RESUMO
The relationship between depression and dementia in the elderly has been widely investigated, but the real interplay between these variables is still not clear. This observational study highlights the influence of some basic variables, such as sex and age, in the development of dementia and major depression. It shows (i) the importance of sex in the age of onset of depression and dementia, (ii) the presence of two types of depressive syndrome, the first linked to the development of dementia, the second as reactive depression; (iii) the need for more attention to depressive symptoms in young-elderly men.
Assuntos
Assistência Ambulatorial/estatística & dados numéricos , Demência/epidemiologia , Transtorno Depressivo Maior/epidemiologia , Transtorno Depressivo Maior/terapia , Idade de Início , Idoso , Idoso de 80 Anos ou mais , Feminino , Humanos , Masculino , Prevalência , Distribuição por SexoRESUMO
Plasma lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] levels were determined in an Italian population subdivided according to age and sex. The distribution of plasma Lp(a) levels was highly skewed, with 75% of the subjects having less than 10 mg/dl. No significant differences were found in the plasma Lp(a) levels of the two age groups, but women had significantly higher levels than men. There was no significant correlation between Lp(a) levels and the other lipid and lipoprotein parameters studied, with the exception of a weak correlation between Lp(a) levels and both total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein-cholesterol in younger women. Apoprotein(a) phenotyping was performed in about one-third of the population; an inverse relationship between the molecular weight of the different isoforms and plasma concentrations of Lp(a) was observed.
