Total serum homocysteine levels do not identify cognitive dysfunction in multimorbid elderly patients

Relationship between homocysteine and cognitive impairment in elderly patients with chronic kidney disease

<b>Aim:</b> To investigate the association of serum homocysteine levels with cognitive function in elderly patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD).<br /> <b>Methods:</b> A case-control study on 200 elderlies &gt;60 years who were distributed into two groups: group 1 (cases): 100 patients with CKD and group 2 (controls): 100 subjects who do not have CKD. All subjects undergo comprehensive geriatric assessment, cognitive assessment, and biochemical investigations including serum homocysteine.<br /> <b>Results:</b> The odds ratio of having impaired clinical dementia rating scores is 3.1 for CKD cases compared to controls. CKD patients have almost 3 times the risk of having cognitive impairment [OR=3.1; 95% CI (1.6-6.0)]. The mean serum homocysteine (18.2 μmol/L) among CKD showed a highly statistically significance compared to controls (10.1 μmol/L). Performance of multiple cognitive domains was reduced in association with elevated homocysteine levels. By using linear regression model for the factors independently related to cognitive performance among studied CKD cases, it was found that diabetes mellitus, educational level, age, and serum homocysteine level were strongly associated with consortium to establish a registry for Alzheimer’s disease neuropsychological battery total scores. Respecting the percentage variance explained by each significant variable (R²), serum homocysteine level is an independent significant variable predictor with the total scores.<br /> <b>Conclusion:</b> The main features of cognitive impairment in CKD patients are executive dysfunction and memory impairment. Poor cognitive function in CKD patients was related with a higher homocysteine level independently.

Blood total antioxidant status is associated with cortical glucose uptake and factors related to accelerated aging

Identifying cerebral vulnerability in late life is of paramount importance to prevent pathological trajectories of aging before the onset of symptoms. Considerable evidence suggests that impaired antioxidant mechanisms are a fingerprint of aging-related conditions, but there is a lack of human research linking total antioxidant capacity (TAC) measured in peripheral blood to in vivo brain changes and other factors featuring accelerated aging. To address this issue, we have assessed in cognitively normal elderly subjects (N = 100) correlations between serum TAC, using the oxygen radical absorbance capacity assay, surface-based cortical thickness, surface-based 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography cortical uptake, and different factors associated with accelerated aging [i.e., serum homocysteine (HCY), self-reported memory problems, and self-reported patterns of physical activity]. While no relationship was observed between serum TAC and variations in cortical thickness, decreased TAC level was significantly associated with lower FDG uptake in temporal lobes bilaterally. Remarkably, decreased TAC level was linked to increased HCY concentrations, more subjective memory complaints, and lower frequency of physical activity. Overall, our results suggest that decreased serum TAC level may be helpful to detect vulnerable trajectories of aging.

Homocysteine and cognition: A systematic review of 111 studies

BACKGROUND

Elevated plasma homocysteine ​​(Hcy) levels have been associated with cognitive dysfunction in a wide range of conditions. The aim of this review is to establish which cognitive domains and populations are the most affected.

METHODS

We systematically review the literature and consider all articles that showed any relationship between plasma Hcy levels and scores achieved on cognitive performance tests in both, the general population and patients suffering from central nervous system disorders and other diseases. When effect sizes were available and combinable, several meta-analyses were performed.

RESULTS

We found 111 pertinent articles. There were 24 cohort studies, 18 randomized trials, 21 case-control studies, and 48 cross-sectional studies. This review reveals a positive trend between cognitive decline and increased plasma Hcy concentrations in general population and in patients with cognitive impairments. Results from the meta-analyses also confirm this trend. Treatment with vitamin supplementation fails to show a reduction in cognitive decline.

DISCUSSION

Further investigations are warranted to clarify this relationship. Earlier detection of the elevated Hcy levels may be an effective intervention to prevent cognitive impairment and dementia.

Mini nutritional assessment

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

To summarize recent evidences and advances on the implementation and the use of the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA).

RECENT FINDINGS

Despite being introduced and validated for clinical use about 20 years ago, the MNA has recently received new attention in order to more widely disseminate among healthcare professionals the practice of a systematic nutritional screening and assessment of the old patient. Particularly, the structure has been implemented to face the difficulties in having the patients contributing to the assessment and to reduce further the time required to complete the evaluation. Recent data also confirm that in older populations prevalence of malnutrition by this tool is associated with the level of dependence. The rationale of nutritional assessment is to identify patients candidate to nutritional support. However, the sensitivity of the MNA is still debated because it has been associated with a high-risk 'overdiagnosis' and the advantages of a positive screening need to be assessed both in terms of outcome and money saving.

SUMMARY

The MNA is a simple and highly sensitive tool for nutritional screening and assessment. The large mass of data collected and the diffusion among healthcare professionals clearly support its use. However, the cost-effectiveness of interventions based on its scoring deserves investigation.

WITHDRAWN: Analysis of serum levels of homocysteine and oxidative stress markers in patients with Alzheimer disease

This article has been withdrawn at the request of the author(s) and/or editor. The Publisher apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause. The full Elsevier Policy on Article Withdrawal can be found at http://www.elsevier.com/locate/withdrawalpolicy.