Age-related reduction of cerebral ischemic preconditioning: myth or reality?

Stroke is one of the leading causes of death in industrialized countries for people older than 65 years of age. The reasons are still unclear. A reduction of endogenous mechanisms against ischemic insults has been proposed to explain this phenomenon.

Role of ventricular rate response on dementia in cognitively impaired elderly subjects with atrial fibrillation: a 10-year study.

Background: The role of ventricular rate response (VRr) on the incidence of dementia in elderly subjects with cognitive impairment and atrial fibrillation (AF) is not known. Thus, we examined the ability of VRr to predict dementia in cognitively impaired elderly subjects with and without AF.

Methods: A total of 358 cognitively impaired elderly subjects (MMSE <24) with and without AF were stratified in low/high (<50/>90) and moderate (>50/<90 bpm) VRr.