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Stroke is a leading cause of disability and death among older people

People who experience memory loss or a decline in their thinking abilities may be at higher risk of stroke, regardless of whether they have been diagnosed with dementia...

This study, was published in the February 2, 2010, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

"Stroke is a leading cause of disability and death among older people, making early identification of people at high risk of stroke extremely important, so preventative measures can be taken," said study author Bernice Wiberg, MD, with Uppsala University in Sweden.

For the study, 930 men in Sweden around the age of 70 without a history of stroke participated in three mental tests.

Trail Making Test B

The first test, called the Trail Making Test A, measures attention and visual-motor abilities.

The second, the Trail Making Test B, measures the ability to execute and modify a plan.

The third, the Mini Mental State Examination, is commonly used by doctors to measure cognitive decline.

During a 13-year period, 166 men developed a stroke or transient ischemic attack, or TIA.

Brain infarction is the most common cause of stroke. Hemorrhage is another kind of stroke.

Brain infarction happened to 105 patients.

It causes tissue damage when the proper amount of blood does not reach the brain.

INDICATOR: Low Performers on Trail Making Test B

The study found that people who were among the bottom 25 percent of performers on the Trail Making Test B were three times more likely to have a stroke or a brain infarction compared to those who scored among the top 25 percent of performers on the test. The other two mental tests did not predict brain infarction or stroke.

Cognitive Decline May Predict Risk of Stroke

"Our results support the idea that cognitive decline regardless of whether a person has dementia may predict risk of stroke," said Wiberg. "The Trial Making Test B is a simple and cost-effective test that, with more research, could be used to identify those persons for whom stroke prevention measures should be considered."

The study was supported by the Medical Faculty at Uppsala University, the Swedish Stroke Association, Swedish Research Council, the Swedish Heart Lung Foundation, the Geriatric Fund and the Uppsala County Association Against Heart and Lung Diseases.

The American Academy of Neurology, an association of more than 22,000 neurologists and neuroscience professionals, is dedicated to promoting the highest quality patient-centered neurologic care. A neurologist is a doctor with specialized training in diagnosing, treating and managing disorders of the brain and nervous system such as multiple sclerosis, restless legs syndrome, Alzheimer's disease, narcolepsy and stroke.

For more information about the American Academy of Neurology, visit http://www.aan.com.

VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/AANChannel

UV-blocking contact lenses can reduce or eliminate the effects of the sun's harmful UV radiation.

Overexposure to UV radiation can lead to harmful changes in the cornea, conjunctiva and lens, including cataracts

According to the article, "Prevention of UV-Induced Damage to the Anterior Segment Using Class I UV Absorbing Hydrogel Contact Lenses" (http://bit.ly/5T2feA), overexposure to UV radiation can lead to harmful changes in the cornea, conjunctiva and lens, including cataracts, the most common cause of visual impairment around the globe.

Cataracts

According to the researchers, some estimates say that by the year 2050, there will be 167,000 to 830,000 more cases of cataracts.

Awareness of Eye Damage from UV Exposure

"Unfortunately, people are generally unaware of when their eyes are at greatest risk for damage from UV exposure," said vision researcher Heather Chandler, PhD, from Ohio State University's College of Optometry. "This research involving UV-absorbing contact lenses can provide another option for protection against the detrimental changes caused by UV."

The study exposed rabbits daily to the equivalent of about 16 hours of exposure to sunlight in humans -- enough to induce UV-associated corneal changes. The rabbits who wore UV-absorbing contact lenses (Senofilcon A) were not affected by the UV exposure.

Protection from Sunglasses or Hats

Chandler said wearing sunglasses or hats may not provide enough protection from the sun, and adding adequate UV protection to contact lenses may be a practical solution to the problems caused by too much exposure.

She also said that since this study focused exclusively on acute UV exposure, further long-term studies are needed to determine the efficiency of wearing the UV-absorbing contacts over a longer time period.

Use of UV-absorbing contact lenses

"Not all contact lenses offer UV protection, and, of those that do, not all provide similar absorption levels," Chandler said. "This research will help patients and doctors consider appropriate UV-blocking contact lenses for those who need vision correction, to fill in some of the UV blocking gaps left by more traditional means. The data generated from this study could support the use of UV-absorbing contact lenses and greatly impact the health of a large number of people."

The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) is the largest eye and vision research organization in the world. Members include more than 12,500 eye and vision researchers from over 80 countries. ARVO encourages and assists research, training, publication and knowledge-sharing in vision and ophthalmology.

The ARVO peer-reviewed journal Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science (IOVS) publishes results from original hypothesis-based clinical and laboratory research studies. IOVS ranks No. 4 in Impact Factor among ophthalmology journals. It is published online monthly.

Chronic kidney disease affects 26 million people in the United States.

Challenging prevailing wisdom that only children with end-stage kidney disease suffer physical, social, emotional and educational setbacks from their disease, research led by Johns Hopkins Children's Center shows that even mild to moderate kidney disease may seriously diminish a child's quality of life.

The findings, reported in the February issue of Pediatrics, suggest that earlier attention to quality-of-life issues in children with chronic kidney disease is needed.

"Even mild and moderate declines in kidney function may lead to serious physical, emotional, intellectual and social challenges," says lead investigator Arlene Gerson, Ph.D., a pediatric psychologist at Hopkins Children's.

Kidney Disease Screening is Needed

"What this means is we should be thinking about screening children for these challenges and intervening earlier than we once thought."

Recently diagnosed children who report learning problems may benefit from help before grades drop, researchers say, noting that children with chronic diseases currently do not qualify for special education until their scores decline dramatically.

Links Between Kidney Function and Quality of Life

In their study of 402 children, ages 2 to 16, with mild-to-moderate kidney disease, researchers analyzed the link between kidney function, disease severity, age of onset and disease duration, on the one hand, and physical, emotional, psychological and school functioning on the other.

The researchers also compared quality-of-life outcomes between healthy children and children with early-stage kidney disease. Children with mild-to-moderate kidney disease and their parents reported worse overall outcomes on standard quality-of-life questionnaires and worse outcomes on all quality-of-life factors.

Specifically, children with early-stage kidney disease scored on average 75 out of 100 on quality-of-life measures, compared to 83 out of 100 for healthy children. The difference was especially pronounced in school functioning, where children with early-stage kidney disease scored 64 out 100, compared to 80 out of 100 for healthy children.

How Children Cope with Kidney Disease

The study also found that the younger the child at the time of the diagnosis and the longer the child lived with kidney disease, the better the overall quality of life, a surprising finding, suggesting that as time passes children learn to cope better with their condition, the researchers say.

The researchers found that children with impaired growth and shorter stature, a common effect of their disease, had worse overall quality of life and poorer physical functioning, an indicator of the importance of early treatment.

Treatments for Children's Kidney Disease

"Timely and individually tailored treatment, be it with nutrition, salt supplements or growth hormones, if needed, can make a big difference. We cannot overemphasize the importance of early intervention in children with early stages of chronic kidney disease," says senior investigator Susan Furth, M.D. Ph.D., a pediatric nephrologist at Hopkins Children's.

The research is part of an ongoing 57-center study funded by the National Institutes of Health to study chronic kidney disease in children.