Dementia Risk in Older Veterans With Frailty: A Cross-Sectional Study

Frailty, a clinical syndrome characterized by vulnerability to stressors resulting from multisystemic loss of physiological reserve, predicts future cognitive decline. However, frailty has also been proposed as a dementia risk factor, predicting future cognitive impairment. The study aim was to determine frailty in older veterans and its association with risk of dementia. Community-dwelling Veterans ≥50 years completed a mailed socio-demographic questionnaire and Self-Administered Gerocognitive Examination (SAGE), July 2019-May 2020. The information was complemented with EHR data. We calculated the CAIDE score, a validated tool predicting dementia (≥6 points= high risk 20 years later) and the 31-item VA frailty index data (frail ≥.20, non-frail ≤.20). After adjusting for socio-demographic characteristics, smoking, alcohol/substance abuse, OSA and anticholinergic use, odds ratio (OR) and 95% CI were calculated using BLR to assess the cross-sectional association between frailty and dementia risk (CAIDE ≥6 points and MCI). The survey response rate was 19.75% (1,073 of 5,432). Participants mean age was 68.38 (SD=8.49) years, 57.50% (n=617) Caucasian, 69.34% (n=744) non-Hispanic, 95.81% (n=1,028) male, and 36.72% (n=394) frail. 11.84%(n=127) screened positive for MCI and 15.38% (n=165) for dementia. 689 (75.88%) veterans were at high risk for dementia of whom 426 (61.83%) were non-frail and 263 (38.17%) were frail. Frailty was cross-sectionally associated with higher risk for dementia in older Veterans, adjusted OR:1.45 (95%CI:1.016-2.070), p=.041. The mailed screening was a feasible and practical approach to screen for dementia risk. Early identification of patients with frailty can help in the implementation of interventions aimed at preventing or delaying dementia.

Effects of Prehabilitation on Functional Capacity in Aged Patients Undergoing Cardiothoracic Surgeries: A Systematic Review

Background: an increasing number of advanced age patients are considered for cardiothoracic surgeries. Prehabilitation optimizes the patients’ functional capacity and physiological reserve. However, the effectiveness of prehabilitation on physical functioning and postoperative recovery in the scope of cardiothoracic surgery is still uncertain. Objective: to assess the effectiveness of prehabilitation on pre- and/or postoperative functional capacity and physiological reserve in aged patients that are considered for cardiothoracic surgeries. Methods: this systematic review was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42021247117). The searches were conducted in PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Cochrane CENTRAL until 18 April 2021. Randomized clinical trials that compared different prehabilitation strategies with usual care on the pre- and-postoperative results in aged patients undergoing cardiothoracic surgeries were included. Methodological quality was assessed by means of the Jadad scale, and the effectiveness of the interventions according to the Consensus on Therapeutic Exercise Training. Results: nine studies with 876 participants aged from 64 to 71.5 years old were included. Risk of bias was moderate due to the absence of double-blinding. The content of the interventions (multimodal prehabilitation n = 3; based on physical exercises n = 6) and the result measures presented wide variation, which hindered comparison across the studies. In general, the trials with better therapeutic quality (n = 6) reported more significant improvements in physical functioning, cardiorespiratory capacity, and in the postoperative results in the participants under-going prehabilitation. Conclusions: prehabilitation seems to improve functional capacity and postoperative recovery in aged patients undergoing cardiothoracic surgeries. However, due to the significant heterogeneity and questionable quality of the trials, both the effectiveness of prehabilitation and the optimum content are still to be determined.

Anatomy and Histologic of Intrinsic Aging Skin

Aging is an inevitable and dynamic biological process that is characterized by the progressive deterioration of body systems and declines in physiological reserve capacity. Aging skin has distinct two types: intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic changes reduce collagen production, blood flow, amount of skin lipid, and loss of rete ridges. Intrinsic aging or chronological aging is cannot be restored to the skin with characterized by sagging skin and some expression of excess wrinkling lines. Intrinsic aging changes in thickness and characteristics of the epidermis, dermis, and hypodermis. Histologically, epidermis thinner by leveling off the dermo-epidermal junction. In the dermis, collagen fibers become thicker and irregular than younger skin, reducing the elasticity of the skin, while hypodermis reduces lipid volume.

Lymphocytes as a Biomarker of Frailty Syndrome: A Scoping Review

Frailty is a geriatric syndrome characterized by a decrease in physiological reserve and reduced resistance to stress, as a result of an accumulation of multiple deficits in physiological systems. Frailty increases the vulnerability to adverse events and is associated with the aging process. Several studies show an association between frailty syndrome and altered blood lymphocyte levels, which is therefore potentially useful for monitoring interventions to improve or delay frailty. The main objective of this review is to provide an analysis of the current evidence related to changes in lymphocyte counts and their associations with frailty syndrome. To that end, the literature published in this field until March 2021 was in several databases: PubMed, SCOPUS, and Cochrane. Eighteen studies analyzed the association between lymphocyte counts, lymphocyte subtypes, and frailty syndrome. Eighteen studies were analyzed, and most of them reported associations. Interestingly, the association between frailty syndrome and lower lymphocytes counts appears in different clinical conditions. Further studies are needed to determine the sensitivity of lymphocyte counts and lymphocyte subtypes in the diagnosis and monitoring of frailty syndrome, and for this measure to be used as a biomarker of frailty status.

Comprehensive geriatric assessment in elderly and senile patients with cardiovascular diseases. Expert opinion of the Russian Association of Gerontologists and Geriatricians

Senile asthenia syndrome (SAS) is a geriatric syndrome characterized by age-associated decline of the physiological reserve and function in multiple systems, which results in higher vulnerability to effects of endo- and exogenous factors and a high risk of unfavorable outcomes, loss of self-sufficiency, and death. Generally, SAS is observed in elderly patients with comorbidities. In cardiovascular diseases, SAS is associated with a poor prognosis, including a higher incidence of exacerbation and death both during acute events and in chronic disease. However, SAS is often not taken into account in developing diagnostic and therapeutic programs for managing elderly patients with cardiovascular diseases (CVD). This article analyzes available scientific information about SAS, algorithms for SAS diagnosis, and the scales that may be useful in developing individual plans for management of elderly patients with CVD.

Frailty at the beginning of dialysis; is it a prognostic factor?

Introduction: Frailty (F) refers to the cumulative organic damage caused by aging, as a consequence of a diminished physiological reserve. Frailty’s prevalence is 73% in dialysis. Objectives: Our aim was to identify the prevalence of F in patients starting hemodialysis (HD) or hemodiafiltration online (HDF) treatment. To asses change in frailty during a six-month period of dialysis Patients and Methods: This prospective cohort study evaluated 67 incident patient starting-HD or HDF at one year, with a follow-up period of at least six months. The frailty was assessed by the Fried frailty method. According to this test, we divided the population in two groups: Pre-frail (0-2) and frail (3-5). Results: Mean age was 64 years, 64% were male and 92% were treated with HD. A total of 35.8% of the patients were admitted to dialysis with a prosthetic or native fistula. The prevalence of F at the beginning of dialysis was 65.7%. The mean value of Charlson index (CHI) was 5.2 ± 2. There was a significant correlation between CHI and frailty test (P<0.0001). Basal F score (n=67) improved after 6 month (n=52): 3 (2-4) versus1 (1-2) (P<0.0001). Hematocrit (28 versus 32% P=0.05) and calcium levels (8.6 and 8.9 mg/dL, P<0.002) also increased after sixth-month. Global mortality was 7.5%. In the multivariate analysis CHI (P<0.001) and albumin (P=0.003) were frailty predictors. Conclusion: The prevalence of F in patients who start dialysis therapy is high. There was an improvement in F score after six-month of dialysis treatment. Patients with higher F score had higher mortality with higher CHI

The effect of the physiological reserve surrogate characteristics on non-airway extubation failure in patients with pneumonia with high Burns wean assessment program scores

Objectives: A successful weaning prediction score could be a useful tool to predict non-airway extubation failure. However, it may carry some challenges without considering the effect of the physiological reserve on the sustainability of extubation. This study investigated the possible correlation between the physiological reserve surrogate characteristics including acute, baseline, and biochemical patients’ factors and non-airway extubation failure in patients with pneumonia. Methods: A retrospective cohort study at two academic teaching hospitals was conducted between January 2019 and January 2020 with patients with pneumonia requiring invasive mechanical ventilation and with Burns Wean Assessment Program (BWAP) scores equal to or exceeding 50. Acute clinical, biochemical, and baseline characteristics were collected for both successful and failed non-airway extubation patients. Results: Among 313 patients, the mean age was 63.63 ± 10.44 years and most of the patients were males (60.7%). The median invasive mechanical duration was 7 days [Interquartile range (IQR): 5–12], the median length of ICU stay was 12 [IQR: 6–23] and the in-hospital mortality was 16.9%. Among this cohort of patients with pneumonia, 37.7% had non-airway extubation failure. Multivariate logistic regression analyses showed that higher CURB-65 score, longer duration of invasive mechanical ventilation, hemodynamic instability, healthcare-associated pneumonia, older men, history of diabetes mellitus, history of cardiac disease, hypophosphatemia, hypocalcemia, and higher admission serum sodium were associated with increased risk of non-airway extubation failure in patients with pneumonia with high BWAP score. Conclusion: A distinct successful weaning score for patients with pneumonia that considers patients’ acute clinical, biochemical, and baseline characteristics may be effective, and these factors could be reflective of the underlying physiological reserve. Sustainability score from IMV rather than weaning score is needed and may be more predictive for the extubation outcome.

Caecal Volvulus

Colonic volvulus is the third leading cause of large bowel obstruction. About 35% of these are located in the caecum. Though, relatively, a rare cause of obstruction, the incidence of caecal volvulus is steadily increasing at a rate of about 5% per year. Mortality due to caecal volvulus may be as high as 40% especially in the presence of gangrene and sepsis. Clinical presentation may be acute and fulminant or as a mobile caecum syndrome with intermittent abdominal pain. “Whirl,” “Coffee bean,” and “bird beak” signs seen on computed tomography are pathognomonic. Colectomy is the preferred treatment as it obviates any chance of recurrence. A conservative approach to colectomy such as limited ileocaecal resection and ileostomy formation in critically ill patients or in those with poor physiological reserve may be associated with better postoperative outcomes.