Brain atrophy is already evident in patients with pre diabetes – The Maastricht Study

Posted on October 4, 2016 by Maurice Preter MD

Brain atrophy is already evident in patients with pre diabetes – The Maastricht Study

This is part of a big, evolving story.

http://www.easdvirtualmeeting.org/resources/prediabetes-is-associated-with-white-matter-atrophy-the-maastricht-study-2c1c6857-f202-41a1-bf12-7b7e0c67acea

Screen Shot 2016-10-04 at 10.56.11Screen Shot 2016-10-04 at 10.56.16Screen Shot 2016-10-04 at 10.56.32Screen Shot 2016-10-04 at 10.56.38Screen Shot 2016-10-04 at 10.56.49

 

See also, the recent NYT article:

How the Sugar Industry Shifted Blame to Fat

 

Posted in Aging, China, dietary, Events, Fifth Avenue Concierge Medicine, Forensic Neuropsychiatry, Health, keto, News, Psychiatry/Neurology | Tagged |

Multimodal randomized Functional MR imaging of the effects of Methylene Blue in the human Brain

Posted on July 8, 2016 by Maurice Preter MD

Multimodal randomized Functional MR imaging of the effects of Methylene Blue in the human Brain

A new treatment for short-term memory loss? Or radiological gadgetry?

Purpose

To investigate the sustained-attention and memory-enhancing neural correlates of the oral administration of methylene blue in the healthy human brain.

Materials and Methods

The institutional review board approved this prospective, HIPAA-compliant, randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled clinical trial, and all patients provided informed consent. Twenty-six subjects (age range, 22–62 years) were enrolled. Functional magnetic resonance (MR) imaging was performed with a psychomotor vigilance task (sustained attention) and delayed match-to-sample tasks (short-term memory) before and 1 hour after administration of low-dose methylene blue or a placebo. Cerebrovascular reactivity effects were also measured with the carbon dioxide challenge, in which a 2 × 2 repeated-measures analysis of variance was performed with a drug (methylene blue vs placebo) and time (before vs after administration of the drug) as factors to assess drug × time between group interactions. Multiple comparison correction was applied, with cluster-corrected P < .05 indicating a significant difference.

Results

Administration of methylene blue increased response in the bilateral insular cortex during a psychomotor vigilance task (Z = 2.9–3.4, P= .01–.008) and functional MR imaging response during a short-term memory task involving the prefrontal, parietal, and occipital cortex (Z = 2.9–4.2, P = .03–.0003). Methylene blue was also associated with a 7% increase in correct responses during memory retrieval (P = .01).

Conclusion

Low-dose methylene blue can increase functional MR imaging activity during sustained attention and short-term memory tasks and enhance memory retrieval.

Link: http://pubs.rsna.org/doi/abs/10.1148/radiol.2016152893

 

Posted in Aging, Events, Fifth Avenue Concierge Medicine, Forensic Neuropsychiatry, Health, keto, News, Psychiatry/Neurology | Tagged , , |

Arthritis and suicide attempts: findings from a large nationally representative Canadian survey

Posted on July 8, 2016 by Maurice Preter MD

Arthritis and suicide attempts: findings from a large nationally representative Canadian survey

The objectives of this study were (1) to determine the odds of suicide attempts among those with arthritis compared with those without and to see what factors attenuate this association and (2) to identify which factors are associated with suicide attempts among adults with arthritis. Secondary data analysis of the nationally representative 2012 Canadian Community Health Survey-Mental Health (CCHS-MH) was performed. For objective 1, those with and without arthritis were included (n = 21,744). For objective 2, only individuals who had arthritis (n = 4885) were included. A series of binary logistic regression analyses of suicide attempts were conducted for each objective, with adjustments for socio-demographics, childhood adversities, lifetime mental health and chronic pain. After full adjustment for the above listed variables, the odds of suicide attempts among adults with arthritis were 1.46. Among those with arthritis, early adversities alone explained 24 % of the variability in suicide attempts. After full adjustment, the odds of suicide attempts among those with arthritis were significantly higher among those who had experienced childhood sexual abuse (OR = 3.77), chronic parental domestic violence (OR = 3.97) or childhood physical abuse (1.82), those who had ever been addicted to drugs or alcohol (OR = 1.76) and ever had a depressive disorder (OR = 3.22) or an anxiety disorder (OR = 2.34) and those who were currently in chronic pain (OR = 1.50). Younger adults with arthritis were more likely to report having attempted suicide. Future prospective research is needed to uncover plausible mechanisms through which arthritis and suicide attempts are linked.

Keywords

Suicide attempt Pain Arthritis

Link: http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00296-016-3498-z
Posted in epigenetics, Fifth Avenue Concierge Medicine, Forensic Neuropsychiatry, Health, keto, News, Psychiatry/Neurology | Tagged , , , |

Just Published: Panic Disorder: Neurobiological and Treatment Aspects 1st ed. 2016 Edition

Posted on June 7, 2016 by Maurice Preter MD

I am very pleased that this interesting collaborative project has come to fruition. Great introductory chapter by Nardi and Freire, numerous excellent contributions, and a recap of our panic theory and data showing that early childhood loss causes permanent changes in the endogenous opioid system of asymptomatic, clinically healthy adults. 

 

9783319125374

Posted in epigenetics, Events, Fifth Avenue Concierge Medicine, Health, keto, News, Psychiatry/Neurology |

Periodontitis and Cognitive Decline in Alzheimer’s Disease

Posted on March 23, 2016 by Maurice Preter MD

Periodontitis and Cognitive Decline in Alzheimer’s Disease

http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0151081#sec013

Mark Ide, Marina Harris, Annette Stevens, Rebecca Sussams, Viv Hopkins, David Culliford, James Fuller, Paul Ibbett, Rachel Raybould, Rhodri Thomas, Ursula Puenter, Jessica Teeling ,V. Hugh Perry, Clive Holmes

Published: March 10, 2016

DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0151081

Abstract

Periodontitis is common in the elderly and may become more common in Alzheimer’s disease because of a reduced ability to take care of oral hygiene as the disease progresses. Elevated antibodies to periodontal bacteria are associated with an increased systemic pro-inflammatory state. Elsewhere raised serum pro-inflammatory cytokines have been associated with an increased rate of cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s disease. We hypothesized that periodontitis would be associated with increased dementia severity and a more rapid cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s disease. We aimed to determine if periodontitis in Alzheimer’s disease is associated with both increased dementia severity and cognitive decline, and an increased systemic pro inflammatory state. In a six month observational cohort study 60 community dwelling participants with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s Disease were cognitively assessed and a blood sample taken for systemic inflammatory markers. Dental health was assessed by a dental hygienist, blind to cognitive outcomes. All assessments were repeated at six months. The presence of periodontitis at baseline was not related to baseline cognitive state but was associated with a six fold increase in the rate of cognitive decline as assessed by the ADAS-cog over a six month follow up period. Periodontitis at baseline was associated with a relative increase in the pro-inflammatory state over the six month follow up period. Our data showed that periodontitis is associated with an increase in cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s Disease, independent to baseline cognitive state, which may be mediated through effects on systemic inflammation.

Posted in Aging, epigenetics, Events, Fifth Avenue Concierge Medicine, Health, keto, News, Psychiatry/Neurology | Tagged , , , |