Publications by authors named "Helena Cortes-Flores"

Background: Neuropsychiatric disorders including depression, insomnia, epilepsy, schizophrenia, and attention-deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have been associated with a neurodegenerative process and linked to increased risk for Alzheimer's Disease (AD). Because of the shared biological mechanisms of AD and neuropsychiatric disorders, we hypothesized that pharmacologic treatment for neuropsychiatric disorders could impact the risk for AD. CNS drugs that are first-line therapies for neuropsychiatric disorders (including antidepressants, sedatives, anticonvulsants, antipsychotics, and stimulants) were investigated for impact on AD incidence.

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Objective: As neuropsychiatric conditions can increase the risk of age-related neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs), the impact of CNS-active drugs on the risk of developing Alzheimer's Disease (AD), non-AD dementia, Multiple Sclerosis (MS), Parkinson's Disease (PD) and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) was investigated.

Research Design And Methods: A retrospective cohort analysis of a medical claims dataset over a 10 year span was conducted in patients aged 60 years or older. Participants were propensity score matched for comorbidity severity and demographic parameters.

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Worldwide, an ever-increasing number of women are prescribed estrogen-modulating therapies (EMTs) for the treatment of breast cancer. In parallel, aging of the global population of women will contribute to risk of both breast cancer and Alzheimer's disease. To address the impact of anti-estrogen therapies on risk of Alzheimer's and neural function, we conducted medical informatic and molecular pharmacology analyses to determine the impact of EMTs on risk of Alzheimer's followed by determination of EMT estrogenic mechanisms of action in neurons.

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