Influence of cognitive mental state on postural balance of older people / Influência do Estado Mental Cognitivo no Equilíbrio Postural de Idosos

Cognitive status have an important role in the independence and functionality of the older people, so it is important to identify their influence in the context of postural balance. The aim of this study was to analyze whether the mental state influences the postural balance performance of the older people. Two hundred and seven physically independent older people of both sexes, mean age 67 ± 4 years were divided into three groups according to results obtained by the mini mental state examination. (group 1, Preserved cognitive functions - PCF, n = 57; group 2, Non suggestive cognitive deficit - NSCD, n = 72; group 3, Suggestive cognitive deficit - SCD, n = 78). The postural balance was evaluated in two conditions (two- and one-legged stand) by means of a force platform. Three trials were performed in each condition and the mean number of trials was used to analyze the oscillation of the center pressure (COP). The results showed significant differences between all groups in the mini mental questionnaire (PCF> NSCD> SCD, P = 0.05) was found between the groups for all COP parameters in the two balance conditions evaluated. The findings of the present study suggest that the differences found in cognitive status do not significantly influence in the postural balance of physically independent elderly. O estado cognitivo tem um papel importante na independência e na funcionalidade do idoso, assim é importante identificar sua influência no contexto do equilíbrio postural. O objetivo deste estudo foi analisar se o estado mental influência no desempenho de equilíbrio postural de idosos. Duzentos e sete idosos, fisicamente independentes de ambos os sexos, com idade média 67 anos foram divididos em três grupos de acordo com resultados obtidos pelo questionário do mini exame de estado mental (grupo 1, Funções cognitivas preservadas – FCP, n=57; grupo 2, Déficit cognitivo não sugestivo – DCNS, n=72; grupo 3, Sugestivo de déficit cognitivo – SDC, n=78). O equilíbrio postural foi avaliado em duas condições (bipodal e unipodal) por meio de uma plataforma de força. Três tentativas foram realizadas em cada condição e a média das tentativas foi utilizada para analisar a oscilação dos parâmetros do centro pressão (COP). Os resultados encontrados mostraram diferenças significativas entre todos grupos no questionário de mini mental (FCP > DCNS > SDC, P= 0,05) foi encontrada entre os grupos para todos os parâmetros do COP nas duas condições de equilíbrio avaliadas. Os achados do presente estudo sugerem que, a diferença encontrada no estado cognitivo não influenciou significativamente no equilíbrio postural de idosos fisicamente independentes

2-(4,5-Dihydro-1,3-oxazol-2-yl)quinoline

The title compound, C12H10N2O, is approximately planar. The angle between the quinoline and 4,5-dihydro­oxazole ring systems is 11.91 (12)°. The mol­ecules pack into a herringbone array with no significant π–π inter­actions. The dihydro­oxazole N and O atoms are disordered over two positions, with almost equal site occupancy factors

Pregnant and non-pregnant women and low back pain-related differences on postural control measures during different balance tasks

Introduction: Low back pain (LBP) is the most common musculoskeletal complaint in pregnancy, being responsible for many negative impacts. Objective: To evaluate the effect of LBP on static and dynamic balance in pregnant women and whether pregnancy mediates the results compared to non-pregnant women. Methods: 44 women (mean age 30 yrs) participated voluntarily in this study: 16 pregnant women with LBP starting in pregnancy, 14 pregnant women without LBP and 14 non-pregnant women as a group control. Participants were assessed for static postural balance using a force platform and dynamic mobility balance using the Timed Up and Go (TUG) test. Results: The pregnant women with LBP showed significant (P < 0.04, for mean, d= 1,2) poor postural balance in static tests (force platform), in the area of COP eyes open. In dynamic balance (TUG test), statistical difference was found between the groups (P 0.038) and the effect size were moderate to strong in the comparison between the three groups. The most sensitive differences were reported mainly between pregnant women with LBP versus non-pregnant control group in balance measures from force platform. Conclusion: The findings indicate that LBP associated to pregnant clinical status can decrease the balance capacity in women. These results have implication for balance evaluation and retraining in pregnant women with and without LBP from rehabilitation or prevention programs

Efficient synthesis of new 1-[Alkyl(aryl)]-5-(3,3,3-trihalo-2-oxopropylidene)pyrrolidin-2-ones

Reactions of methyl 4-methoxy-6-oxo-7,7,7-trihalo-4-heptenoates 1 and 2 with primary amines RNH2, where R = PhCH2, PhCH2CH2, Ph, 4-MeC6H4, 4-MeOC6H4, 4-ClC6H4, 4-BrC6H4, 2-pyridyl, 5-methyl-3-isoxazolyl, 4-NH2C6H4 affording methyl 4-[alkyl(aryl)amino]-6-oxo-7,7,7-trihalo-4-heptenoates 3, 4, in good yields (57-95%), which suffer quantitative intramolecular cyclocondensation to produce 1-alkyl(aryl)-5-(2-oxo-3,3,3-trihalopropylidene)pyrrolidin-2-ones 5, 6, are reported. The structures of the isolated new products were assigned by means of ¹H,13C NMR measurements and mass spectrometry. The Z and E configuration of compounds 3d and 5b respectively were established from X-ray crystallography

Dopaminergic Polymorphisms Associated with Time-on-Task Declines and Fatigue in the Psychomotor Vigilance Test

Prolonged demands on the attention system can cause a decay in performance over time known as the time-on-task effect. The inter-subject differences in the rate of this decline are large, and recent efforts have been made to understand the biological bases of these individual differences. In this study, we investigate the genetic correlates of the time-on-task effect, as well as its accompanying changes in subjective fatigue and mood. N = 332 subjects performed a 20-minute test of sustained attention (the Psychomotor Vigilance Test) and rated their subjective states before and after the test. We observed substantial time-on-task effects on average, and large inter-individual differences in the rate of these declines. The 10-repeat allele of the variable number of tandem repeats marker (VNTR) in the dopamine transporter gene and the Met allele of the catechol-o-methyl transferase (COMT) Val158Met polymorphism were associated with greater vulnerability to time-on-task. Separately, the exon III DRD4 48 bp VNTR of the dopamine receptor gene DRD4 was associated with subjective decreases in energy. No polymorphisms were associated with task-induced changes in mood. We posit that the dopamine transporter and COMT genes exert their effects by increasing dopaminergic tone, which may induce long-term changes in the prefrontal cortex, an important mediator of sustained attention. Thus, these alleles may affect performance particularly when sustained dopamine release is necessary