Ozen Barut B. | Emre U. | Korucu O. | Kokturk F. | Karaci R. | Barut C.

Article | 2012 | Journal of Neurological Sciences29 ( 4 ) , pp.689 - 697

Objective: The objective, quantitative assessment of patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) is essential for both the diagnosis and follow-up. To be of value in clinical trials and daily clinical practice, the method should be simple and easy, with minimal inter-rater observer variation. The finger-tapping (FT) test is an informative measure of upper-extremity motor skills as a part of the neurological assessment of patients with PD. Therefore, this study evaluated the motor skills of patients with PD by using a computer-based system that quantifies FT performance. Method: Software to measure FT performance was assessed in 25 patien . . .ts with PD and 25 normal controls by using two FT testing procedures: single FT (SFT) and alternate FT (AFT). Confounding factors that had the potential to affect the performance were considered, including age, sex, education, and cognition. Results: The SFT and AFT scores for the affected side of patients with PD were significantly lower than the corresponding scores for the dominant side of control subjects. In PD patients, our method appeared to be adequate for evaluating bradykinesia independent of age, cognition and education. AFT was a more sensitive tool for determining the disease severity. Conclusion: This method is a sensitive, practical, and objective tool for evaluating upperextremity motor skills in patients with PD. It also reflects the disease severity. We hope that this method might be useful in both daily practice and clinical studies Daha fazlası Daha az

Saraçli Ö. | Akca A.S.D. | Atasoy N. | Önder Ö. | Senormanci Ö. | Kaygisiz I. | Atik L.

Article | 2015 | Clinical Psychopharmacology and Neuroscience13 ( 2 ) , pp.194 - 200

Objective: Older people seek not only a longer life, but also a better quality of life (QOL). Our aim was to find out the relationship between QOL and socio-demographic factors, social activities, cognitive status, depression and anxiety symptoms among medically ill and hospitalized elderly people in Turkey. Methods: Two hundred forty three patients age 65 years or older were examined. The Socio-demographic Data Survey, the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE), the Geriatric Depression Scale-short form (GDS-15), the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and the World Health Organization Quality of Life Instrument-Older Adults Module (WHOQOL- . . .OLD) were applied to participants. The independent samples t-test and analysis of variance (ANOVA) were used to analyze quantitative data. Pearson's correlation and linear regression analysis were performed. Results: The total score for QOL was significantly higher for those who saw their family members and relatives frequently rather than rarely (p=0.002), who were always busy with social activities rather than rarely or never ( Daha fazlası Daha az

Açikgöz M. | Özen Barut B. | Emre U. | Taşçilar N. | Atalay A. | Köktürk F.

Article | 2014 | Noropsikiyatri Arsivi51 ( 1 ) , pp.57 - 62

Introduction: This study investigated the frequency of forgetfulness in elderly individuals over 55 years of age and examined the association of subjective memory complaints (SMCs) with objective cognitive functions, depression and other risk factors. Met hods: We recruited 405 patients over 55 years of age who were referred to Neurology, Cardiology, or Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation outpatient clinics. All subjects were questioned regarding forgetfulness and then were administered the Subjective Memory Complaint (SMC) Scale, Mini Mental Test (MMT), Verbal Fluency Test (VFT), Clock Drawing Test (CDT) and the Geriatric Depressio . . .n Scale (GDS). Subjects with SMC were compared with those without SMC in terms of cognition, depression and some laboratory parameters. re sults: Of the patients, 42.5% complained of forgetfulness. None of these patients had been admitted to hospital for this complaint. Women and patients with low education had more forgetfulness as well as poorer results on the SMC Scale, MMT, VFT, and GDS. Patients with SMC had lower hemoglobin, ferritin and free T4 levels. Female gender and depression was found to be a risk factor for SMCs. conc lu si on: SMCs are common in people over 55 years of age. Being a woman as well as depression was found to be a risk factor for SMC. Since depression is a treatable condition, these people should be assessed carefully in terms of depressive symptoms. Laboratory parameters, such as hemoglobin, ferritin and free T4 levels should be investigated in patients with SMC. Unlike the other cognitive tests, CDT performance is independent of subjective memory complaints. Elderly patients rarely visit hospital with complaint of SMC, therefore, clinicians should be watchful for this problem. © Archives of Neuropsychiatry, published by Galenos Publishing Daha fazlası Daha az

Ozen Barut B. | Gunal D.I. | Turkmen Ç. | Mollahasanoglu A. | Ankarali H.

Article | 2013 | Acta Neurologica Belgica113 ( 2 ) , pp.117 - 125

Although Parkinson's disease (PD) and essential tremor (ET) are distinct clinical disorders, their coexistence can sometimes cause diagnostic problems. In this study, we conducted detailed investigations of patients with both ET and PD (ET-PD) and compared their clinical and cognitive profiles with those of patients with only ET or only PD. This study examined three groups of patients: the first group had ET-PD concomitantly (n = 9); the second group had only ET (n = 9); the third group had only PD (n = 10). The groups were compared in terms of demographic characteristics, clinical features, and cognitive functions. With the excepti . . .on of positive family histories, which were more common in ET-PD than in PD patients, we found no differences among the groups with respect to demographic characteristics (p = 0.044). PD-only patients had more akinetic-rigid type Parkinsonism (p = 0.016), and their levodopa response was better than that of ET-PD patients (p = 0.017). Patients with ET-PD obtained significantly lower scores than those with pure ET on several cognitive tests, suggesting a prominent frontal-type cognitive dysfunction. In conclusion ET-PD patients differed from PD patients, showing more frequent familial tremor histories and lower levodopa responsiveness. This patient population also demonstrated more severe cognitive impairments than pure-ET patients. This result suggests that ET-PD patients are a subset of ET patients with more widespread neurodegeneration, which may indicate the presence of a syndrome that includes overlap between ET and PD. © 2012 Belgian Neurological Society Daha fazlası Daha az