Detecting sleep apnea in adults with Down syndrome using WatchPAT: A feasibility study

BACKGROUND: In daily practice, sleep apnea is underdiagnosed in people with Down syndrome. The WatchPAT can detect sleep apnea in a less invasive way. AIM: This study aimed to evaluate the feasibility of the WatchPAT to detect sleep apnea in individuals with Down syndrome. METHODS AND PROCEDURES: Thirty-one participants with Down syndrome (aged 18+) were included. Sleep apnea was detected with the WatchPAT and compared to results of the STOP-Bang Questionnaire (current practice). Experiences of participants, caregivers and clinicians were studied using a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods. OUTCOMES AND RESULTS: Among the 68% of participants who accepted the WatchPAT, sleep apnea was detected in 95% of participants. Younger participants and participants with mild/moderate intellectual disabilities were more likely to accept the device. STOP-Bang did not detect most cases of sleep apnea. For the degree of sleep apnea, interrater reliability was substantial (k = 0.71) to almost perfect (k = 0.91). Considering experiences, caregivers and clinicians were predominantly positive about the WatchPAT. CONCLUSIONS: Our study showed that the WatchPAT is a promising device to detect sleep apnea in people with Down syndrome. Compared to polysomnography, detection with this device is less invasive and less burdensome for people with Down syndrome. Furthermore, the WatchPAT is a relatively accessible solution to implement in care institutions

Impact of COVID-19-Related Lockdown on Psychosocial, Cognitive, and Functional Well-Being in Adults With Down Syndrome

People with Down Syndrome (DS) have a high prevalence of physical and psychiatric comorbidities and experience early-onset dementia. With the outbreak of CoVID-19 pandemic, strict social isolation measures have been necessary to prevent the spreading of the disease. Effects of this lockdown period on behavior, mood and cognition in people with DS have not been assessed so far. In the present clinical study, we investigated the impact of CoVID-19-related lockdown on psychosocial, cognitive and functional well-being in a sample population of 46 adults with DS. The interRAI Intellectual Disability standardized assessment instrument, which includes measures of social withdrawal, functional impairment, aggressive behavior and depressive symptoms, was used to perform a three time-point evaluation (two pre-lockdown and one post-lockdown) in 37 subjects of the study sample, and a two time point evaluation (one pre- and one post-lockdown) in 9 subjects. Two mixed linear regression models - one before and one after the lockdown - have been fitted for each scale in order to investigate the change in the time-dependent variation of the scores. In the pre-lockdown period, significant worsening over time (i.e., per year) was found for the Depression Rating Scale score (beta = 0.55; 95% CI 0.34; 0.76). In the post-lockdown period, a significant worsening in social withdrawal (beta = 3.05, 95% CI 0.39; 5.70), instrumental activities of daily living (beta = 1.13, 95% CI 0.08; 2.18) and depression rating (beta = 1.65, 95% CI 0.33; 2.97) scales scores was observed, as was a significant improvement in aggressive behavior (beta = -1.40, 95% CI -2.69; -0.10). Despite the undoubtful importance of the lockdown in order to reduce the spreading of the CoVID-19 pandemic, the related social isolation measures suggest an exacerbation of depressive symptoms and a worsening in functional status in a sample of adults with DS. At the opposite, aggressive behavior was reduced after the lockdown period. This finding could be related to the increase of negative and depressive symptoms in the study population. Studies with longer follow-up period are needed to assess persistence of these effects

Praktijkgericht wetenschappelijk onderzoek in de Friese gehandicaptenzorg::werken aan een beter leven voor de cliënt van vandaag en morgen

Zorggroep Alliade biedt zorg en ondersteuning aan meer dan 7.000 mensen met een verstandelijke beperking (VB) en kwetsbare ouderen in Friesland. Zorggroep Alliade bestaat uit een aantal zorgonderdelen waarvan Talant (gehandicaptenzorg) en Meriant (ouderenzorg) de bekendste zijn. Naast het verlenen van directe zorg en ondersteuning aan cliënten, heeft Alliade onderzoek en ontwikkeling hoog in het vaandel staan. Onderzoek draagt bij aan kennisontwikkeling, deskundigheidsbevordering, betere screening, diagnostiek en behandeling en zinnige/effectieve zorg. De afdeling Praktijkgericht Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek (PWO) richt zich hierop en voert een brede waaier aan onderzoeksprojecten uit in de gehandicaptenzorg en ouderenzorg. De afdeling PWO bestaat uit een aantal (gepromoveerde) onderzoekers en ondersteuners die samen met zorgprofessionals praktijkgericht onderzoek doen. Vaak zijn dit behandelaren, zoals artsen, gedragskundigen en logopedisten die naast hun klinische werk deeltijds onderzoek verrichten binnen hun deskundigheidsdomein. Onderzoek binnen Alliade voldoet aan twee voorwaarden vervat in de afdelingsnaam: het komt ten goede aan de cliënt van vandaag en/of morgen (praktijkgericht) én voldoet aan wetenschappelijke standaarden. Daarbij wordt gefocust op twee onderzoekslijnen die aansluiten bij de missie, visie en identiteit van de organisatie: 1) veroudering & dementie en 2) evidence-based screening, diagnostiek & behandeling. Binnen deze twee onderzoekslijnen lopen diverse onderzoeksprojecten die zelfstandig of in samenwerking met collega-zorginstellingen, hogescholen of universiteiten worden uitgevoerd. Op het internationale gehandicaptenzorgcongres van IASSIDD (6-8 juli 2021) worden resultaten gedeeld van vier onderzoeksprojecten