Mild cognitive impairment

Abstract Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) is a disease between normal cognitive ageing and dementia. In recent years the term MCI has been recognized as a pre-dementia state, raising an important subject for investigation in the prevention of dementia. There are various terms related to pre-dementia MCI, such as isolated memory complaint and pre-Alzheimer’s disease; most of them do not comprise all the areas related to MCI. A central cholinergic deficit is present in amnestic MCI with neuronal loss in the Meynert basal nucleus. It is estimated that the rate of progression to dementia is about 10% every year. The prevalence of MCI is 10%-11% and the risk of progression to dementia is about 5%-16%. The continual development of pharmacologic approaches to modify and delay the natural history of progression of the disease motivates a great interest in an earlier diagnosis

Dynamics of Executive Functions, Basic Psychological Needs, Impulsivity, and Depressive Symptoms in American Football Players

Executive functions play an important role in sports since the ability to plan, organize,and regulate behavior to reach an objective or goal depends on these functions. Someof the components of executive functions, such as inhibition of impulsive behavior andcognitive flexibility, are necessary for contact sports (e.g., American football) to carryout successful plays on the sports field. Executive functions have been studied in thesporting environment, but their relationship with the athletes’ basic psychological needs(BPN), such as autonomy, competence, and relatedness, remains unexplored. Due tothe importance of motivational processes over cognitive functions and in the generatedadaptive results in athletes, this relationship should be taken into account. Therefore, theaim of this study was to analyze and compare executive functioning and psychologicalneed thwarting overimpulsivity and psychological distress, before and after the season(4 months) in 28 undergraduate football players. Neuropsychological and psychologicaltests were applied. The results showed that there was an improvement in inhibitionand planning at the end of the season. There was also an increase in attention andmotor impulsiveness, and a decrease in need thwarting at the end of the season.A positive association between executive function, impulsiveness, psychological needs,and affective symptoms were also found. Our findings reveal the dynamics of sport-related psychological variables throughout the sport season in American football players,the association of these for the achievement of sport success, and the importance ofencouraging proper management of emotions

Muscle mass measured using bioelectrical impedance analysis, calf circumference and grip strength in older adults

AbstractObjectiveTo determine the correlation between muscle mass, measured using bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA), with calf circumference and grip strength.Materials and methodsCross-sectional and observational study. Including all functional adults over 60 years of age seen in our Geriatric Clinic during the months of March 2013–February 2014. Measurements of weight, height, BMI, calf circumference, grip strength and muscle mass by BIA were made after the signature of informed consent.Results105 patients were evaluated, 73 women and 32 men, with a mean age of 76 years (SD±7.3). Muscle mass showed a mild positive correlation with calf circumference: Pearson (r=0.31; p=0.000) and a moderate positive correlation with grip strength: Pearson (r=0.50; p=0.000).DiscussionMuscle mass by BIA has a positive correlation with calf circumference and grip strength, and is a reliable measure to assess muscle mass and physical performance in older adults in geriatric ambulatory clinics and can be used in the diagnosis of sarcopenia in Mexican patients

La presencia de un perro mejora la interacción de niños con trastorno del espectro autista y su terapeuta

Dado que el trastorno espectro autista (TEA) se caracteriza por un limitado interés social y comunicativo, su tratamiento requiere la constante búsqueda de terapias que favorezcan el desarrollo emocional, intelectual y físico de quien lo padece. Estudios indican que la terapia con perros puede mejorar la salud y ánimo de los seres humanos incluyendo aquellos que padecen alguna enfermedad o trastorno. En este trabajo, evaluamos el impacto de la incorporación de un perro de terapia en el comportamiento de niños con TEA y en la interacción con su terapeuta. Los resultados mostraron que, en presencia del perro, los niños incrementaron el número de risas, la proporción de interacciones exitosas con su terapeuta, y disminuyeron la duración del juego aislado. Adicionalmente, una prueba de preferencia visual y de juego, indicó que los niños, realizaron un mayor número de contactos visuales y de solicitaciones de juego hacia el perro comparado con los dirigidos hacia la terapeuta. En conjunto, nuestros hallazgos indican que el perro representa un modelo de estimulación multisensorial atractivo, con el potencial para reducir el aislamiento social de individuos con TEA, mejorar su humor, y la interacción con su terapeut

Formación científica de los egresados de tres programas de maestría en ciencias: seguimiento a 10 años (1999-2009)

El objetivo de este trabajo fue llevar a cabo un seguimiento durante 10 años de los egresados de tres programas de Maestría en Ciencias; usando como criterio de la formación como científicos, la publicación de dos o más artículos en revistas internacionales indexadas. Se analizaron los datos de 100 estudiantes que en 1999 cursaban la Maestría en Ciencias en tres Facultades de la Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León. Se utilizaron las siguientes bases de datos: Google Scholar, Science Citation Index Expanded, Scopus y Journal Citation Reports. En 2009, 65 egresados no publicaron, 14 publicaron un artículo y solamente 21 publicaron dos o más trabajos. En conclusión, pocos egresados del posgrado en México se convierten en científico