Home  About us  Contact
 

Normal Elderly (normal + elderly)

Distribution by Scientific Domains
Medical Sciences100%

Terms modified by Normal Elderly

  • normal elderly subject
    		•

    Selected Abstracts

    Higher Soluble Amyloid , Concentration in Frontal Cortex of Young Adults than in Normal Elderly or Alzheimer's Disease

    BRAIN PATHOLOGY, Issue 4 2010
    Zoë Van Helmond
    Abstract Little is known about the relationship between soluble amyloid , (A,) and age. We have measured soluble and insoluble A, by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) in post-mortem frontal cortex in normal brains (16,95 years) and AD. Insoluble A, increased with age, and was significantly higher in Alzheimer's disease (AD) than age-matched controls. However, levels of soluble A, declined with age and were significantly greater in younger adults than older adults with or without AD. In AD, insoluble : soluble A, ratio was much higher than in age-matched controls. The high levels of soluble A, in young adults included oligomeric species of A,1-42. These observations do not preclude A, oligomers as neurotoxic mediators of AD but suggest that if they are, the toxicity may be restricted to certain species (eg, ,-pleated protofibrillar species not detected by our assay) or takes decades to manifest. The dramatically increased insoluble : soluble A, in AD points to an altered dynamic equilibrium of A, in AD, reflecting both enhanced aggregation and continued overproduction or impaired removal of the soluble peptide in older age, when the concentration of this peptide should be declining. [source]

    The clock drawing test in primary care: sensitivity in dementia detection and specificity against normal and depressed elderly

    INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF GERIATRIC PSYCHIATRY, Issue 10 2001
    Michael Kirby
    Abstract Objectives The aim of this study was to examine the sensitivities and specificities of the clock drawing test (CDT) in the detection of dementia among older people in primary care, with particular emphasis on the effect of depression on CDT specificity. Most previous studies have been sited in specialist settings and few have addressed the issue of specificity aginst depression. Methods Comparison of cohorts identified from community-based screening with GMS-AGECAT. The CDT and the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) were administered to 41 elderly subjects with organic disorder (dementia), 84 elderly subjects with case level depression and 523 normal elderly subjects. Sensitivities and specificities of the CDT were calculated. Results The sensitivity of the CDT in the detection of dementia in the general community was 76%. The specificities of the CDT against normal elderly and depressed elderly was 81% and 77% respectively. Higher sensitivity and specificity were achieved by the MMSE. Conclusions The use of the CDT in the detection of dementia syndromes is likely to be more relevant in the primary care context than in specialist settings. The CDT provides good sensitivity and specificity but may not be as sensitive or specific in the general community as previous studies have suggested, particularly in mild dementia. Community-based late life depression does not appear to alter the specificity of the CDT. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

    Depressive symptoms among cognitively normal versus cognitively impaired elderly subjects

    INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF GERIATRIC PSYCHIATRY, Issue 5 2001
    Yan-sheng Li
    Abstract Objectives The present cross-sectional study analyzed the prevalence and severity of depressive symptoms among patients with Alzheimer's disease (DAT), vascular dementia (VAD), and among the cognitively normal elderly. Putative risk factors contributing to depression were likewise evaluated. Methods Seventy-six DAT patients, 51 VAD patients, and 121 cognitively normal subjects were admitted to the study. Questionnaires concerning demography and their vascular and familial risk factors together with results of neuropsychological testing by combined Mini-Mental Status Examinations (MMSE), Cognitive Capacity Screening Examinations (CCSE), and Hamilton Depression Rating Scales (HDRS) were obtained so that resulting data would be statistically analyzed. Results Prevalence of depressive symptoms among VAD, DAT, and cognitively normal elderly were 31.4%, 19.9%, and 13.2%, respectively. 25.5% of VAD and 13.2% of DAT patients had depression of mild to moderate degrees. Regression analysis revealed that diagnosis of VAD and DAT, heart disease, and past history of depression was significantly associated with high HDRS scores. There was no correlation between degree of depression and severity of cognitive impairments. Conclusion Mild to moderate depression is a common comorbidity with organic dementia, especially VAD, but associated depression is independent of severity of cognitive impairments. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd [source]

    Estimation of premorbid IQ in individuals with Alzheimer's disease using Japanese ideographic script (Kanji) compound words: Japanese version of National Adult Reading Test

    PSYCHIATRY AND CLINICAL NEUROSCIENCES, Issue 3 2006
    KEIKO MATSUOKA phd
    Abstract The National Adult Reading Test (NART) is widely used as a measure of premorbid IQ of the English-speaking patients with dementia. The purpose of the present study was to develop a Japanese version of the NART (JART), using 50 Japanese irregular words, all of which are Kanji (ideographic script) compound words. Reading performance based on JART and IQ as measured by the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale,Revised (WAIS-R) was examined in a sample of 100 normal elderly (NE) persons and in 70 age-, sex-, and education-matched patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD). The NE group was randomly divided into the NE calculation group (n = 50) and the NE validation group (n = 50). Using the NE calculation group, a linear regression equation was obtained in which the observed full-scale IQ (FSIQ) was regressed on the reading errors of the JART. When the regressed equation computed from the NE calculation group was applied to the NE validation group, the predicted FSIQ adequately fit the observed FSIQ (R2 = 0.78). Further, independent t -tests showed that the JART-predicted IQs were not significantly different between the NE and AD groups, whereas the AD group performed worse in the observed IQs. The reading ability of Kanji compound words is well-preserved in Japanese patients with AD. The JART is a valid scale for evaluating premorbid IQ in patients with AD. [source]

    Necker cube copying ability in normal elderly and Alzheimer's disease.

    PSYCHOGERIATRICS, Issue 1 2006
    A community-based study: The Tajiri project
    Abstract Background:, The purpose of this study was to investigate the ability of normal elderly participants and patients with Alzheimer's disease to copy the Necker cube. Method:, One hundred and seventy elderly participants were randomly selected from the town of Tajiri, northern Japan, and were classified into three groups based on the Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR): CDR 0, healthy; CDR 0.5, questionable dementia; and CDR 1 and 2, mild and moderate dementia. Dementia patients (CDR 1 and 2) met the criteria of probable AD of the NINCDS-ADRDA. Using eight original criteria, we examined their ability to copy the Necker cube. Results:, Most CDR 0 participants could at least succeed in copying a simple cube. About a half of the AD patients could not draw a three-dimensional figure. Among the CDR 0.5 participants, we found a ,two-peak' distribution. Conclusion:, Copying the Necker cube may be one useful task for the detection of very mild Alzheimer's disease. [source]

    Cognition, reserve, and amyloid deposition in normal aging

    ANNALS OF NEUROLOGY, Issue 3 2010
    Dorene M. Rentz PsyD
    Objective To determine whether amyloid deposition is associated with impaired neuropsychological (NP) performance and whether cognitive reserve (CR) modifies this association. Methods In 66 normal elderly controls and 17 patients with Alzheimer disease (AD), we related brain retention of Pittsburgh Compound B (PiB) to NP performance and evaluated the impact of CR using education and American National Adult Reading Test intelligence quotient as proposed proxies. Results We found in the combined sample of subjects that PiB retention in the precuneus was inversely related to NP performance, especially in tests of memory function, but also in tests of working memory, semantic processing, language, and visuospatial perception. CR significantly modified the relationship, such that at progressively higher levels of CR, increased amyloid deposition was less or not at all associated with poorer neuropsychological performance. In a subsample of normal controls, both the main effect of amyloid deposition of worse memory performance and the interaction with CR were replicated using a particularly challenging memory test. Interpretation Amyloid deposition is associated with lower cognitive performance both in AD patients and in the normal elderly, but the association is modified by CR, suggesting that CR may be protective against amyloid-related cognitive impairment. ANN NEUROL 2010;67:353,364 [source]

    Decreased cerebrospinal fluid A,42 correlates with brain atrophy in cognitively normal elderly,

    ANNALS OF NEUROLOGY, Issue 2 2009
    Anne M. Fagan PhD
    Objective For therapies for Alzheimer's disease (AD) to have the greatest impact, it will likely be necessary to treat individuals in the "preclinical" (presymptomatic) stage. Fluid and neuroimaging measures are being explored as possible biomarkers of AD pathology that could aid in identifying individuals in this stage to target them for clinical trials and to direct and monitor therapy. The objective of this study was to determine whether cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers for AD suggest the presence of brain damage in the preclinical stage of AD. Methods We investigated the relation between structural neuroimaging measures (whole-brain volume) and levels of CSF amyloid-, (A,)40, A,42, tau, and phosphorylated tau181 (ptau181), and plasma A,40 and A,42 in well-characterized research subjects with very mild and mild dementia of the Alzheimer type (n = 29) and age-matched, cognitively normal control subjects (n = 69). Results Levels of CSF tau and ptau181, but not A,42, correlated inversely with whole-brain volume in very mild and mild dementia of the Alzheimer type, whereas levels of CSF A,42, but not tau or ptau181, were positively correlated with whole-brain volume in nondemented control subjects. Interpretation Reduction in CSF A,42, likely reflecting A, aggregation in the brain, is associated with brain atrophy in the preclinical phase of AD. This suggests that there is toxicity associated with A, aggregation before the onset of clinically detectable disease. Increases in CSF tau (and ptau181) are later events that correlate with further structural damage and occur with clinical onset and progression. Ann Neurol 2009;65:176,183 [source]

    Cerebrospinal fluid sulfatide is decreased in subjects with incipient dementia

    ANNALS OF NEUROLOGY, Issue 1 2003
    Xianlin Han PhD
    We recently noted a profound decline in brain sulfatides (ST) in subjects who died with incipient dementia due to Alzheimer's disease. Herein, we measured ST levels in cerebrospinal fluid in cognitively normal elderly and in subjects with mild cognitive impairment due to incipient demenia of the Alzheimer type. There was a significant decrease in cerebrospinal fluid ST and in the ST to phosphatidylinositol ratio in MCI subjects. The ST to phosphatidylinositol ratio accurately differentiated very mildly impaired subjects from controls on an individual basis. The cerebrospinal fluid ST to phosphatidylinositol ratio may be a very useful biomarker for the earliest clinical stage of Alzheimer's disease. Ann Neurol 2003;54:115,119 [source]