The Relationship Between Dementia Subtypes and Nutritional Parameters in Older Adults.

OBJECTIVES: There are a few studies showing how nutritional parameters are affected according to dementia subtypes. The aim of this study was to compare the parameters characterizing nutritional status and micronutrient levels according to different dementia subtypes. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Four hundred forty outpatients aged 65 years or older. MEASURES: Newly diagnosed patients with dementia, who underwent comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA), were retrospectively evaluated. The data on CGA including nutritional status (body mass index), Mini-Nutritional Assessment-Short Form, albumin, and micronutrients (vitamin B12, folate, and vitamin D) were recorded. RESULTS: Of the 396 patients, 195 were diagnosed with Alzheimer type dementia, 70 dementia with Lewy body (DLB), 25 with vascular dementia (VaD), 51 with frontotemporal dementia (FTD), and 55 with normal pressure hydrocephalus. The mean age of the study group was 76.87 ± 8.15 years. The prevalence of malnutrition and the risk of malnutrition were 17.17% and 43.18% in patients, with dementia, respectively. The results of ordinal logistic analysis adjusted by age, sex, and all comorbidities, showed that patients with DLB and VaD were more likely to develop malnutrition [odds ratios 6.834 and 5.414, respectively (P < .001)], whereas FTD had a lower risk of developing malnutrition than the other dementia subtypes (odds ratio 2.883, P = .002).There was no difference in terms of other parameters including vitamin B12, folate, and vitamin D (P > .05). CONCLUSIONS: and Implication: There is a close relationship between dementia and malnutrition. Clinical approaches to minimize malnutrition in persons with dementia should include regular screening for malnutrition and its risk factors, avoidance of dietary restrictions, and support of persons at risk for malnutrition with oral nutritional supplements. Moreover, the influence of nutritional status varies in different types of dementia. Nutritional status may be worse in DLB and VaD compared with other types of dementia, whereas nutritional status in FTD is less.

Postural blood pressure changes in the elderly: orthostatic hypotension and hypertension.

OBJECTIVES: Orthostatic hypotension is a well-known disorder, but orthostatic hypertension (OHT) still remains unclear in older adults. The aim of this study was to determine the comparison orthostatic hypotension with OHT according to fall risk and geriatric assessment parameters. METHODS: A total of 741 patients who were admitted to the geriatric clinic and underwent comprehensive geriatric assessment were reviewed. Orthostatic blood pressure changes were measured by head-up-tilt Table test within the first three minutes. Orthostatic hypotension was defined as 20 or 10-mmHg drop in systolic and/or diastolic blood pressure from supine to standing position. OHT was defined as an increase in systolic blood pressure of 10 mmHg or more while the patient was standing up from the supine position. RESULTS: The mean age was 75 ± 8 and 65. About 65% of all participants were female. The rate of orthostatic hypotension and OHT was 17.3 and 7.2%, respectively. The falls and dementia were more frequent, and the Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL) score was lower in orthostatic hypotension group than in OHT and control groups (P < 0.05). These variables were similar between OHT and control groups (P > 0.05). The rates of falls [odds ratio (OR) = 2.02; 95% confidence interval (CI), (0.94-4.33); P = 0.044] and dementia [OR = 2.65; 95% CI, (1.08-6.48); P = 0.032] in orthostatic hypotension group were still higher than in OHT group, even after adjusting for age, sex, estimated glomerular filtration rate and drugs. CONCLUSION: Orthostatic hypotension may be more significant in terms of falls, dementia and impaired IADLs scores in older adults than in OHT and control groups. It seems that OHT may be of no clinical importance in geriatric practice.

The Effect of Theracurmin on Cognitive Function in an Older Patient with Chemobrain.

Chemobrain is one of the problems that may arise during or after treatment and there is currently no specific treatment for this condition. Our case was a 76-year-old female patient who presented to our clinic with complaints of forgetfulness that did not affect daily living activities for the last year. Breast cancer was diagnosed in 2013 and she has been receiving anastrozole treatment for 6 years after local mass excision surgery and radiotherapy. After a comprehensive geriatric evaluation, cognitive impairment due to systemic cancer therapy was detected and treatment was started with Theracurmin 90 mg twice a day therapy. After 3-months of Theracurmin therapy, she had no cognitive improvement during the follow-up. This case report demonstrated that Theracurmin treatment may be a new option for chemobrain.

The Relationship between the Most Common Subtypes of Dementia and Orthostatic Hypotension in Older Adults.

BACKGROUND: It is crucial to evaluate the causes of morbidity and mortality in elderly patients with dementia, such as orthostatic hypotension (OH), which may affect their daily life activities, reduce the quality of life, and increase the caregiver burden. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to investigate the relationship between OH and the most common subtypes of dementia in detail. METHODS: A total of 268 older adults with dementia diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease (AD), dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), vascular dementia (VaD), and behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD), and 539 older adults without dementia were included in this prospective study. Comprehensive geriatric assessment including comorbidity, medication evaluation, and the head-up tilt test was also performed. RESULTS: Of the participants, 13.8, 8.3, 6.4, and 4.8% had AD, DLB, bvFTD, and VaD, respectively. After adjusting for age, gender, the presence of comorbidities, and usage of OH-induced drugs; AD, DLB, and VaD were associated with OH (odds ratio [OR]: 2.23 confidence interval [CI] 95% 1.31-3.80; p = 0.003; OR: 3.68 CI 95% 1.98-6.83; p < 0.001, and OR: 3.56 CI 95% 1.46-8.69; p = 0.005, respectively). Furthermore, VaD was independently related to diastolic OH (OR: 4.19 CI 95% 1.66-10.57; p = 0.002), whereas AD and DLB were not. CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that elderly patients with DLB, AD, and VaD often have OH, a disabling autonomic dysfunction feature. Moreover, diastolic OH may play a role in the development of VaD. Therefore, considering potential complications of OH, it is essential to evaluate OH in the follow-up and management of those patients.

Tumor-associated Macrophages and Neuroendocrine Differentiation Decrease the Efficacy of Bevacizumab Plus Chemotherapy in Patients With Advanced Colorectal Cancer.

BACKGROUND: In the present study, we investigated the prognostic and predictive role of neuroendocrine differentiation (NED) and tumor-associated macrophage (TAM) infiltration in tumor tissue from patients with advanced colorectal cancer who had received bevacizumab plus chemotherapy. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 123 consecutive patients with advanced colorectal cancer who had received bevacizumab plus irinotecan/oxaliplatin-based combination chemotherapy were included in the present study. In addition to the clinicopathologic parameters, the presence of NED and the level of TAM infiltration were studied as covariates for survival analysis. RESULTS: The median patient age was 57 years (range, 30-76 years). The chemotherapy backbone was FOLFIRI (folinic acid, 5-fluorouracil, irinotecan) for 75% of the patients. Univariate analysis showed that only NED and TAM infiltration were significant predictive factors for progression-free survival. Left-sided tumors and low TAM infiltration were favorable factors for overall survival on univariate analysis. However, the TAM level was the only independent prognostic factor for overall survival (hazard ratio, 0.301; 95% confidence interval, 0.102-0.892). CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that increased TAM infiltration in tumor tissue and NED could decrease the efficacy of bevacizumab plus combination chemotherapy in patients with advanced colorectal cancer. TAM infiltration in the tumor tissue could be used as a biomarker in patients with advanced colorectal cancer receiving bevacizumab plus chemotherapy.