Prehabilitative exercise hastens recovery from isoflurane in diabetic and non-diabetic rats.

Diabetes has been demonstrated to be one of the strongest predictors of risk for postoperative delirium and functional decline in older patients undergoing surgery. Exercise is often prescribed as a treatment for diabetic patients and regular physical activity is hypothesized to decrease the risk of postoperative cognitive impairments. Prior studies suggest that anesthetic emergence trajectories and recovery are predictive of risk for later postoperative cognitive impairments.

Menopause exacerbates visual dysfunction in experimental glaucoma.

Glaucoma is the leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide. Recently, estrogen deficiencies caused by early menopause, alterations in estrogen signaling via mutations in estrogen receptors, and polymorphisms along estrogen metabolic pathways have all been linked to an increased risk of developing glaucoma. Here, we examined how menopause and age impact visual function and retinal structure in an experimental model of glaucoma.

Retinal Deficits Precede Cognitive and Motor Deficits in a Rat Model of Type II Diabetes.

Purpose: To investigate the temporal appearance of retinal, cognitive, and motor deficits in Goto-Kakizaki (GK) rats, a spontaneously occurring, polygenic model of type II diabetes. GK rats develop impaired insulin secretion at 2 weeks and fasting hyperglycemia at 4 weeks.

Methods: In male and female GK rats and Wistar controls, glucose tolerance test (hyperglycemia) and electroretinogram (ERG, retinal function) were performed at 4 and 8 weeks of age.