Geriatrics & gerontology international
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The study aimed to study the prevalence, etiologies, clinical profile and outcome of delirium in hospitalized elderly in medicine wards. ⋯ Sepsis and metabolic abnormalities were the most common etiologies of delirium in this study. The maximum patients had more than one etiology and this emphasizes the multifactorial nature of delirium and need for thorough evaluation to unravel them. Most of the causes were treatable and have favorable outcome (83% recovered).
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Anhedonia has been proposed as a specific mood disorder related to the dopaminergic nerve dysfunction seen in Parkinson's disease (PD). This study examined hedonic tone in patients with PD using the Snaith-Hamilton Pleasure Scale (SHAPS) and investigated the associations with depressive mood by the Self-Rating Questionnaire for Depression (SRQ-D). ⋯ Anhedonia may overlap depressive syndrome but some PD patients without depression presented anhedonia. Pramipexole could maintain hedonic tone. The PD patients could enjoy attracting attention and wish to do things helpful for others.
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Geriatr Gerontol Int · Oct 2010
Association of carotid atherosclerosis with genetic polymorphisms of the klotho gene in patients with hypertension.
Previous studies suggest that klotho gene polymorphisms may be associated with atherosclerosis, but did not assess the relationship between klotho gene polymorphisms and atherosclerosis parameters such as carotid artery intima-media thickness (IMT). Here, we studied whether klotho single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) were associated with carotid atherosclerosis. ⋯ Only in hypertensive patients was klotho rs650439 strongly associated with mean IMT thickening of the common carotid artery. Therefore, klotho SNP (rs650439) may influence on the progression of carotid atherosclerosis in patients with hypertension.
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Geriatr Gerontol Int · Jul 2010
Multicenter StudyBrief screening tool for mild cognitive impairment in older Japanese: validation of the Japanese version of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment.
The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), developed by Dr Nasreddine (Nasreddine et al. 2005), is a brief cognitive screening tool for detecting older people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). We examined the reliability and validity of the Japanese version of the MoCA (MoCA-J) in older Japanese subjects. ⋯ The MoCA-J could be a useful cognitive test for screening MCI, and could be recommended in a primary clinical setting and for geriatric health screening in the community.
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Geriatr Gerontol Int · Apr 2010
ReviewWould the elderly be better off if they were given more placebos?
Placebos are useful in the medical care of the elderly, although the exact definition of a "placebo" or "placebo effect" is difficult to define precisely. They have an important role as control treatments in research trials, but a non-specific "placebo effect" may also be beneficial part of many physician-patient interactions. Physicians also give them deliberately according to several studies worldwide to satisfy patient demands or because they believe in a "placebo effect" among other reasons. ⋯ Placebos have often been considered a deception and thus unethical. On the other hand, some physicians and ethicists have suggested conditions for appropriate uses for placebos. A placebo might offer the theoretical advantage of an inexpensive treatment that would not cause adverse drug reactions or interactions with other medications, potentially avoiding complications of polypharmacy.