Reduced executive functioning is associated with poorer outcome in cardiac rehabilitation.

Patients with cardiovascular disease and cognitive impairment show reduced adherence to treatment. No study has examined whether cognitive impairment may also predict reduced benefit from cardiac rehabilitation (CR). It appears that cognitively impaired patients may exhibit poorer adherence to CR and limited gains in cardiovascular fitness and/or quality of life (QOL).

P-selectin 1087G/A polymorphism is associated with neuropsychological test performance in older adults with cardiovascular disease.

Background And Purpose: There is growing evidence that the cell adhesion molecule P-selectin (SELP) contributes to the adverse vascular processes that promote cognitive impairment in individuals with cardiovascular disease. Previous research has shown that SELP genotypes moderate circulating levels of P-selectin and that patients undergoing coronary artery bypass graft with the SELP 1087A allele were less likely to show postoperative cognitive decline and more likely to exhibit lower levels of C-reactive protein than noncarriers. Thus, we expected that carriers of the 1087A allele (n=43) would exhibit better cognitive functioning than persons with 2 1087G alleles (n=77) and that C-reactive protein levels would be important for this relationship.