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Background: All versions of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) lack population-based data of 80-plus individuals. The norms and cut-off scores for mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementia of the MoCA are different among five Chinese versions. Objective: To provide the cut-off scores in detecting MCI and dementia of the Peking Medical Union College Hospital version of the MoCA (MoCA-P). Methods: In a cross-sectional survey, Chinese veterans aged ≥⃒60 years completed the MoCA-P and the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). Results: Among 7,445 elderly veterans, 5,085 (68.30%) were aged ≥⃒80 years old, 2,621 (35.20%) had 6 years of education or less, 6,847 (91.97%) were male, and 2,311 (31.04%) and 984 (13.22%) veterans were diagnosed as having MCI and dementia, respectively. Adding two points and one point to the MoCA scores for the primary and middle school groups, respectively, can fully adjust for the notable impact of education but cannot compensate for the effect of age. In the three age groups (60-79, 80-89, and ≥⃒90 years old), the optimal MoCA-P cut-off scores for detecting MCI were ≤25, ≤24, and ≤23, respectively, and for detecting dementia were ≤24, ≤21, and ≤19, respectively, which demonstrated relatively high sensitivities and specificities. The areas under the curves for the MoCA-P for detecting MCI and dementia (0.937 and 0.908, respectively) were greater than those for the MMSE (0.848 and 0.892, respectively). Conclusion: Compared with the MMSE, the MoCA-P is significantly better for detecting MCI in the elderly, particularly in the oldest old population, and it also displays more effectiveness in detecting dementia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Physical activity is generally considered to be effective in reducing the prevalence of depression and promoting remission of its symptoms. However, large-scale epidemiological research on this issue is lacking in older Chinese adults. We performed a nationwide epidemiological survey to determine the relationship between physical activity and depressive symptoms in older Chinese veterans in the community, with adjustment for potential confounders., Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in a representative sample of 9,676 community-dwelling older Chinese veterans. Depressive symptoms were identified using the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale. Physical activity was self-reported using a one-year physical activity questionnaire. Information about covariates was obtained by questionnaire-based interview. Relationships between study variables and symptoms of depression were estimated using unadjusted and adjusted analyses., Results: The median age was 82.29 (interquartile range 80.25-84.60) years. In total, 81.84% of the study participants engaged in physical activity that was predominantly light in intensity. In unadjusted analyses, physical activity was associated with a significantly decreased likelihood of depressive symptoms (5.43% versus 18.83%, P<0.0001). Multivariate logistic regression with adjustment and controlling for confounders, physical activity was still inversely associated with depressive symptoms and was the only independent protective factor (odds ratio 0.57, 95% confidence interval 0.44-0.72, P<0.0001) among the associated factors in this study. In a univariate general linear model, there was a significant difference in Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale score between subjects participating in active physical activity and those who did not (F=59.07, P<0.0001)., Conclusion: This study found an inverse relationship between physical activity and symptoms of depression in older Chinese veterans in the community. It was also indicated that the antidepressant effect of physical activity probably extended to the oldest-old, and the light-intensity physical activity was probably available for the same protective effect. This information could be used to devise further interventions to prevent or ameliorate symptoms of depression.

Objective: To investigate the prevalence of cognitive and motor disorders as well as emotional and sleep abnormality in the veterans from military communities in Beijing., Methods: The participants underwent a comprehensive in-person evaluation including detailed neuropsychological testing, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and special questionnaires for movement and sleep disorders., Results: The overall prevalence of cognitive impairment, extrapyramidal diseases was 32.7%, 8.8%. The prevalence of mild cognitive impairment, dementia, Parkinson disease, essential tremor, anxiety and depression was 26.2%, 6.5%, 2.0%, 6.1%, 1.4% and 4.1% respectively. Prevalence of all kinds of sleep disorders ranged from 10.3% to 53.9%. The prevalence of cognitive impairment had no significant difference of sex, but were correlated to age and education, the correlation coefficient was 0.326 and -0.221 (P<0.01)., Conclusion: Veterans from military communities had higher prevalence of cognitive impairment, extrapyramidal diseases and sleep disorders and lower that of anxiety and depression relatively.

Objective: To explore the risk factors of mild cognitive impairment (MCI)., Methods: A case-control study including 97 MCI patients and 143 cognitive normal controls (NC) in Chinese PLA General Hospital was conducted. The cases and controls were matched for age, gender and occupation. The relationship between MCI and various factors was analysed by univariate and multivariate analysis., Results: Results data from univariate analysis showed that the history of coronary heart diseases, stroke, anaemia, and the education level had significant differences between NC and MCI patients. Multivariate analysis confirmed that the history of coronary heart diseases, stroke, anaemia and the education level were significantly related to MCI and their ORs (95% confidence interval) were 2.21 (1.18 - 4.14), 2.18 (1.20 - 3.98), 4.63 (1.79 - 11.97), 0.75 (0.58 - 0.97) respectively., Conclusion: The history of coronary heart diseases, stroke and anaemia were independent risk factors of MCI and high education level seemed to be a protective factor of MCI.