Biomedical subjects

Noemi Riolo

Publications and source records attributed to Noemi Riolo.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2004

[Risk factors for cognitive impairment].

Cognitive impairment is an invalidating condition and its prevalence increases significantly with age. It is very important to identify the risk factors for cognitive impairment. Aside from age, sex, familiary history and educational level, the other major risk factors (hypertension, hypercolesterolemia, diabetes mellitus and tobacco), known to be associated frequently with different cerebrovascular diseases, might also contribute to degenerative forms of cognitive impairment because they might favour cerebral microvascular alterations with hypoperfusion, demyelinization and ischemic lesions of subcortical white matter. Longitudinal epidemiological studies detected that arterial hypertension, hypercolesterolemia and tobacco are frequently associated with degenerative forms of cognitive impairment. Some studies show there is no relationship between cognitive impairment and diabetes mellitus, while other underline its role; light alcohol drinking might protect against cognitive impairment. Other recently identified risk factors might be hyperhomocysteinemia and high C-reactive protein blood levels because they seem to be associated with cognitive impairment.

Age Factors↗

PubMed2002

[Hypercholesterolemia, cardiovascular risk, and hypocholesteremic treatment in the elderly].

The role of cholesterol as a cardiovascular risk factor in the elderly is not completely clear at the moment. Epidemiologic studies show a continuous relation between cholesterol levels and cardiovascular risk even in the elderly, in fact, in spite of a lower Relative Risk, they have a greater Absolute Risk and Absolute Benefit Increase. In patients over 75-80 years old cholesterol loses its role as a risk factor, probably because of comorbidity, typical in this period. Trials show the efficacy of hypocholesterolemic therapy with statins in secondary prevention in the elderly; fewer data are available for primary prevention. Therapeutic attitudes suggest a pharmacologic intervention of secondary prevention in young and old elderly to lower LDL-C levels, which are more closely related to the events. In primary prevention we should use drugs to reach a LDL-C level lower for each additional risk factor, until 75 years old; in the old elderly we should decide on drug therapy according to the biological age and expected lifespan. Statins seem to be the most effective and safest drugs to reach this aim.

Age Factors↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Left ventricular mass in dippers and nondippers with newly diagnosed hypertension.

Hypertensive subjects can be subdivided into 2 groups, dippers and nondippers, according to the presence or the lack of a nocturnal fall of blood pressure of more than 10%. Several studies have investigated cardiac organ damage in the 2 groups with discordant results, but they included subjects with different onset, severity, and treatment of hypertension. The authors selected 23 dippers and 17 nondippers affected by newly (< 1 year) diagnosed grades 1 and 2 hypertension, never treated, who underwent 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring and M-mode echocardiography. They did not find significant differences between the 2 groups as regards the echocardiographic left ventricular and atrial dimensions or regarding the left ventricular mass, left ventricular mass index, or relative wall thickness. Also no significant differences were found in the rate of either left ventricular remodeling or left ventricular hypertrophy. These data suggest that nondipping status is not associated with a higher level of cardiac involvement in the early phases of hypertension compared to dipping status.

Aged↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Demographic evolution, aging and frailty].

The 20th century will be remembered for its technological and scientific discoveries and for the exceptional changes in the demographic structure brought about by these and the improved economic and social conditions; in fact, the reduction in the birth rate and a fall in the death rate have caused an increase in the population of the elderly. Today the elderly population represents about 20% of the total and is much more heterogeneous than in the past, with several classes of the elderly: the young elderly from 64 to 74; the old elderly from 75 to 84, the very old from 85 to 100 and the oldest old who are living around a century. The aging of the population has brought out several problems of the elderly, among the "frailty", the effects of which increase as the years pass and which regards about one half of the very old. Frailty is a reduction of the body's ability to maintaine global homeostasis and is caused by a reduction of the functional reserves of all the organs and apparatus which occurs with aging. Screening the frail elderly with a careful multidimensional assessment is important to prevent health problems and to promote good health and it is a good parameter in evaluating the management of the geriatric assistance network and thus health and social costs.

Adolescent↗