[Serum potassium levels and long-term mortality in the elderly with hypertension]. / Niveles de potasio sérico y mortalidad a largo plazo en ancianos con hipertensión arterial.

There is increasing evidence that small variations within the normal range (3.5-5mEq/L) of potassium are associated with mortality. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether there is an association between serum potassium level (sK) and mortality in a cohort of elderly hypertensive patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A retrospective, observational study was conducted on patients who had sK levels available in a period of clinical stability during their recruitment between January and April 2006 and followed-up for 10 years. The study obtained a total of 62 stable patients, with a mean age of 82.19±6 years (range 69-97), with 74.2% women, 33.9% diabetics, 20.3% with a history of heart failure, Ischaemic heart disease was observed in 19.4% and 44.3% received Angiotensin Converting Enzyme (ACE) inhibitors. An analysis was performed on the mortality rate during the 10 year period. The statistics were performed using the SPSS15.0 package. RESULTS: There were 49 deaths. The sK had a normal distribution. Baseline mean sK levels and median were 4.45±0.5mEq/L (range 3.1-5.5 mEq/L). Baseline sK levels were significantly higher in diabetic patients and patients on ACE inhibitors. The patients that died had higher sK levels (4.53±0.49mEq/L versus 4.14±0.40mEq/L, P=.011). Survival estimated using Kaplan Meier showed that patients with sK levels higher than the median and P75 had higher mortality. CONCLUSIONS: In our study, sK levels greater than 4.45mEq/L were associated with mortality. When selecting antihypertensive treatment in hypertensive elderly patients,, the use of ACE inhibitors should be assessed individually, with close monitoring at sK levels and try to keep them in the lower limit of the normal range (<4.45 mEq/L).

[Elderly patients with Chronic Kidney Disease: what is their course at one year?]. / Ancianos con enfermedad renal crónica: ¿Cuál es su evolución al cabo de un año?

INTRODUCTION: Aging is associated to several structural and functional kidney changes. Recently, there is a great interest in the detection of Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) in the general population. A classification of CKD, based on several stages of the estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), has been established. In this study we followed up, clinically and biochemically, during one year eighty patients older than 65 years so as to ascertain the applicability and utility of such classification to those patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: 80 clinically stable patients, with a median age of 83 years, recruited within January and April 2006, were followed up during one year. We separated them in two groups: Group 1: 38 patients with serum creatinine pound sterling 1,1 mg/dl (range 0,7-1,1) and with no proteinuria; and Group 2: 42 patients with serum creatinine > or =1.1 mg/dl (range 1,2-3) and with proteinuria <3 grs/24 hours. Clinically we registered morbimortality and treatments received, and biochemically we measured serum creatinine and eGFR at the time of recruitment and after one year of follow up using two equations: Cockroft and abbreviated MDRD. Statistical comparisons were made using the general lineal model for repeated measures of the SPSS 11.0 program. RESULTS: 10% of the patients died during the follow up. Cardiac problems were the kind of morbidity more frequently found. Only a small proportion (23%) of group 2 patients were receiving erythropoietin (EPO) treatment. Estimated GFR and proteinuria remained stable at the end of one year independently of basal GFR; we found no significant differences between groups in the rest of analytical parameters. CONCLUSION: in old patients with no significant proteinuria, the similarity of their clinical evolution and the stability of their eGFR (independently of its basal value), as well as the lack of differences in other analytical parameters, appears not to confer any advantages to the use of mathematical formulae to classified them according to their eGFR.

[Neuropsychological disorders in Parkinson's disease: evaluating them and their impact on the caregiver]. / Alteraciones neuropsicológicas en la enfermedad de Parkinson: evaluación e impacto sobre el cuidador.

INTRODUCTION: There are no specific scales for evaluating the broad profile of potentially relevant neuropsychological disorders associated to Parkinson's disease. Moreover, the information about their impact on the quality of life of caregivers (QLC) is scarce. OBJECTIVES: This study outlines a model of a practical questionnaire developed to evaluate the neuropsychological disorders in Parkinson's disease and how to apply it to determine the effect they have on the QLC. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A study was performed in two phases: 1. The application of a list of items from several scales used for neuropsychological disorders; 2. After selecting and reducing the number of items by means of psychometric methods, they were applied to a sample of patients. At the same time, using the data obtained from the above mentioned procedure, the impact of the neuropsychological disorders on the QLC was evaluated with the Glozman scale. RESULT: In Parkinson's disease some neuropsychological disorders are relatively frequent, unlike those observed in a control group (either because of their frequency or their intensity) and are significantly associated to other aspects of the disease. There was an overall deterioration of the QLC and this worsened significantly as PD progressed and the disability of the patient increased. With respect to the neuropsychological disorders, verbal communication (rS = -0.59), cognitive behavioural mental status (rS = -0.54) and depression (rS = -0.41) (p < 0.001) were the domains significantly linked to deterioration of the QLC. CONCLUSIONS: The QLC of patients with Parkinson's disease is decreased and is correlated with the extent of the patient's motor disorders, functional status and neuropsychological disorders.

[The clinico-microbiological diagnosis of encephalitis due to herpes zoster in an elderly patient: apropos a case]. / Diagnóstico clínico-microbiológico de la encefalitis por herpes zoster en el anciano: a propósito de un caso.

Varicella-zoster infection consists of well-recognized cutaneous manifestations. However, in several cases it is complicated with central nervous system disorders. We present a 79-year-old diabetic woman with zoster ophthalmicus, who developed an acute confusional syndrome. EEG, cranial computed tomographic, biochemical and haematologic and liquoral studies were performed. An increased in the CSF-IgG index was founded, and it was related with Varicella-Zoster Herpes antibodies. She was treated with intravenous acyclovir, and her encephalopathy was resolved.