{"title":"Speech Emotion Recognition in People at High Risk of Dementia.","authors":"Dongseon Kim, Bongwon Yi, Yugwon Won","doi":"10.12779/dnd.2024.23.3.146","DOIUrl":"10.12779/dnd.2024.23.3.146","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and purpose: </strong>The emotions of people at various stages of dementia need to be effectively utilized for prevention, early intervention, and care planning. With technology available for understanding and addressing the emotional needs of people, this study aims to develop speech emotion recognition (SER) technology to classify emotions for people at high risk of dementia.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Speech samples from people at high risk of dementia were categorized into distinct emotions via human auditory assessment, the outcomes of which were annotated for guided deep-learning method. The architecture incorporated convolutional neural network, long short-term memory, attention layers, and Wav2Vec2, a novel feature extractor to develop automated speech-emotion recognition.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Twenty-seven kinds of Emotions were found in the speech of the participants. These emotions were grouped into 6 detailed emotions: happiness, interest, sadness, frustration, anger, and neutrality, and further into 3 basic emotions: positive, negative, and neutral. To improve algorithmic performance, multiple learning approaches were applied using different data sources-voice and text-and varying the number of emotions. Ultimately, a 2-stage algorithm-initial text-based classification followed by voice-based analysis-achieved the highest accuracy, reaching 70%.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The diverse emotions identified in this study were attributed to the characteristics of the participants and the method of data collection. The speech of people at high risk of dementia to companion robots also explains the relatively low performance of the SER algorithm. Accordingly, this study suggests the systematic and comprehensive construction of a dataset from people with dementia.</p>","PeriodicalId":72779,"journal":{"name":"Dementia and neurocognitive disorders","volume":"23 3","pages":"146-160"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11300689/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141903769","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Hasom Moon, Eek-Sung Lee, Seunghee Na, Dayeong An, Joon Soo Shin, Duk L Na, Hyemin Jang
{"title":"Discriminative Power of Seoul Cognitive Status Test in Differentiating Subjective Cognitive Decline, Amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment, and Dementia Based on CERAD-K Standards.","authors":"Hasom Moon, Eek-Sung Lee, Seunghee Na, Dayeong An, Joon Soo Shin, Duk L Na, Hyemin Jang","doi":"10.12779/dnd.2024.23.3.136","DOIUrl":"10.12779/dnd.2024.23.3.136","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and purpose: </strong>We developed a new digital cognitive assessment called Seoul Cognitive Status Test (SCST), formerly called Inbrain Cognitive Screening Test. The purpose of this study was to validate the clinical utility of the SCST by comparing its scores of those with subjective cognitive decline (SCD), amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), and dementia diagnosed by the Korean version of the Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Packet (CERAD-K).</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>All participants (n=296) who completed the CERAD-K, SCST, and Instrumental Activities of Daily Living tests were included in this study. Total score, cognitive domain scores, and subtest scores of the SCST were compared among the 3 groups (SCD, aMCI, and dementia). Additionally, correlations between SCST and CERAD-K subtests were examined.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Cognitive domain scores and total score of the SCST showed significant differences among the three groups, with scores being the highest in the order of SCD, aMCI, and dementia (<i>p</i><0.001). Most subtests of the SCST also showed higher scores in the order of SCD, aMCI, and dementia (<i>p</i><0.001). However, SCD and aMCI groups showed no significant differences in scores of the Phonemic Word Fluency Test (<i>p</i>=0.083) or Korean Trail Making Test-Elderly version Part A (<i>p</i>=0.434). Additionally, there was no significant difference in the score of Place Recognition (<i>p</i>=0.274) of the Word-Place Association Test between aMCI and dementia groups.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>In conclusion, differences in total score, cognitive domain scores, and subtest scores of the SCST among the 3 groups of participants diagnosed using CERAD-K confirm the clinical utility of the SCST for cognitive assessment.</p>","PeriodicalId":72779,"journal":{"name":"Dementia and neurocognitive disorders","volume":"23 3","pages":"136-145"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11300686/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141903767","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Gender Differences in Items of the Instrumental Activities of Daily Living in Mild Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer's Disease Dementia.","authors":"Hui Jin Ryu, Yeonsil Moon","doi":"10.12779/dnd.2024.23.2.107","DOIUrl":"10.12779/dnd.2024.23.2.107","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and purpose: </strong>Each item in the instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) questionnaire has differential importance to an individual's life functioning based on gender. However, IADL has mostly been utilized for its total score alone, without gender specificity. We identify the impact of each item on the transition from amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) to Alzheimer's disease dementia (ADD), and determine if the impact of each item differs by gender.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Subjects were aMCI or ADD with a global clinical dementia rating of 0.5 or 1. The sample size was 146 men and 154 women. We used logistic regression analysis to determine the effect of each item of IADL on the transition from aMCI to ADD.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The odds ratio (OR) for \"remembering recent events\" had similar values: 27.2 for men, and 27.7 for women. Gender difference was identified in the item with the highest OR value. For women, the \"using transportation\" item was 63.3, and for men, \"conducting financial affairs\" was overwhelmingly high at 89.1.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Functional decline on items with relatively higher ORs may indicate higher probability of a transition from aMCI to ADD. The OR of \"conducting financial affairs\" was relatively higher for both genders. In terms of gender differences, \"conducting home repair\" for men, and \"using transportation\" for women, have relatively higher impact. This study demonstrates that during the transition from aMCI to ADD, each item of IADL shows a staggered decline in functioning, and that this decline is gender-specific.</p>","PeriodicalId":72779,"journal":{"name":"Dementia and neurocognitive disorders","volume":"23 2","pages":"107-114"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11073925/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140892595","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Jeewon Suh, Young Ho Park, Hang-Rai Kim, Jae-Won Jang, SangHak Yi, Min Ju Kang, Yun Jung Bae, Byung Se Choi, Jae Hyoung Kim, SangYun Kim
{"title":"Ventral Anterior Cingulate Atrophy as a Predisposing Factor for Transient Global Amnesia.","authors":"Jeewon Suh, Young Ho Park, Hang-Rai Kim, Jae-Won Jang, SangHak Yi, Min Ju Kang, Yun Jung Bae, Byung Se Choi, Jae Hyoung Kim, SangYun Kim","doi":"10.12779/dnd.2024.23.2.89","DOIUrl":"10.12779/dnd.2024.23.2.89","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and purpose: </strong>This study aimed to evaluate the brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of patients with acute transient global amnesia (TGA) using volumetric analysis to verify whether the brains of TGA patients have pre-existing structural abnormalities.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We evaluated the brain MRI data from 87 TGA patients and 20 age- and sex-matched control subjects. We included brain MRIs obtained from TGA patients within 72 hours of symptom onset to verify the pre-existence of structural change. For voxel-based morphometric analyses, statistical parametric mapping was employed to analyze the structural differences between patients with TGA and control subjects.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>TGA patients exhibited significant volume reductions in the bilateral ventral anterior cingulate cortices (corrected <i>p</i><0.05).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>TGA patients might have pre-existing structural changes in bilateral ventral anterior cingulate cortices prior to TGA attacks.</p>","PeriodicalId":72779,"journal":{"name":"Dementia and neurocognitive disorders","volume":"23 2","pages":"89-94"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11073926/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140892677","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Dongwhane Lee, Sun Young Chae, Sung Hun Kim, Hyung-Ji Kim
{"title":"Erratum: A Patient With Fahr's Disease Who Presented Prominent Visuospatial Dysfunction.","authors":"Dongwhane Lee, Sun Young Chae, Sung Hun Kim, Hyung-Ji Kim","doi":"10.12779/dnd.2024.23.2.115","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.12779/dnd.2024.23.2.115","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>[This corrects the article on p. 117 in vol. 22, PMID: 37545866.].</p>","PeriodicalId":72779,"journal":{"name":"Dementia and neurocognitive disorders","volume":"23 2","pages":"115"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11073923/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140892579","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Ji-Seon Lee, Do-Yun Heo, Kyung-Hae Choi, Hee-Jin Kim
{"title":"Impact of the Ventricle Size on Alzheimer's Disease Progression: A Retrospective Longitudinal Study.","authors":"Ji-Seon Lee, Do-Yun Heo, Kyung-Hae Choi, Hee-Jin Kim","doi":"10.12779/dnd.2024.23.2.95","DOIUrl":"10.12779/dnd.2024.23.2.95","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and purpose: </strong>Ventricle enlargement has been implicated in the pathophysiology of Alzheimer's disease (AD). We studied the relationship between ventricular size and cognitive function in patients with AD. We focused on the effect of the initial ventricle size on the rate of cognitive decline in patients with AD.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A retrospective analysis of probable clinical AD participants with more than 2 magnetic resonance imaging images was performed. To measure ventricle size, we used visual rating scales of (1) Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS) score and (2) conventional linear measurement method.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Increased clinical dementia rating (CDR) was correlated with a decreased Mini-Mental Status Examination (MMSE) score, and increased medial temporal lobe atrophy (MTLA) and global ventricle size (<i>p</i><0.001, <i>p</i><0.001, <i>p</i>=0.021, respectively). There was a significant correlation between the change in cognitive function in the group (70%-100%ile) with a large initial ventricle size (<i>p</i>=0.021 for ΔCDR, <i>p</i>=0.01 for ΔMMSE), while the median ventricle size (30%-70%ile) showed correlation with other brain structural changes (MTLA, frontal atrophy [FA], and white matter) (<i>p</i>=0.036 for initial MTLA, <i>p</i>=0.034 for FA).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>In this study, the initial ventricle size may be a potential new imaging biomarker for initial cognitive function and clinical progression in AD. We found a relationship between the initial ventricle size and initial AD-related brain structural biomarkers.</p>","PeriodicalId":72779,"journal":{"name":"Dementia and neurocognitive disorders","volume":"23 2","pages":"95-106"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11073924/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140892696","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Geon Ha Kim, Jaeho Kim, Won-Seok Choi, Yun Kyung Kim, Kun Ho Lee, Jae-Won Jang, Jae Gwan Kim, Hui Jin Ryu, Soh-Jeong Yang, Hyemin Jang, Na-Yeon Jung, Ko Woon Kim, Yong Jeong, So Young Moon
{"title":"Executive Summary of 2023 International Conference of the Korean Dementia Association (IC-KDA 2023): A Report From the Academic Committee of the Korean Dementia Association.","authors":"Geon Ha Kim, Jaeho Kim, Won-Seok Choi, Yun Kyung Kim, Kun Ho Lee, Jae-Won Jang, Jae Gwan Kim, Hui Jin Ryu, Soh-Jeong Yang, Hyemin Jang, Na-Yeon Jung, Ko Woon Kim, Yong Jeong, So Young Moon","doi":"10.12779/dnd.2024.23.2.75","DOIUrl":"10.12779/dnd.2024.23.2.75","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The Korean Dementia Association (KDA) has been organizing biennial international academic conferences since 2019, with the International Conference of the KDA (IC-KDA) 2023 held in Busan under the theme 'Beyond Boundaries: Advancing Global Dementia Solutions.' The conference comprised 6 scientific sessions, 3 plenary lectures, and 4 luncheon symposiums, drawing 804 participants from 35 countries. Notably, a Korea-Taiwan Joint Symposium addressed insights into Alzheimer's disease (AD). Plenary lectures by renowned scholars explored topics such as microbiome-related AD pathogenesis, social cognition in neurodegenerative diseases, and genetic frontotemporal dementia (FTD). On the first day, specific presentations covered subjects like the gut-brain axis and neuroinflammation in dementia, blood-based biomarkers in AD, and updates in AD therapeutics. The second day's presentations addressed recent issues in clinical neuropsychology, FTD cohort studies, and the pathogenesis of non-AD dementia. The Academic Committee of the KDA compiles lecture summaries to provide comprehensive understanding of the advanced dementia knowledge presented at IC-KDA 2023.</p>","PeriodicalId":72779,"journal":{"name":"Dementia and neurocognitive disorders","volume":"23 2","pages":"75-88"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11073927/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140892591","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Soo Hyun Cho, Hae Jin Kang, Yoo Kyoung Park, So Young Moon, Chang Hyung Hong, Hae Ri Na, Hong-Sun Song, Muncheong Choi, Sooin Jeong, Kyung Won Park, Hyun Sook Kim, Buong-O Chun, Jiwoo Jung, Jee Hyang Jeong, Seong Hye Choi
{"title":"SoUth Korean study to PrEvent cognitive impaiRment and protect BRAIN health through Multidomain interventions via facE-to-facE and video communication plaTforms in mild cognitive impairment (SUPERBRAIN-MEET): Protocol for a Multicenter Randomized Controlled Trial.","authors":"Soo Hyun Cho, Hae Jin Kang, Yoo Kyoung Park, So Young Moon, Chang Hyung Hong, Hae Ri Na, Hong-Sun Song, Muncheong Choi, Sooin Jeong, Kyung Won Park, Hyun Sook Kim, Buong-O Chun, Jiwoo Jung, Jee Hyang Jeong, Seong Hye Choi","doi":"10.12779/dnd.2024.23.1.30","DOIUrl":"10.12779/dnd.2024.23.1.30","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and purpose: </strong>The SoUth Korea study to PrEvent cognitive impaiRment and protect BRAIN health through lifestyle intervention (SUPERBRAIN) proved the feasibility of multidomain intervention for elderly people. One-quarter of the Korean population over 65 years of age has mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Digital health interventions may be cost-effective and have fewer spatial constraints. We aim to examine the efficacy of a multidomain intervention through both face-to-face interactions and video communication platforms using a tablet personal computer (PC) application in MCI.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Three hundred participants aged 60-85 years, with MCI and at least one modifiable dementia risk factor, will be recruited from 17 centers and randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to the multidomain intervention and the waiting-list control groups. Participants will receive the 24-week intervention through the tablet PC SUPERBRAIN application, which encompasses the following five elements: managing metabolic and vascular risk factors, cognitive training, physical exercise, nutritional guidance, and boosting motivation. Participants will attend the interventions at a facility every 1-2 weeks. They will also engage in one or two self-administered cognitive training sessions utilizing the tablet PC application at home each week. They will participate in twice or thrice weekly online exercise sessions at home via the ZOOM platform. The primary outcome will be the change in the total scale index score of the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status from baseline to study end.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>This study will inform the effectiveness of a comprehensive multidomain intervention utilizing digital technologies in MCI.</p><p><strong>Trial registration: </strong>ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT05023057.</p>","PeriodicalId":72779,"journal":{"name":"Dementia and neurocognitive disorders","volume":"23 1","pages":"30-43"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10864697/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139742866","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Kyung Joon Jo, SeongHee Ho, Yun Jeong Hong, Jee Hyang Jeong, SangYun Kim, Min Jeong Wang, Seong Hye Choi, SeungHyun Han, Dong Won Yang, Kee Hyung Park
{"title":"Relationship Between Amyloid Positivity and Sleep Characteristics in the Elderly With Subjective Cognitive Decline.","authors":"Kyung Joon Jo, SeongHee Ho, Yun Jeong Hong, Jee Hyang Jeong, SangYun Kim, Min Jeong Wang, Seong Hye Choi, SeungHyun Han, Dong Won Yang, Kee Hyung Park","doi":"10.12779/dnd.2024.23.1.22","DOIUrl":"10.12779/dnd.2024.23.1.22","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and purpose: </strong>Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by a progressive decline in cognition and performance of daily activities. Recent studies have attempted to establish the relationship between AD and sleep. It is believed that patients with AD pathology show altered sleep characteristics years before clinical symptoms appear. This study evaluated the differences in sleep characteristics between cognitively asymptomatic patients with and without some amyloid burden.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Sleep characteristics of 76 subjects aged 60 years or older who were diagnosed with subjective cognitive decline (SCD) but not mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or AD were measured using Fitbit<sup>®</sup> Alta HR, a wristwatch-shaped wearable device. Amyloid deposition was evaluated using brain amyloid plaque load (BAPL) and global standardized uptake value ratio (SUVR) from fluorine-18 florbetaben positron emission tomography. Each component of measured sleep characteristics was analyzed for statistically significant differences between the amyloid-positive group and the amyloid-negative group.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Of the 76 subjects included in this study, 49 (64.5%) were female. The average age of the subjects was 70.72±6.09 years when the study started. 15 subjects were classified as amyloid-positive based on BAPL. The average global SUVR was 1.598±0.263 in the amyloid-positive group and 1.187±0.100 in the amyloid-negative group. Time spent in slow-wave sleep (SWS) was significantly lower in the amyloid-positive group (39.4±13.1 minutes) than in the amyloid-negative group (49.5±13.1 minutes) (p=0.009).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>This study showed that SWS is different between the elderly SCD population with and without amyloid positivity. How SWS affects AD pathology requires further research.</p>","PeriodicalId":72779,"journal":{"name":"Dementia and neurocognitive disorders","volume":"23 1","pages":"22-29"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10864700/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139742865","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Effect of Anti-Aging Standard Forest Healing Program With Multiple Visits to a Forest Facility on Cognition in Older Age Patients.","authors":"Jinseok Park, Sheng-Min Wang, Dong Woo Kang, Beom Lee, Hojin Choi","doi":"10.12779/dnd.2024.23.1.44","DOIUrl":"10.12779/dnd.2024.23.1.44","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and purpose: </strong>The anti-aging standard forest healing program (ASFHP), which uses forest therapy, was reported to be effective in improving psychological, physical, and cognitive functions. However, there are several challenges to directly visiting the forest. This study aimed to investigate the impact of multi-session ASFHP with forest visit on the mental and physical health of the older people with visits to forest facilities and compared them with those of the same program conducted indoors.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Individuals aged over 70 years with concerns about cognitive decline were recruited at dementia relief centers and divided into control and experimental groups. A total of 33 people were administered ASFHP under the supervision of a forest therapy instructor. The control group stayed indoors, while the experimental group visited a forest healing center and repeated the program 20 weeks.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The multiple-session ASFHP positively affected cognitive impairment screening test (CIST) total scores (<i>p</i>=0.002), memory (<i>p</i>=0.014), Korean version of the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status total scores (<i>p</i><0.001), immediate recall (<i>p</i>=0.001), visuospatial/construction (<i>p</i><0.001), language (<i>p</i><0.001), forest healing standard questionnaire total scores (<i>p</i>=0.002), and cognitive function (<i>p</i>=0.019), regardless of location. The forest visits during the ASFHP showed positive effects on orientation (<i>p</i>=0.035), delayed recall (<i>p</i>=0.042), emotional stability (<i>p</i>=0.032), physical activity (<i>p</i>=0.005), and health (<i>p</i>=0.022). The CIST scores of the memory domain were the strongest indicator of the multiple-session ASFHP effects.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The 20-week multi-session ASFHP with forest visit showed effects on cognitive improvement and physical and emotional stability compared to indoor education.</p>","PeriodicalId":72779,"journal":{"name":"Dementia and neurocognitive disorders","volume":"23 1","pages":"44-53"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10864698/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139742862","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}