Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Lipoproteins And Health Outcomes: Cognitive And Physical Function In Older Adults, Marianne Chanti-Ketterl

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Cardiovascular health is a major determinant of quality of life and mortality, especially in older adulthood. With the world’s oldest population increasing at expedited rates, challenges from cardiovascular conditions and its implications are spawning. Although it is well known that dyslipidemia may lead to cardiac events, less is known about the effects on cognitive and physical function in older adults. Epidemiological studies show that optimizing current preventive strategies even at older ages may reduce the incidence of cardiovascular comorbidity (e.g. hypertension, stroke) and increase quality of life. Determining the association between lipoproteins and cognitive and functional performance in older adults …

Race/Ethnic Disparities In Treatment Patterns Among Newly Diagnosed Primary Prostate Cancer Patients In Florida, Vonetta L. Williams

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Study Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine whether there were differences in patterns of care between African American (AA) and Non-Hispanic White (NHW) men newly diagnosed with prostate cancer in Florida, and how the treatment patterns compare with the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) initial treatment recommendations.

Materials and Methods: This retrospective cohort study utilized data from the Florida Cancer Data System (FCDS), to identify incident cases of prostate cancer diagnosed between 1982 and 2012. The variables of interest included: race/ethnicity, marital status, age at diagnosis, stage at diagnosis, tumor grade, year of diagnosis, and treatment modality …

Embedded System Design For Real-Time Monitoring Of Solitary Embedded System Design For Real-Time Monitoring Of Solitary, Robert Philip O'Brien

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia cause cognitive disabilities in the afflicted person. As a result, the person with dementia often requires assistance from a primary caregiver. However, while the caregiver is away from the home they are unaware of the person's status and may not be able to find out without returning to the home due to dementia's effects on cognition.

In this thesis work, a system of embedded devices is presented which tracks a solitary dementia patient in the home in real-time. The system is composed of three main hardware components. Multiple passive and active sensors are …

The Association Of Cognitive Endophenotypes And Risky Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms Of Alzheimer's Disease Within The Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (Adni) Database, Kyle Joseph Jennette

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Objective: The purpose of this study was to assess the influence of three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) previously associated with Alzheimer's disease on specific domains of cognition, when controlling for Apolipoprotein E gene (APOE), in a sample of individuals with Alzheimer's disease. Methods: The data were drawn from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative database, a comprehensive, longitudinal database of controls, persons with mild cognitive impairment, and persons with mild Alzheimer's disease. Each subject has a full neuropsychological assessment, neuroimaging, genetic sequencing, and physical evaluation. For the purposes of this study, individuals were selected based on the presence of the three …

Analyzing The Effect Of Complaints, Investigation Of Allegations, And Deficiency Citations On The Quality Of Care In United States Nursing Homes (2007 – 2012), Kevin E. Hansen

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The quality of care in nursing homes has been evaluated from many varying perspectives, but few studies have analyzed quality in light of complaints made to state survey agencies by residents, their family members, or other individuals interacting with the nursing home. This study analyzed complaints, investigation of complaint allegations, and complaint-related deficiency citations to determine their effect, if any, on the quality of care in nationwide nursing homes. Using the Online Survey Certification and Reporting (OSCAR) survey dataset for facility characteristics and the complaint investigation dataset for outcomes of complaint investigation, analyses conducted included descriptives, correlations, conceptual mapping for …

Keeping Up With The Grandkids: Using Tagteach To Train Baton Twirling Skills In Older Adults, Sarah Elizabeth Hester

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Exercise has many physical, cognitive, and social benefits, but the majority of older adults do not meet the recommended level of physical activity (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2014). TAGteach, which combines elements of both behavioral coaching and acoustical feedback, has been demonstrated as an effective way to teach athletic skills (Fogel, Weil, & Burris, 2010; Quinn, Miltenberger, & Fogel, 2015; Stokes, Luiselli, Reed, & Fleming 2010). However, none of the current research on teaching athletic skills targeted an older population. This study evaluated TAGteach in a multiple baseline across behaviors design as a method of teaching 4 basic …

Sleep, Depressive Symptoms And Cognition In Older Adults And Caregivers Of Persons With Dementia, Glenna Shemida Brewster

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Caregivers of persons with dementia, who are often older adults, report sleep disturbance, high rates of depressive symptoms and may be at risk for impaired cognition. This dissertation examined sleep, depressive symptoms, and cognition in older adults and caregivers of persons with dementia. The aims of the review of literature were to understand, in community dwelling adults 60 years and older, the relationships among sleep parameters (sleep onset latency, wake after sleep onset, sleep efficiency, total sleep time, and general sleep complaints), and the domains of cognition (Executive Function, Attention, Episodic Memory, Working Memory, Processing Speed), and global cognition. Based …