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The purpose of this study was to conduct a cross-sectional analysis of the association between hearing aid use and cognitive decline in community-dwelling older adults with hearing impairment, stratified by cardiovascular risk level. This cross-sectional study covers 1857 hearing-impaired individuals selected among 10,674 community-dwelling older adults (≥65 years of age) in Japan. We investigate the association between hearing aid use and cognitive decline stratified by cardiovascular risk level, by assessing self-reported hearing impairment and hearing aid use, absolute cardiovascular risk, cognitive function, and potential confounding factors. The association between hearing impairment severity and increased cardiovascular risk, and the benefit of hearing aid use in preventing cognitive decline, were examined in a binomial logistic regression analysis, with the presence of cognitive decline as the objective variable. In the low cardiovascular risk group, hearing aid users had a lower odds ratio for decline in executive function than non-users (odds ratio = 0.61, 95% confidence interval: 0.39–0.98). However, there was no significant association between hearing aid use and cognitive decline in the high cardiovascular risk group (p > 0.05). Among older adults with hearing impairment, hearing aid use was associated with the maintenance of executive function in individuals of low cardiovascular risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Delaying the onset of disability is important for maintaining independence and quality of life in community-dwelling older adults. Given that social isolation is a significant risk factor for disability, effective means associated with social isolation are needed to alleviate disability. Although information and communication technology (ICT) may be a reasonable measure considering the recent social contexts due to the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, further insights are required. This study aimed to investigate whether ICT use can alleviate the onset of disability in community-dwelling older adults with and without social isolation. Methods: This longitudinal cohort study on 4,346 community-dwelling independent Japanese older adults (mean age, 73.5 ± 5.3 years) was conducted between 2017 and 2018. Participants were classified into four groups based on social isolation (the condition where two or more of the following measures were met: domestic isolation, less social contact, and social disengagement) and ICT users (those who had recently used a computer or a smartphone) and followed up to assess disability incidence for 24 months after baseline assessments. Cox proportional-hazards regression models were used to identify the effect of social isolation and ICT use on the risk of disability onset by adjusting for age, sex, education history, number of medications, eye disease, level of annual income, Mini-Mental State Examination, Geriatric Depression Scale 15, and gait speed. Results: The group comprised nonsocial isolation and ICT users (44.7%), social isolation and ICT users (5.4%), nonsocial isolation and ICT nonusers (41.7%), and social isolation and ICT nonusers (8.2%). At the follow-up, 2.2%, 2.4%, 5.5%, and 12.4% of the participants in the above order developed disability (p < 0.01). Cox regression models revealed a significantly higher risk of disability onset in the social isolation and ICT nonusers group than in the social isolation and ICT users group (HR = 2.939; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.029–8.397; p = 0.044). In the subgroup analysis stratified by social isolation, ICT use significantly reduced the risk of disability onset in the socially isolated group (HR = 0.320; 95% CI 0.109–0.943; p = 0.039), although the same association was not observed in the nonsocially isolated group (HR = 0.845; 95% CI 0.565–1.264; p = 0.411). Conclusion: ICT use can alleviate the onset of disability in socially isolated older adults in a community setting. Considering ICT-applied methods for alleviating disability is beneficial for older adults in social isolation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To clarify associations between changes in going out after lifting a stay-at-home order and decrease in higher-level functional capacities among older adults with impairments. This study was conducted using questionnaires completed by people registered in two day-service facilities and a nursing station. A baseline survey was conducted during Japan's declaration of emergency for the coronavirus disease 2019, and follow-up surveys were conducted in 4, 8, and 12 months after the declaration was lifted. We performed binary logistic regression analyses to clarify the above associations There were significant associations between Δ sum of purposes of going out and the decrease in higher-level functional capacities in 4 months (OR 0.57) and in 8 months (OR 0.47). Increasing the sum of purposes of going out after lifting a stay-at-home order was associated with lower odds for a decrease in higher-level functional capacities in 4 and 8 months. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A quasi-Ballistic transport in nanoscale Si-MOSFETs based on a quantum-corrected Monte Carlo simulation is studied to explore an ultimate device performance. It is found that, when a channel length becomes shorter than 30 nm, an average electron velocity at the source-end of the channel increases due to ballistic transport effects, and then, it approaches a ballistic limit in a sub-10-nm regime.