Related Experiment Videos
[Cardiac function in elderly patients with dementia]
Y Kobayashi1, H Hanyu, T Sugiyama
1Department of Geriatric Medicine, Tokyo Medical College.
Insights
Cardiac function is often impaired in elderly dementia patients, particularly those with cerebrovascular dementia (CVD) and Binswanger-type dementia (BD). Echocardiography revealed reduced left ventricular function, indicating latent cardiac issues crucial for prognosis.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Neurology
- Geriatrics
Context:
- Cardiac function evaluation is vital for elderly patient prognosis.
- Dementia pathology varies by type, necessitating specific diagnostic approaches.
- Echocardiography is a key tool for assessing cardiac health.
Purpose:
- To evaluate cardiac function in elderly patients with different types of dementia using echocardiography.
- To compare cardiac function metrics between Binswanger-type dementia (BD), other cerebrovascular dementia (VD), senile dementia of Alzheimer-type (SDAT), and controls.
Summary:
- Echocardiography assessed left ventricular function (LVDd, LVDs, FS, EF, CO) in 11 BD, 12 VD, 16 SDAT patients, and 15 controls.
- Significantly larger LVDd and LVDs were observed in the BD group compared to controls and other dementia types.
- Reduced fractional shortening (FS) and ejection fraction (EF) were noted in BD and VD groups, indicating latent left ventricular hypofunction.
Impact:
- Findings highlight latent left ventricular hypofunction in patients with cerebrovascular dementia, especially BD.
- This cardiac dysfunction is important for predicting prognosis in dementia patients.
- Results can inform targeted treatment and prevention strategies for dementia patients with cardiac comorbidities.
Abstract:
Evaluation of cardiac function is very important in elderly patients because it is closely related to the prognosis. Appropriate evaluation is especially important to treat and prevent the progression of dementia since its pathology differs greatly depending on type. In the present study, we evaluated the cardiac function of patients with senile dementia using echocardiography. Included in the present study were 11 patients with Binswanger-type dementia (BD), 12 with cerebrovascular dementia (VD) of other types, 16 with senile dementia of Alzheimer-type (SDAT) and 15 controls. Left ventricular function was assessed by Mode M based on left ventricular end-diastolic dimension (LVDd), left ventricular end-systolic dimension (LVDs), left ventricular dimension shortening (FS), left ventricular ejection fraction (EF) and cardiac output (CO). LVDd was significantly larger in the BD group than in the control, and LVDs was also significantly larger in the BD group than in the three other groups. FS was significantly decreased in the BD group compared to the SDAT and controls. FS was also significantly decreased in the VD group compared to the control. EF was significantly decreased in the BD group compared to the three other groups, and it was also significantly decreased in the VD group compared to the controls. There was no significant inter-group difference in SV or CO. FS and EF were found to be decreased in patients with cerebrovascular dementia, especially BD, indicating the presence of latent left ventricular hypofunction in these patients. This finding is important in predicting the prognosis of patients and conducting treatment and prevention.