Aging clinical and experimental research
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Parathyroid hormone (PTH) exerts several actions beyond mineral metabolism and may affect body composition. The aim of our study was to assess the association between serum PTH and body fat compartment in hip fracture patients. ⋯ PTH serum levels were robustly associated with body fat compartment in men, but not in women following a fracture of the hip. A role of PTH in affecting body composition in hip fracture men is suggested. Its potential role in male prognostic disadvantage needs further investigation.
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Comparative Study
Association between dual task-related decrease in walking speed and real versus imagined Timed Up and Go test performance.
To examine whether older people with markedly dual task-related decreases in walking speed - a marker of disturbed higher-level gait control and falls - have a larger discrepancy between real and imagined Timed Up and Go (TUG) test times than those with less dual task-related decreases in walking speed. ⋯ These findings show that a large discrepancy between real and imagined TUG performances is significantly correlated with a decrease in walking speed while dual tasking, and thus may also be a surrogate marker of disturbed higher-level gait control. The quickly and easily performed TUG tests may represent a feasible, practical screening tool for early detection of higher-level gait disorders in older adults.
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Inaccurate reporting of data hampers the generalizability and the correct interpretation of results of scientific medical papers. The Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) and Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) initiatives, both included in the Enhancing the Quality and Transparency of Health Research (EQUATOR) international network, have elaborated appropriate guidelines in order to improve the transparence, clearness and completeness of scientific literature. ⋯ The STROBE is a checklist of 22 items which should be addressed when observational studies (case-control, cohort and cross-sectional) are made up. Many editorial committees and prestigious international journals have now embraced these guidelines to improve the quality and methodology of their scientific reports.
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In the last decade, there has been a rapid increase in the number of elderly patients referred for cardiac surgery. Recent studies have identified risk factors for prolonged intensive care unit (ICU) stay in cardiac surgery patients. The aims of this study was to evaluate pre-operative risk factors for ICU stay longer than 3 days in a cardiac surgery elderly population, and whether prolonged ICU stay may influence disability, functional recovery and length of rehabilitation. ⋯ Pre-operative comprehensive assessment in the elderly could help to identify predictors of long ICU stay after cardiac surgery. This approach could help to better define the elderly cardiac surgery patients and their needs throughout the cardiac rehabilitation program in order to maximize functional capacity recovery, reducing disability and rehabilitation LOS.
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In Italy there is a paucity of empirical data on practices concerning end-of-life decisions (ELDs) in geriatrics. We aimed to investigate the frequency and characteristics of ELDs made by Italian physicians and nurses in the geriatric setting. ⋯ In geriatrics, DELs often precede the deaths of terminally-ill Italian patients. Nurses report making DELs more often than physicians, especially in incompetent patients. Continuous deep sedation was adopted by 39.5% of the Italian physicians for deaths not occurring suddenly and unexpectedly. Our report on physicians' and nurses' experiences of ELD making in geriatric settings can offer a valuable contribution to the current debate on end-of-life treatment, an issue that goes beyond national borders.