(Press-News.org) Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is associated with an increased risk of developing cerebral microbleeds, according to a new study from researchers in the Netherlands. Cerebral microbleeds are a marker of cerebral small vessel disease, an important cause of age-related disability and cognitive decline.
"The connection between COPD and cerebral small vessel disease was suggested by two earlier studies, but the connection between COPD and cerebral microbleeds, the location of which can help elucidate underlying disease mechanisms, has not been studied," said researchers Lies Lahousse, PhD, of the Department of Respiratory Medicine at Ghent University Hospital in Belgium and Bruno Stricker, PhD, of the Department of Epidemiology at Erasmus Medical Center in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. "In the current study, we found, for the first time, that COPD increases the risk of cerebral microbleeds in deep or infratentorial brain regions, not only in a cross-sectional analysis but also in a longitudinal analysis in subjects without microbleeds at baseline."
Microbleeds in deep (deep gray matter of the basal ganglia and thalamus and white matter of the corpus callosum, internal, external, and extreme capsule) or infratentorial (brainstem and cerebellum) locations are suggestive of hypertensive or arteriosclerotic disease in the small blood vessels. The prevalence of large vessel disease is known to be increased in COPD, and these new results "indicate that COPD might affect both large and small vessels," said Dr. Lahousse.
The findings were published online ahead of print publication in the American Thoracic Society's American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
The study included 165 subjects with COPD and 645 subjects with normal lung function from the Rotterdam study, a prospective population-based cohort study in subjects ≥55 years. COPD diagnoses were confirmed by spirometry and cerebral microbleeds were detected with high-resolution MRI.
Compared with subjects with normal lung function, COPD patients had a significantly higher prevalence of cerebral microbleeds, which was independent of age, sex, smoking status, atherosclerotic large vessel disease, antithrombotic use, total cholesterol, triglycerides, and serum creatinin levels. The prevalence of microbleeds in deep or infratentorial locations was also significantly increased in COPD patients and the prevalence of these microbleeds increased with increasing severity of airflow limitation.
In a longitudinal analysis restricted to subjects without microbleed at baseline, COPD independently predicted incident cerebral microbleeds in deep or infratentorial locations.
The study had some limitations, including the cross-sectional design of the main analysis and the association of COPD with multiple comorbidities, some of which may affect cerebral small vessel disease.
"We have shown that COPD is associated with an increased risk of developing cerebral microbleeds in deep or infratentorial locations," said Dr. Lahousse. "Given the potential cognitive and functional consequences of these microbleeds, preventive strategies for vulnerable patients need to be developed."
###
About the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine:
With an impact factor of 11.080, the AJRRCM is a peer-reviewed journal published by the American Thoracic Society. It aims to publish the most innovative science and the highest quality reviews, practice guidelines and statements in the pulmonary, critical care and sleep-related fields.
Founded in 1905, the American Thoracic Society is the world's leading medical association dedicated to advancing pulmonary, critical care and sleep medicine. The Society's 15,000 members prevent and fight respiratory disease around the globe through research, education, patient care and advocacy.
COPD increases risk of developing cerebral microbleeds
2013-07-19
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
All-male physics departments are not proof of bias against hiring women, suggests new AIP study
2013-07-19
WASHINGTON, D.C., July 19, 2013 – Many U.S. universities have no women at all among their physics faculty, and when people talk about gender equity in physics, this fact is often cited as evidence of a hiring bias. But a new analysis by the American Institute of Physics (AIP) Statistical Research Center challenges this argument, finding that the existence of all-male departments is not necessarily evidence of a hiring bias.
By comparing the actual distribution of women in physics with simulated results, the report shows, if anything, that today there are more departments ...
Menopause symptoms worse in cancer survivors
2013-07-18
Cancer survivors were twice as likely to experience severe menopausal symptoms compared to women who have not had cancer, a new Australian study has found.
The study was led by the University of Melbourne and the Royal Women's Hospital Melbourne, with the King Edward Memorial Hospital and the University of Western Australia.
The study was published in Menopause, the Journal of the North American Menopause Society.
Lead author, Dr Jennifer Marino of the University of Melbourne and the Royal Women's Hospital said the study was the biggest of its kind to assess the impact ...
Southern California crustacean sand-dwellers suffering localized extinctions
2013-07-18
(Santa Barbara, Calif.) –– Two types of small beach critters –– both cousins of the beloved, backyard roly-poly –– are suffering localized extinctions in Southern California at an alarming rate, says a new study by UC Santa Barbara scientists. As indicator species for beach biodiversity at large, their disappearance suggests a looming threat to similar sand-dwelling animals across the state and around the world.
Led by David Hubbard and Jenifer Dugan of UCSB's Marine Science Institute, the new work reveals a trend toward extirpation that has been growing slowly since ...
Geosphere presents new studies on the nature and structure of North America and Taiwan
2013-07-18
Boulder, Colo., USA – Eight new studies posted 26 June and 16 July add to Geosphere's cache of solid research on the nature and structure of North America. Locations studied: Black Canyon of the Gunnison, Colorado; the northern Cascade Mountains, Washington; the Sierra Nevada batholith; the New Jersey shelf; the Appalachian Basin of northwestern Alabama; the Sierra Nevada microplate (Walker Lane rift); and the West Tahoe-Dollar Point fault. A ninth study covers erosion and crustal deformation in central Taiwan.
Abstracts for these and other Geosphere papers are available ...
This only looks like the 405 freeway
2013-07-18
No, those are not cars darting along a busy highway. The glowing specks you're seeing in this video (http://bit.ly/110LTfm) are millions of nuclei flowing through the tube-like filaments, or hyphae, of a single fungus cell.
The video was produced as part of a study by UCLA mathematician Marcus Roper's research group that was the first to measure and explain this dynamic movement of nuclei in the cells of a fungus.
"It's complex, beautiful and so dynamic," said Roper, an assistant professor of mathematics and the lead author of two new studies that cast light on ...
Among Indian immigrants, religious practice and obesity may be linked, study shows
2013-07-18
Asian Indians are one of the fastest growing ethnic groups in the United States, and roughly half a million people of Indian ancestry live in California — more than any other state. Individuals from this group are strongly predisposed to obesity-related conditions such as diabetes and heart disease, due in large part to physical inactivity, diets low in fruit and vegetables, and insulin resistance.
Among other racial and ethnic groups, research has shown that religious practices and religiosity have been associated with obesity and greater body weight, but no one had ...
NTU scientists hit the target
2013-07-18
The search for new drugs, including those for cancer, is set to speed up thanks to a new research technique invented by scientists at the Nanyang Technological University (NTU).
Named the "Cellular Thermal Shift Assay" (CETSA), scientists can now know for sure if a drug had reached its target protein in the body, which is a critical step in determining the effectiveness of most medicines.
Presently, scientists can only hypothesise if a drug has indeed reached its target protein, leading to expensive and prolonged drug development process. CETSA will help scientists ...
No benefit from oxytocin treatment for autism
2013-07-18
SYDNEY -- The so-called trust hormone, oxytocin, may not improve the symptoms of children with autism, a large study led by researchers at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) has found.
Professor Mark Dadds, of the UNSW School of Psychology, says previous research suggested that oxytocin -- a hormone with powerful effects on brain activity linked to the formation of social bonds -- could have benefits for children with the disorder.
"Many parents of children with autism are already obtaining and using oxytocin nasal spray with their child, and clinical trials of ...
European fish stocks poised for recovery
2013-07-18
The results of a major international effort to assess the status of dozens of European fish stocks find that many of those stocks in the northeast Atlantic are being fished sustainably today and that, given time, those populations should continue to recover. The findings, reported in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on July 18, come as surprisingly good news amid widespread criticism that the European Union's Common Fisheries Policy is failing, the researchers say.
"Contrary to common perception, the status of our fish stocks is improving," says Paul Fernandes of ...
Chimpanzees and orangutans remember distant past events
2013-07-18
VIDEO:
We humans can remember events in our lives that happened years ago, with those memories often surfacing unexpectedly in response to sensory triggers: perhaps a unique flavor or scent. Now,...
Click here for more information.
We humans can remember events in our lives that happened years ago, with those memories often surfacing unexpectedly in response to sensory triggers: perhaps a unique flavor or scent. Now, researchers reporting in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication, ...