Transdermal estradiol with oral progestin: biological and clinical effects in younger and older postmenopausal women
Article Abstract:
Estrogen replacement therapy (ERT) is prescribed for postmenopausal women to treat a variety of symptoms, including hot flushes, vaginal dryness and other genitourinary symptoms, and to prevent osteoporosis, or loss of bone density that can lead to severe disability. It may also protect against death from heart disease among older women. ERT is usually begun when a woman reaches menopause, and it is not known whether response to treatment changes with age. To determine the effects of age on treatment, 31 healthy women who had reached menopause at least one year earlier were treated with transdermal (skin patch) ERT (tERT). Each woman received eight weeks each of 0 (placebo), 50, 100 and 150 micrograms of Estraderm, a transdermal estrogen therapy manufactured by Ciba-Geigy Pharmaceutical Co., which partially supported the study. Each woman also took Provera, by Upjohn Pharmaceutical Co. Three of the women dropped out of the study for reasons unrelated to the drugs. The effects of drug therapy on hormonal levels is discussed. Therapy reduced vaginal irritation in both older and younger women. The adverse effects were few, and included vaginal bleeding, which was less in older women at a 50 microgram dose, and breast tenderness, which was greater for older women. Because plasma estrogen levels were similar for older and younger women, the results suggest that older women are less responsive to estrogen, and that a 100 microgram dose per day may be given to prevent bone loss. The dosage can be reduced to 50 micrograms per day if breast tenderness develops. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)
Publication Name: Journals of Gerontology
Subject: Seniors
ISSN: 0022-1422
Year: 1991
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Discourse production and normal aging: performance on oral picture description tasks
Article Abstract:
Until recently, aging was thought to affect language functions less than other mental functions. However, there are age-related changes in the parts of the brain associated with speech and language. To explore the notion of whether there may be subtle, systematic, age-related changes in language ability, 80 individuals between the ages of 20 and 78 years were studied; 13 or 14 subjects represented each decade of adult life, and approximately half were female. The subjects were of relatively high socioeconomic status and education. The results indicate that most aspects of speech and language do not change with age, including speech production and complexity, conciseness, and information imparted. There was a moderate, but not significant, increase in the use of prepositional phrases, indefinite wording, and pause duration with advancing age. The increased use of prepositional phrases has not previously been reported in older subjects, but may be related to a previous finding that older people tend to use more elaborate speech. Indefinite wording, in which words such as ''thing'' are used in place of a more specific word, reflects a naming or word-finding difficulty. Increased duration of pauses may reflect generally slowed mental processing or may be related to the naming difficulty already discussed. The findings suggests that when language difficulties are observed in older people, a disease process, rather than aging, may be responsible. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)
Publication Name: Journals of Gerontology
Subject: Seniors
ISSN: 0022-1422
Year: 1990
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Oral arginine-lysine does not increase growth hormone or insulin-like growth factor-I in old men
Article Abstract:
Arginine and lysine administered to young adults has been shown to increase secretion of growth hormone (GH), which can decrease body fat, assist in nitrogen retention and increase plasma insulin-like growth factor (IFG-I) levels. Since aging is associated with lower GH secretion, the efficacy of arginine and lysine for increasing GH in older men was investigated. Two groups of healthy older males were given either a 50/50 arginine-lysine mix or a placebo for two weeks. Although absorption level was similar in both groups, the arginine-lysine treatment had minimal effect on GH and IGF-I.
Publication Name: Journals of Gerontology
Subject: Seniors
ISSN: 0022-1422
Year: 1993
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- Abstracts: Relation of age and physical exercise status on metabolic rate in younger and older healthy men. Dissociation of changes in metabolic rate and blood pressure with erythrocyte Na-K punp actvity in older men after endurance training
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