title: [Correlation between cognitive impairment and cardiovascular risk factors in dialysis vs. non-dialysis elderly patients].
abstract: The emergence or worsening of cognitive impairment is a consequence of the aging process. Geriatric depression occurs due to cognitive impairment associated with aging, and as it develops, it also affects the cognitive function.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To analyze retrospectively over a period of 6 months the clinical parameters and biological differences of the depression and cognitive impairment in dialyzed and non-dialyzed elderly patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  There were 63 patients over 65 years included in the study (29 patients admitted to the Geriatric Department of the "C. I. Parhon" Hospital, Iaşi, and 34 patients that were in the renal dialysis program into the Transplant Centre Iaşi) that were evaluated in terms of cognitive status and level of depression through the following tests: MMSE (the cognitive impairment severity assessment), the Geriatric Depression Score, the modified Hachinski Ischemic Score (for vascular dementia). The resulting data were interpreted statistically by SPSS 12.0 software and the results were evaluated by t- Student test (p <0.05).
  
  
  RESULTS
  The average age was 73.2 + / -6.1 for non-dialyzed patients group and 69.8 +/- 4.6 for dialyzed group. Body mass index (BMI), hemoglobin, glucose and lipids were similar for both categories of patients. In the dialyzed group, depression is correlated with an elevated blood triglycerides, and the vascular dementia is correlated with glucose levels (p=0.04). Cognitive impairment is more accentuated in the dialyzed group compared to the non dialyzed one.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Elderly dialyzed people are likely to develop more frequently and more severely vascular dementia than non-dialyzed old people, probably in the context of the factors that are related with dialysis itself.
authors.affiliation: Facultatea de Medicină, Universitatea de Medicină şi Farmacie "Gr. T. Popa" Iaşi.
authors.forename: Anca Iuliana
authors.initials: AI
authors.lastname: Moroşanu
authors.forename: Ioana Dana
authors.initials: ID
authors.lastname: Alexa
authors.forename: Magda
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bădescu
authors.forename: Adina Carmen
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Ilie
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000209:etiology; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology*; D015140:Dementia, Vascular / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology*; D003863:Depression / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007297:Inpatients; D008297:Male; D006435:Renal Dialysis / Q000009:adverse effects*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D012383:Romania