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Loss of valued activities is common for stroke caregivers. Although high-level evidence is lacking, our results suggest that sustained activity loss can cause stroke caregivers to experience poor mental health and wellbeing. Suggestions to help caregivers maintain their valued activities are presented. Implications for rehabilitation Not only stroke survivors but also their informal caregivers tend to lose their valued activities, such as their social and leisure activities. Although many caregivers manage to resume their valued activities over time, others suffer from sustained activity loss up to at least two years post stroke. Loss of valued activities in stroke caregivers can result in lower levels of wellbeing, depression, and social isolation. Rehabilitation professionals should screen stroke caregivers for activity loss and assist them in resuming their valued activities and maintaining their social contacts.

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Background: Phenylalanine, which is an essential aromatic amino acid, is either used for protein synthesis or irreversibly hydroxylated to tyrosine. The provision of optimal amounts of dietary phenylalanine is not only important for growth and development but might also influence catecholamine synthesis and release rates. The current recommended aromatic amino acid requirement for infants aged 0-6 mo is based on the amino acid content of human milk. Objective: We quantified the requirements for phenylalanine in the presence of excess tyrosine (166 or 177 mg/kg per day for term and preterm infants, respectively) for term and preterm neonates by using the indicator amino acid oxidation method with L-[1-13 C]lysine 2HCl as an indicator. Hence, we determined the minimum obligatory phenylalanine requirement. Design: Fully enterally fed term and preterm infants received randomly graded amounts of phenylalanine (5-177 mg/kg per day) as part of an elemental formula. Data are expressed as means 6 SDs. Results: Twenty term (birth weight: 3.19 6 0.34 kg; gestational age: 38.9 6 1 wk) and 16 preterm (birth weight: 1.75 6 0.17 kg; gestational age: 32.5 6 0.6 wk) Asian infants participated at a postnatal age of 17 6 8 d. In total, 44 studies were performed. The minimum obligatory phenylalanine requirement was 58 mg/kg per day (95% CI: 38-78 mg/kg per day) and 80 mg/kg per day (95% CI: 40-119 mg/kg per day) for term and preterm infants, respectively. Conclusion: The determined mean phenylalanine-requirement estimates are lower than the contents of term and preterm formulas currently on the market. This trial was registered at www. trialregister.nl as NTR1610.

Objectives This article describes the development and feasibility evaluation of an empowerment program for people living with dementia in nursing homes. Methods Development and feasibility evaluation of the empowerment program was guided by the British Medical Research Council’s (MRC) framework. In the developmental phase, we used intervention mapping to develop the theory- and evidence-based intervention. During the feasibility phase, two care teams utilised the program from September to December 2020. We evaluated the feasibility in terms of demand, acceptability, implementation, practicality, integration and limited efficacy. Findings This study showed that, according to healthcare professionals, the program was feasible for promoting empowerment for people living with dementia in a nursing home. Healthcare professionals mentioned an increased awareness regarding the four themes of empowerment (sense of identity, usefulness, control and self-worth), and greater focus on the small things that matter to residents. Healthcare professionals experienced challenges in involving family caregivers. Conclusion An important step is to take into account the implementation prerequisites that follow from our findings, and to further investigate feasibility, as the use of the program and data collection was hindered by the COVID-19 pandemic. Subsequent research could investigate the effects of the empowerment program.