Loneliness and social isolation are associated with adverse physical and psychological consequences which are particularly prevalent in older persons. During this unprecedented time of the COVID-19 pandemic, we must follow social distancing guidelines to protect ourselves and to reduce the spread of coronavirus. At the same time, it is crucial to maintain social connections with each other, especially with older persons, to help cope and reduce the negative consequences of loneliness and social isolation. It is important to develop new strategies (e.g. virtual health care and new government policy) to address loneliness and social isolation among older adults for the post-pandemic era.

Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) has emerged as an identifiable condition and in many cases is a transitional state preceding diagnosable Alzheimer disease (AD). Neurobiological and neuroimaging characteristics of amnestic-type MCI have been investigated, but few comprehensive neuropsychiatric studies have been reported. The aim of this preliminary study was to define the neuropsychiatric features of the amnestic-type MCI and compare them with those of mild AD and normal controls. The Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) was used to assess the neuropsychiatric symptoms in three age and education comparable groups, i.e., 28 MCI, 124 mild AD, and 50 normal subjects. Individual subscores of the 10 NPI symptoms and total NPI scores were compared between the MCI patients and the other 2 groups. The results of this preliminary investigation showed that MCI patients frequently manifested neuropsychiatric symptoms. The most common symptoms in the MCI group were dysphoria (39%), apathy (39%), irritability (29%), and anxiety (25%). There were significant differences in apathy, dysphoria, irritability, anxiety, agitation, and aberrant motor behavior between the MCI and control groups; in contrast, only delusions were significantly less common in MCI compared with mild AD. There was a significant difference between the MCI and control groups on total NPI scores (p = 0.001), but not between the MCI and mild AD groups (p = 0.304). Amnestic MCI is associated with significant neuropsychiatric symptoms, especially mood disturbances and apathy. Psychotic symptoms are significantly more common in the early stage of AD than in MCI. These results are derived from a limited clinical sample and require confirmation in longitudinal community-based investigations.

Low frequency oscillations are essential in cognitive function impairment in schizophrenia. While functional connectivity can reveal the synchronization between distant brain regions, the regional abnormalities in task-independent baseline brain activity are less clear, especially in specific frequency bands. Here, we used a regional homogeneity (ReHo) method combined with resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging to investigate low frequency spontaneous neural activity in the three different frequency bands (slow-5∶0.01–0.027 Hz; slow-4∶0.027–0.08 Hz; and typical band: 0.01–0.08 Hz) in 69 patients with schizophrenia and 62 healthy controls. Compared with controls, schizophrenia patients exhibited decreased ReHo in the precentral gyrus, middle occipital gyrus, and posterior insula, whereas increased ReHo in the medial prefrontal cortex and anterior insula. Significant differences in ReHo between the two bands were found in fusiform gyrus and superior frontal gyrus (slow-4> slow-5), and in basal ganglia, parahippocampus, and dorsal middle prefrontal gyrus (slow-5> slow-4). Importantly, we identified significant interaction between frequency bands and groups in the inferior occipital gyrus and caudate body. This study demonstrates that ReHo changes in schizophrenia are widespread and frequency dependent.

To explore the risk predictors for complex sleep-related behaviors (CSBs) in subjects with a DSM-IV-diagnosed depressive disorder, anxiety disorder, adjustment disorder, somatoform disorder, or sleep disorder taking hypnosedative drugs. One hundred twenty-five subjects using hypnosedatives were enrolled from the psychiatric outpatient clinics of a medical center in Taiwan from May 2006 to July 2006. All subjects completed a questionnaire that included demographic data, current and childhood sleep habits, and CSBs after taking hypnosedatives. Complex sleep-related behaviors were defined as somnambulism with object manipulation, sleep-related eating, and other amnestic sleep-related behaviors. Demographic and clinical variables were compared in those with CSBs and those without. Then multiple logistic regression analyses were performed in order to identify significant risk predictors for CSBs. Of the 125 subjects, 19 (15.2%) reported CSBs, all of whom took zolpidem. Among a total of 67 subjects taking zolpidem, those with CSBs were significantly more likely to be younger (P = .023), to be female (P = .011), to take a higher dose of zolpidem (> 10 mg/d; P < .001), and to not go to sleep immediately after taking zolpidem (P = .047). Multiple logistic regression analyses showed that a higher dose of zolpidem (> 10 mg/d) was the only significant predictor of CSBs (OR = 13.1; 95% CI, 2.6-65.9; P = .002). This pilot study suggests that a higher dosage of zolpidem (> 10 mg/d) is the key risk predictor for CSBs.