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E Alix

Publications and source records attributed to E Alix.

7 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Energy requirements in frail elderly people: a review of the literature.

This review collates studies of healthy, sick, underweight (BMI < or = 21 kg/m2) and very elderly people (> or = 90 yr), in whom resting energy expenditure (REE) was measured using indirect calorimetry. We have observed the following: (1) REE, when adjusted for differences in both body weight and fat-free mass (FFM), is similar in healthy and in sick elderly people being 20 and 28 kcal/kg of FFM per day, respectively, (2) their nutritional status influences their energy requirements given that weight-adjusted REE increases in line with a decrease in BMI, (3) total energy expenditure is lower in sick elderly people given that their physical activity level, i.e. the ratio of total energy expenditure to REE, is reduced during disease averaging at 1.36, (4) energy intake (EI) being only 1.23 x REE is insufficient to cover energy requirements in sick elderly patients, whereas the EI of healthy elderly people appears sufficient to cover requirements, and finally, (5) gender ceases to be a determinant of REE in people aged 60 yr or over, with the Harris & Benedict equation capable of accurately predicting mean REE in this population, whether healthy or sick.

Aged, 80 and over↗
PubMed2000

[Protein-energy malnutrition. Diagnostic methods and epidemiology].

EPIDEMIOLOGY: Protein-calorie malnutrition (PCM) is highly prevalent among elderly persons living in the community (4%), hospitalized in acute care units or geriatric rehabilitation units (50%), or in long-term care facilities (30-40%). PCM is the first predictor of poor prognosis in the elderly. DIAGNOSIS: Parameters used to establish the diagnosis of PCM and identify its pathophysiology are both simple and inexpensive: body mass index, plasma albumin and CRP, arm circumference and skin fold thickness. CONSEQUENCES: Because of its frequency and consequences on morbidity and mortality in the elderly, PCM is an important public health problem in industrialized countries.

Aged↗
PubMed1999

Comparison of a low dose polyethylene glycol electrolyte solution with lactulose for treatment of chronic constipation.

BACKGROUND: Polyethylene glycol (PEG) 3350 is a non-absorbable, non-metabolised osmotic agent used in lavage solutions for gut cleansing. AIMS: To compare the efficacy of PEG and lactulose in chronic constipation. METHODS: A total of 115 patients with chronic constipation entered a multicentre, randomised, comparative trial. They initially received two sachets containing either PEG (13 g/sachet) or lactulose (10 g/sachet) and were given an option to change the dose to one or three sachets/day, depending on response. RESULTS: Ninety nine patients completed the trial. After four weeks, patients in the PEG group (n=50) had a higher number of stools and a lower median daily score for straining at stool than patients in the lactulose group (n=49). Overall improvement was greater in the PEG group. Clinical tolerance was similar in the two groups, but flatus was less frequently reported in the PEG group. The mean number of liquid stools was higher in the PEG group but the difference was significant only for the first two weeks. There were no serious adverse events and no significant change in laboratory tests in either group. At the end of the study, the number of sachets used by the patients was 1.6 (0.7)/day in the PEG group and 2.1 (0.7)/day in the lactulose group. Sixty one patients completed a further two months open study of one to three sachets PEG daily; there was no loss of efficacy and no serious toxicity. CONCLUSION: Low dose PEG 3350 was more effective than lactulose and better tolerated.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Vitamin A status in the institutionalized elderly. Critical analysis of four evaluation criteria: dietary vitamin A intake, serum retinol, relative dose-response test (RDR) and impression cytology with transfer (ICT).

Infraclinical vitamin A deficiencies may be health-threatening for elderly people, yet they are difficult to assess unequivocally in this population. In this study, we evaluate the vitamin A status of an elderly institutionalized population (49 subjects, 83.6 +/- 6.1 years of age), by examining four different criteria: the dietary vitamin A intake, the retinol concentration in serum, the relative dose-response test and the impression cytology with transfer. The incidence of infra-clinical deficiencies was estimated to be 55% by examining dietary vitamin A intake, 21% by using the RDR test, 6% by the ICT and 2% from serum retinol values. These variations are not due to the choice of threshold values for each of the methods, yet rather to poor correlations between the results given by these methods. Canonical correlation analyses indicate that some parameters related to retinol secretion from the liver, including Zn, prealbumin and retinol-binding protein, can affect individual patient response towards the different methods. Validation of the RDR test in this elderly population was not successful because of poor reproducibility and moderate correction of RDR-detected vitamin A deficiencies by vitamin A supplementation. The method chosen for the determination of vitamin A status in elderly people must be carefully evaluated to account for possible age-related changes in the patient response to the method employed. In the institutionalized elderly population examined in this study, we observed a low vitamin A intake, whereas serum retinol and ICT are within normal ranges and while RDR test's responses appear too variable to draw any conclusion.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[The effects of synthetic 1-34 fragment of human PTH on kidney and bone receptors in man. Use of the Ellsworth-Howard test].

The authors propose to study parathyroid hormone receptors in humans by means of a test "inspired by the Ellsworth-Howard test" using the active synthetic 1-34 fragment of the hormone PTH-1-34. The use of this test in 44 patients (29 healthy subjects, 7 patients with idiopathic hypercalciuria 5 cases of Paget's disease, 1 patient with idiopathic hypoparathyroidism, 2 cases of basal cell nevus syndrome) who received different doses of this substance intravenously, revealed a marked dose-dependent stimulation of adenyl-cyclase as objectified by an increase in urinary excretion of cyclic AMP (AMPcU). Distal tubular calcium reabsorption was also significantly affected as demonstrated by a decrease in urinary calcium in the first hours following administration of the 1-34 fragment even in the case of idiopathic hypercalciuria. In comparison to the "classical" Ellsworth-Howard test, however, no significant urinary phosphate response was observed during the present test. Similarly, urinary hydroxyproline and phosphate and calcium blood levels remained stable. As the results obtained for the case of hypoparathyroidism demonstrate, this easily performed test is useful for valuating parathormone receptors in kidney by means of two sensitive parameters (AMPcU and the ratio of fractional urinary calcium to urinary creatinine). In addition to its action, synthetic fragment h PTH-1-34 offers the advantage of being totally innocuous.

Bone and Bones↗