Prevention of hip fractures in older adults residing in long-term care facilities with a hip airbag: a retrospective pilot study.

Background: Hip and pelvic fractures do commonly occur among older adults. This pilot study aimed to evaluate the effect of introduction of the WOLK hip airbag on the incidence of hip fractures.

Methods: A retrospective study was performed among 969 participants residing within 11 long-term care facilities for older patients, belonging to one large healthcare organization in The Netherlands.

Systemic inflammatory markers in relation to cognitive function and measures of brain atrophy: a Mendelian randomization study.

Observational studies have implied associations between multiple cytokines and cognitive decline, anti-inflammatory drugs however did not yield any protective effects on cognitive decline. We aimed to assess the associations of systemic inflammation, as measured by multiple cytokine and growth factor, with cognitive performance and brain atrophy using two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR). Independent genetic instruments (p < 5e - 8 and p < 5e - 6) for 41 systemic inflammatory markers were retrieved from a genome-wide association study conducted in 8293 Finnish participants.

The Association between Habitual Sleep Duration and Sleep Quality with Glycemic Traits: Assessment by Cross-Sectional and Mendelian Randomization Analyses.

Evidence on whether habitual sleep duration and sleep quality are associated with increased insulin resistance is inconsistent. Here, we investigated the associations between different measures of habitual sleep with glycemic traits through cross-sectional and Mendelian randomization (MR) analyses. We assessed the associations of sleep duration and sleep quality with glycemic traits using multivariable linear regression models adjusted for potential confounders in 4672 middle-aged (45-65 years; 48% men) nondiabetic participants of the Netherlands Epidemiology of Obesity (NEO) study.

Associations of sleep duration and quality with serum and hepatic lipids: The Netherlands Epidemiology of Obesity Study.

Short and long sleep duration and poor sleep quality may affect serum and hepatic lipid content, but available evidence is inconsistent. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the associations of sleep duration and quality with serum and hepatic lipid content in a large population-based cohort of middle-aged individuals. The present cross-sectional study was embedded in the Netherlands Epidemiology of Obesity (NEO) study and consisted of 4260 participants (mean age, 55 years; proportion men, 46%) not using lipid-lowering agents.

Thyroid status and mortality in nonagenarians from long-lived families and the general population.

The relationship between thyroid status and longevity has been investigated extensively. However, data on thyroid status and survival in old age is scarce. In this study we investigated associations of different parameters of thyroid status with mortality in nonagenarians, and whether these associations were different in nonagenarians from long-lived families than in nonagenarians from the general population.

Left Ventricular Hypertrophy and Cognitive Decline in Old Age.

Background: Patients with advanced heart failure run a greater risk of dementia. Whether early cardiac structural changes also associate with cognitive decline is yet to be determined.

Objective: We tested whether left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) derived from electrocardiogram associates with cognitive decline in older subjects at risk of cardiovascular disease.

Assessment of maximal handgrip strength: how many attempts are needed?

Background: Handgrip strength (HGS) is used to identify individuals with low muscle strength (dynapenia). The influence of the number of attempts on maximal HGS is not yet known and may differ depending on age and health status. This study aimed to assess how many attempts of HGS are required to obtain maximal HGS.

Growth hormone secretion is diminished and tightly controlled in humans enriched for familial longevity.

Reduced growth hormone (GH) signaling has been consistently associated with increased health and lifespan in various mouse models. Here, we assessed GH secretion and its control in relation with human familial longevity. We frequently sampled blood over 24 h in 19 middle-aged offspring of long-living families from the Leiden Longevity Study together with 18 of their partners as controls.

Prediction of 90-day mortality in older patients after discharge from an emergency department: a retrospective follow-up study.

Background: Older people frequently attend the emergency department (ED) and have a high risk of poor outcome as compared to their younger counterparts. Our aim was to study routinely collected clinical parameters as predictors of 90-day mortality in older patients attending our ED.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective follow-up study at the Leiden University Medical Center (The Netherlands) among patients aged 70 years or older attending the ED in 2012.

The development, implementation and evaluation of a transitional care programme to improve outcomes of frail older patients after hospitalisation.

Background: fragmented healthcare systems are poorly suited to treat the increasing number of older patients with multimorbidity.

Objective: to report on the development, implementation and evaluation of a regional transitional care programme, aimed at improving the recovery rate of frail hospitalised older patients.

Methods: the programme was drafted in co-creation with organisations representing older adults, care providers and knowledge institutes.

Common Ground? The Concordance of Sarcopenia and Frailty Definitions.

Objectives: This study aimed to explore the concordance between definitions of sarcopenia and frailty in a clinically relevant population of geriatric outpatients.

Design: Data were retrieved from a cross-sectional study.

Setting: The study was performed in a geriatric outpatient clinic of a middle-sized teaching hospital.

The Association between Parameters of Malnutrition and Diagnostic Measures of Sarcopenia in Geriatric Outpatients.

Objectives: Diagnostic criteria for sarcopenia include measures of muscle mass, muscle strength and physical performance. Consensus on the definition of sarcopenia has not been reached yet. To improve insight into the most clinically valid definition of sarcopenia, this study aimed to compare the association between parameters of malnutrition, as a risk factor in sarcopenia, and diagnostic measures of sarcopenia in geriatric outpatients.

The Impact of Different Diagnostic Criteria on the Prevalence of Sarcopenia in Healthy Elderly Participants and Geriatric Outpatients.

Background: A consensus on the diagnostic criteria for sarcopenia, a common syndrome in the elderly, has not been reached yet. Prevalence rates vary between studies due to the use of different criteria encompassing different measures, correction factors and cutoff points.

Objective: This study compared prevalence rates of sarcopenia using nine sets of diagnostic criteria applied in two different elderly populations.

Cortical phase changes measured using 7-T MRI in subjects with subjective cognitive impairment, and their association with cognitive function.

Studies have suggested that, in subjects with subjective cognitive impairment (SCI), Alzheimer's disease (AD)-like changes may occur in the brain. Recently, an in vivo study has indicated the potential of ultra-high-field MRI to visualize amyloid-beta (Aβ)-associated changes in the cortex in patients with AD, manifested by a phase shift on T2 *-weighted MRI scans. The main aim of this study was to investigate whether cortical phase shifts on T2 *-weighted images at 7 T in subjects with SCI can be detected, possibly implicating the deposition of Aβ plaques and associated iron.

Optimal screening for increased risk for adverse outcomes in hospitalised older adults.

Background: Screening for frailty might help to prevent adverse outcomes in hospitalised older adults.

Objective: To identify the most predictive and efficient screening tool for frailty.

Design And Setting: Two consecutive observational prospective cohorts in four hospitals in the Netherlands.

Blood pressure associates with standing balance in elderly outpatients.

Objectives: Assessment of the association of blood pressure measurements in supine and standing position after a postural change, as a proxy for blood pressure regulation, with standing balance in a clinically relevant cohort of elderly, is of special interest as blood pressure may be important to identify patients at risk of having impaired standing balance in routine geriatric assessment.

Materials And Methods: In a cross-sectional cohort study, 197 community-dwelling elderly referred to a geriatric outpatient clinic of a middle-sized teaching hospital were included. Blood pressure was measured intermittently (n = 197) and continuously (subsample, n = 58) before and after a controlled postural change from supine to standing position.

Low cognitive status is associated with a lower ability to maintain standing balance in elderly outpatients.

Background: Evidence is emerging that cognitive performance is involved in maintaining balance and thereby involved in falls in the elderly.

Objective: To investigate the association of cognitive status with measures of standing balance in elderly outpatients.

Methods: In a cross-sectional study, 197 community-dwelling elderly [mean age (SD) 81.

7T T₂*-weighted magnetic resonance imaging reveals cortical phase differences between early- and late-onset Alzheimer's disease.

The aim of this study is to explore regional iron-related differences in the cerebral cortex, indicative of Alzheimer's disease pathology, between early- and late-onset Alzheimer's disease (EOAD, LOAD, respectively) patients using 7T magnetic resonance phase images. High-resolution T2(∗)-weighted scans were acquired in 12 EOAD patients and 17 LOAD patients with mild to moderate disease and 27 healthy elderly control subjects. Lobar peak-to-peak phase shifts and regional mean phase contrasts were computed.

Increased number of microinfarcts in Alzheimer disease at 7-T MR imaging.

Purpose: To assess the prevalence and number of cortical microinfarcts in patients with Alzheimer disease (AD) by using a 7-T magnetic resonance (MR) imaging system, to assess the independent association of cortical microinfarcts with cognitive dysfunction, and to investigate potential confounding effects of the coexisting presence of cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA).

Materials And Methods: The local institutional review board approved this study. In all cases, informed consent was obtained.

Muscle strength rather than muscle mass is associated with standing balance in elderly outpatients.

Objectives: Assessment of the association of muscle characteristics with standing balance is of special interest, as muscles are a target for potential intervention (ie, by strength training).

Design: Cross-sectional study.

Setting: Geriatric outpatient clinic.

Total joint replacement in the past does not relate to a deteriorated functional level and health status in the oldest old.

Total hip or knee replacement is effective in improving joint function, quality of life, and pain reduction. The oldest old population with joint replacements (TJR) is underrepresented in current literature. We compared health-related and functional characteristics of oldest olds with and without TJR.

[Comprehensive geriatric assessment: unfeasible and undesirable].

The new clinical practice guideline on Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment (CGA) issued by the Dutch Geriatrics Society aims to optimise the diagnostic strategy in secondary care geriatric patients in order to achieve a treatment plan that will retain self-reliance and quality of life of these patients for as long as possible. An extensive listing of all somatic, psychological and social factors that could affect the health and welfare of all frail patients forms the basis of this guideline. This is actually an essential goal for any patient, regardless of age and condition.

Prenatal famine exposure and cognition at age 59 years.

Background: Despite the perceived importance of early life nutrition for mental development, few studies have related gestational undernutrition to later-life cognitive functioning. We investigated the consequences of gestational exposure to the Dutch famine of 1944-45 for cognitive functioning at the age of 59 years.

Methods: We recruited men and women who were (i) born in birth clinics in Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Leiden, between January 1945 and March 1946, whose mothers experienced famine during or immediately preceding pregnancy (n = 354); (ii) born in the same three institutions during 1943 and 1947, whose mothers did not experience famine during this pregnancy (n = 292); or (iii) same-sex siblings of those in the first two categories (n = 311).