environment. After the interview, we need to determine if the street where the participant lives is upgraded in the Google Street View app; if not, we need to go to that street to check the accuracy of the responses. As a third condition, we will choose an aleatory sample of streets to go there and do the interviews. We will also provide the scoring proposal with the analysis e interpretation of the results of each condition. Conclusions: We presented an experimental test to assess the more memorable architectural features. Such a test must be tested first in a pilot study to refine the test and the scoring proposal. After the pilot study, we propose conducting a field study to assess what South Texas architectural features are more memorable

Assessing Dementia in Resource-Poor Regions

The numbers and proportions of elderly are increasing rapidly in developing countries, where prevalence of dementia is often high. Providing cost-effective services for dementia sufferers and their caregivers in these resourcepoor regions poses numerous challenges; developing resources for diagnosis must be the first step. Capacity building for diagnosis involves training and education of healthcare providers, as well as the general public, development of infrastructure, and resolution of economic and ethical issues. Recent progress in some low-to-middle-income countries (LMICs) provides evidence that partnerships between wealthy and resource-poor countries, and between developing countries, can improve diagnostic capabilities. Without the involvement of the mental health community of developed countries in such capacity-building programs, dementia in the developing world is a disaster waiting to happen

Wrap-around services to older adults with dementia: collaboration, education, and prevention as a model for integration of primary care and neurobehavioral health

Background: Medical care in the Rio Grande Valley (RGV) is fragmented and difficult to navigate, especially for older adults with cognitive decline and dementia. The communities are eager to have a new healthcare delivery system that integrate community-based aging services to provide integrated, team collaborative better health care in our communities. The University of Texas RGV School of Medicine, in collaboration with its affiliates in the regional healthcare systems, is a partner providing comprehensive care across the life-cycle bridging science, social services and patient care. Our interprofessional team collaborative emphasizes safe, appropriate, and effective neurobehavioral care, employing evidence-based medicine in collaboration with the patient’s preferences and culture. Methods: Different strategies are being deployed to create, enhance and target system-wide cross-organisational care pathways to support persons with dementia (PwD) and their caregivers. The initial focus of integration is the referral network management (inter-organizational care pathways). Additional mechanisms for care integration are the use of a mobile community health integrative care hub to improve access and prevention in the South Texas Colonias; a dedicated program for older adults care that may be triply diagnosed (general-neuro-behavioral); and, an innovative curriculum to achieve improvements in population health outcomes through AD-RCMAR programs emphasizing collaboration and prevention. Results: Small-scale testing has revealed that multidisciplinary teams, both within and across organizations, emerged as the most important single care coordination mechanism. Operationally this translates in identification of tasks and roles and in the agreement over one overall care plan per patient, not defined by each profession but patient-centered. Different barriers to integration include those related to IT infrastructure and limited access to services due to ‘gatekeeping’ rules that determine referral capabilities and geographical isolation. Conclusions: Wrap-around services to older adults with dementia are expected to have a direct impact on the care of the patients and families in the RGV and to be associated with better health outcomes and better satisfaction for all. A better understanding of factors determining integration is needed in order to develop more cost-effective pathways of care for PwD and their caregivers

It is time to focus on an underestimated epidemic

Contemporary dementia research has spurred remarkable interest and endogenous efforts by clinical and research teams in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). The combination of unprecedented high burden of dementia, low resource settings, and wide acceptance of age-related cognitive changes has put thousands of individuals and families in a vulnerable situation that requires immediate attention. This issue of Dementia & Neuropsychologia is dedicated to cognitive impairment and dementia in LAC, and presents a timely series of fourteen reviews and original articles from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, and Venezuela. Many of the topics have been extensively examined by clinicians and scientists all over the world, but the focus on LAC is just emerging

Insights from a Study on Multimodal Experiences in a Plaza

By highlighting the neurobiological basis of people’s perception of urban spaces, this study provides a solid foundation for evidence-based design decisions. It presents a roadmap for crafting urban environments that not only accommodate the physical and social needs of people but also nurture their psychological well-being

It is time to focus on an underestimated epidemic

Contemporary dementia research has spurred remarkable interest and endogenous efforts by clinical and research teams in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). The combination of unprecedented high burden of dementia, low resource settings, and wide acceptance of age-related cognitive changes has put thousands of individuals and families in a vulnerable situation that requires immediate attention. This issue of Dementia & Neuropsychologia is dedicated to cognitive impairment and dementia in LAC, and presents a timely series of fourteen reviews and original articles from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, and Venezuela. Many of the topics have been extensively examined by clinicians and scientists all over the world, but the focus on LAC is just emerging

Neuroarquitectura: percepción de cambios de la atmósfera

[Neuroarchitecture: perception of changes in the atmosphere

Effect of Alcohol Consumption on Cognitive Decline among Mexican Adults

Background: Studies on the association between alcohol use and cognitive impairment have yielded controversial results suggesting a reduced risk of dementia in drinkers vs. nondrinkers. We aimed to examine the effect of alcohol use on cognitive trajectories among Mexican adults aged 50 and over. Methods: Data are from 5,898 cognitively normal individuals (2,512 men and 3,386 women) from the Mexican Health and Aging Study (MHAS) with a mean age of 59 years (50-90 years) at baseline (2001) and followed-up after 11 years (2012). The Cross-Cultural Cognitive Examination was the cognitive battery measuring verbal memory, visual memory, attention, and constructional praxis. Impairment was defined if scores in two or more functions were 1.5 standard deviations below the mean based on norms by age and education. Using self-reported data on frequency and quantity of alcohol consumption, as well as scores on the CAGE questionnaire, a 4-question screening tool for the detection of alcoholism, we constructed a comprehensive measure to classify alcohol use into five categories: never, mild, moderate, and heavy drinking. Those who reported they had never drunk in their life were classified as never drinkers, mild drinkers included those drinking less than one day per week, and those who had drunk before and scored zero in the CAGE questionnaire, moderate drinkers included those who reported having one or two drinks each day, and as heavy drinkers, we classified those who reported having three or more drinks per day and those who drunk before and scored one or more in the CAGE questionnaire. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to analyze the predictive role of alcohol consumption in developing cognitive impairment. Sociodemographic and health variables known to increase the risk of cognitive decline (age, education, gender, locality, cardiovascular risk factors, smoking, and depressive symptoms) were included as covariates. Results: At follow-up, 4,844 participants (82.1%) remained cognitively normal, while 1,054 participants (18%) showed impaired cognition. When the more generally classified drinkers were compared to never-drinkers, they had a reduced risk of cognitive impairment (OR 0.78, 95% CI 0.64-0.95). However, when we analyzed mild, moderate, and heavy drinkers compared to never-drinkers, only mild drinkers had a significantly reduced risk of cognitive decline (OR 0.76, 95% CI 0.62-0.93). The reduced risk of cognitive impairment in moderate drinkers (OR 0.72, 95% CI; 0.49-1.05) and heavy drinkers (OR 0.90, 95%CI .70-1.16) was not significant. Conclusions: Our results suggest that among drinkers, only mild drinking has a protective effect on cognitive decline in Mexican adults aged 50 years and olde