title: Cognitive status and cardio-metabolic risk of patients with acquired brain injury and Parkinson's disease.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Parkinson's disease (PD) and acquired brain injury (ABI) share common symptoms. People with PD and ABI risk nutritional decline at diagnosis, but little is known about their long-term health a year or more after diagnosis.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This cross-sectional study describes cognitive and dietary characteristics of people living with PD or ABI 12 months or more post diagnosis to identify cardio-metabolic risk factors.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twelve community-dwelling participants (8 PD, 4 ABI) received interdisciplinary evaluations. Cognitive-linguistic status was assessed using the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS). Nutritional and cardio-metabolic statuses were measured using the dietary screening tool (DST), anthropometrics, biochemical, and clinical measures. Descriptive statistics, independent t-tests and correlations were used to analyze the data.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mean BMI (n = 12) was 26.8 ± 3.0 kg/m(2) and the majority of participants were overweight. Participants with PD had significantly higher total RBANS scores than participants with ABI (87.1 ± 14.6 vs. 66.0 ± 12.6, p = 0.034, d = 2.455). DST scores indicated 58% (N = 7) at possible nutrition risk and 25% (N = 3) were at nutrition risk. A positive correlation was found between general activity level and DST scores (r = 0.697, p = 0.012). Multiple risk factors for development of cardiovascular disease (CVD) were present in all participants.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These findings confirmed the presence of cognitive and dietary deficits in our participant group and support the need for an interdisciplinary team approach to improve health and prevent the development of symptoms for these populations a year or more after diagnosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences, University of Rhode Island, Ranger Hall, Kingston, RI 02881, USA.
authors.forename: Dara L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: LoBuono
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences, University of Rhode Island, Ranger Hall, Kingston, RI 02881, USA.
authors.forename: Amy G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Taetzsch
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences, University of Rhode Island, Ranger Hall, Kingston, RI 02881, USA.
authors.forename: Ingrid E
authors.initials: IE
authors.lastname: Lofgren
authors.affiliation: Department of Kinesiology, University of Rhode Island, Independence Square II, Kingston, RI 02881, USA.
authors.forename: Furong
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Department of Kinesiology, University of Rhode Island, Independence Square II, Kingston, RI 02881, USA.
authors.forename: Matthew J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Delmonico
authors.affiliation: Department of Communicative Disorders, University of Rhode Island, Independence Square I, Kingston, RI 02281, USA. Electronic address: lmahler@uri.edu.
authors.forename: Leslie
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Mahler
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000150:complications*; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000209:etiology*; D003071:Cognition; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000209:etiology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004032:Diet; D006233:Persons with Disabilities; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D044342:Malnutrition / Q000209:etiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009043:Motor Activity; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000150:complications*; D012307:Risk Factors; D020521:Stroke / Q000150:complications
keywords: Parkinson's disease; Stroke; Traumatic brain injury