Neurological disorders in an elderly cohort that experienced past stressful events: a retrospective-prospective study

OUDKERK, LILIANA M.; BIANCHI, GRACIELA A.; MARSCHOFF, ENRIQUE R.; PÉREZ, SUSANA VILLAMIZAR; SERRA, JORGE A.; DOMÍNGUEZ, RAÚL O.; DE LA OSSA ANGULO, LUIS E.; REPETTO, MARISA G.

Current Aging Science

Bentham Science Publishers

Lugar: Sharjah; Año: 2022 vol. 15

1874-6098

AbstractObjective: This study aims to assess the effects of stressful events in senior patients who later developed ischemic stroke, Alzheimer´s or Parkinson´s disease.Background: Psychological stress may be a risk factor for dementias, but the association between exposure to stressful life events and the development of cognitive dysfunction has not been conclusively demonstrated. We hypothesize that if a stressful event has an impact on the subjects, its effects would be different in the three diseases.Material and methods: Together with demographic variables (age, sex, race, socioeconomic and cultural levels), five types of past stressful events were recorded in 1024 patients with Alzheimer´s, Parkinson´s diseases and Ischemic Stroke: death or serious illness of close relatives, job dismissal, change of financial status, retirement, and change of residence. Time-to-diagnosis (months from the event to the first symptoms: retrospective study) and evolution time (years of follow-up of each patient: prospective study) were recorded. Analysis of variance and non-parametric methods were applied to the variables time-to-diagnosis and evolution time to analyze differences between these diseases.Results: The demographic variables age, sex, race, economic and cultural levels were found to be statistically non-significant; differences in the economic level were significant (PStroke), and minor differences (P