02740nas a2200373   4500000000100000008004100001260001300042653000900055653002200064653003500086653002400121653001300145653002400158653001100182653002500193653001100218653002500229653001200254653002500266653000900291653001800300653001500318653002500333653002400358653001100382100000900393700000900402700001000411245020900421300001100630490000700641520170400648022001402352       2012                            d  c2012 Feb10aAged10aAged, 80 and over10aBrief Psychiatric Rating Scale10aCognition Disorders10aDementia10aDepressive Disorder10aFemale10aGeriatric Assessment10aHumans10aInstitutionalization10aleprosy10aLongitudinal studies10aMale10aMental Recall10aPrevalence10aPsychotherapy, Group10aSingle-Blind Method10aTaiwan1 aSu T1 aWu L1 aLin C00aThe prevalence of dementia and depression in Taiwanese institutionalized leprosy patients, and the effectiveness evaluation of reminiscence therapy--a longitudinal, single-blind, randomized control study.  a187-960 v273 a<p><b>OBJECTIVE: </b>This study investigated the prevalence of depression and dementia in long-term institutionalized older leprosy patients in Taiwan. We then examined the effectiveness of reminiscence group therapy on depressive symptoms and cognitive function in this population.</p><p><b>METHODS: </b>We recruited 129 long-term institutionalized older leprosy patients in Taiwan and used the Geriatric Depression Scale-Short Form (GDS-SF), the mini mental state examination (MMSE), and the Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) scale for outcome measurement. We then conducted a single-blind, randomized, longitudinal quasi-experimental analysis comparing the pre-test and post-test results of two equivalent groups at a 24-week intervention interval. The intervention in the experimental group was three sessions of reminiscence group therapy per week, whereas that in the control group was weekly individual supportive interviews.</p><p><b>RESULTS: </b>The prevalence of dementia was 45.7-50.4% according to a CDR score ≥ 0.5 and an MMSE score < 25, and the prevalence of depression was 25% based on a GDS-SF score ≥ 7. According to the Wilcoxon signed-rank test, the GDS-SF scores in the experimental group decreased significantly (p = 0.02) after intervention as compared with that in the control group (p = 0.22), whereas the MMSE scores in both groups remained steady.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS: </b>The prevalence of dementia and depression in long-term institutionalized older leprosy patients in Taiwan is high. Reminiscence group therapy has been confirmed effective on depression in this population, but its effectiveness on cognitive function requires further verification.</p>  a1099-1166