title: Dementia With Lew Body: Impacts of Surgery.
abstract: Patients who have dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and undergo surgery may develop aggravated postoperative cognitive dysfunction or postoperative delirium. Many patients with DLB respond poorly to surgery and anesthesia, and their conditions may worsen if they have other medical complications along with dementia. They may also face high risk of prolonged hospital stay, increased medical problems and/or mortality, causing significant physical, psychosocial, and financial burdens on individuals, family members, and society. Anesthesia, pain medications, old age, and surgery-related stresses are usually held responsible for the complications; however, the exact causes are still not fully understood. Literature on surgery-related complications for patients with DLB appears to be inadequate, and hence the topic merits detailed and systematic research. This article reviews postoperative complications and various surgery-related risk factors for DLB in light of other dementias such as Alzheimer's disease, as their neuropathologic features overlap with those of DLB.
authors.affiliation: Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA farzana.pervin@drexelmed.edu.
authors.forename: Farzana
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Pervin
authors.affiliation: Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Carolyn
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Edwards
authors.affiliation: Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Carol F
authors.initials: CF
authors.lastname: Lippa
mesh_terms: D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000503:physiopathology*; D000777:Anesthetics / Q000009:adverse effects*; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000209:etiology; D003693:Delirium / Q000209:etiology; D003704:Dementia / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D020961:Lewy Body Disease / Q000235:genetics / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000523:psychology; D013514:Surgical Procedures, Operative
chemical_list: D000777:Anesthetics
keywords: Alzheimer’s disease; Lewy body dementia; anesthesia; delirium; postoperative cognitive dysfunction; surgery