Re: CABG Alzhelimer's Study


"William Wagner" <PainInAss__williamwag@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:PainInAss__williamwag-5E3DC6.04592725082005@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> http://www.eurekalert.org/
>
>
> Public release date: 25-Aug-2005
> [ Print Article | E-mail Article | Close Window ]
>
> Contact: Kristen Perfetuo
> kristen.perfetuo@xxxxxxx
> 617-638-8491
> Case Western Reserve University
>
> New research suggests heart bypass surgery increases risk of Alzheimer's
> disease
> Researchers say stress and trauma of surgery may be to blame
> Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) researchers have discovered
> that patients who have either coronary artery bypass graft surgery or
> coronary angioplasty are at an increased risk of developing Alzheimer's
> disease.
> The research, which appears in the current issue of the Journal of
> Alzheimer's Disease (http://www.j-alz.com), pinpoints stress and trauma
> of the surgery as the major cause for the increased risk.
> Led by Benjamin Wolozin, MD, PhD, professor of pharmacology at BUSM,
> researchers compared 5,216 people who underwent coronary artery bypass
> graft surgery (CABG) and 3,954 people who had a percutaneous
> transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) in 1996 and 1997. Over the
> course of five years, 78 of the patients who had bypass surgery and 41
> of those who had angioplasty developed Alzheimer's disease.
> "The coronary bypass patients had a 70 percent increased risk of
> developing Alzheimer's disease," said Wolozin, co-author of the study.
> "This increased incidence of neurocognitive degeneration associated with
> heart bypass surgery provides further incentive for more studies to
> better characterize the risks of cardiac surgery on the brain."
> According to Wolozin, previous studies show some heart surgery patients
> experience memory problems immediately following the procedure. However,
> at a one-year follow-up most patients regain cognitive function.
> Researchers believe this early cognitive impairment is an immediate
> reaction to the stress of surgery.
> "Heart bypass surgery represents a traumatic insult to the brain,
> particularly by reducing oxygen supply to the brain and increasing the
> stress response," said Wolozin.
> "We believe that the compensation that occurs by one year masks an
> underlying deficit in the central nervous system caused by the heart
> surgery. As individuals age, this underlying deficit might exacerbate
> progressive cognitive deficits associated with mild cognitive
> impairment, a precursory phase before diagnosis of Alzheimer's."
> Wolozin and his researchers are currently working with researchers from
> the Framingham Heart Study to determine if these same observations can
> be duplicated in their studies.
> "If these observations are confirmed, there are measures that can be
> taken to protect the brain during heart bypass surgery," explained
> Wolozin. "Antioxidants might offer some protection, as well as
> memantine, a medication that helps slow the progression of Alzheimer's
> disease. There may also be other neuroprotective agents still in
> development that could shield the brain from cognitive degeneration
> during and following surgery."
>
Wolzen makes it sound like he is inventing the wheel. No one needs
confirmation of Alzeimers risk to do their best to protect the brain during
CABG. The term "pumphead" has been long used to informally identify patients
with cognitive problems following open heart surgery. For a while the pump
was believed to be the culprit but it happens with beating heart CABG. Not
sure if there is a frequency change.

Last I heard it was a micro-emboli cascade into the small brain arteries,
but the root cause is a shifting target.


.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: CABG Alzhelimers Study
    ... > New research suggests heart bypass surgery increases risk of Alzheimer's ... > disease. ...
    (sci.med.cardiology)
  • Re: CABG Alzhelimers Study
    ... > New research suggests heart bypass surgery increases risk of Alzheimer's ... > disease. ...
    (sci.med.cardiology)
  • CABG Alzhelimers Study
    ... New research suggests heart bypass surgery increases risk of Alzheimer's ... disease. ... Electronic access to all journals is now available. ...
    (sci.med.cardiology)
  • Re: CABG Alzhelimers Study
    ... >> New research suggests heart bypass surgery increases risk of Alzheimer's ... >> "Heart bypass surgery represents a traumatic insult to the brain, ...
    (sci.med.cardiology)
  • ! Teddys Brain Hard to Find Took Surgeons Over 3 Hours!
    ... Kennedy Out of 'Successful' Brain Surgery ... a lethal type of brain tumor. ...
    (alt.politics)