Hypertensive crisis in elderly

BACKGROUND: Topical photodynamic therapy with methyl aminolevulinate (MAL-PDT) is a non-surgical treatment for actinic keratoses, Bowen's disease and basal cell carcinoma. MAL-PDT is particularly useful in elderly patients, who often present co-morbidities and/or in whom surgical excision could be contraindicated. MAL-PDT is generally well tolerated; the most frequent acute adverse events include pain and burning sensation localized to the treatment area. We describe our observation of the occurrence of acute postoperative hypertension (APH) and hypertensive crisis, after a MAL-PDT...

Heart disease is the major leading cause of death and disability in the world. Mainly affecting the elderly population, heart disease and its main outcome, cardiovascular disease, have become an important risk factor in the development of cognitive decline and Alzheimer's disease (AD). This paper examines the evidence linking chronic brain hypoperfusion induced by a variety of cardiovascular deficits in the development of cognitive impairment preceding AD. The evidence indicates a strong association between AD and cardiovascular risk factors, including ApoE(4), atrial fibrillation, thrombotic events, hypertension, hypotension, heart failure, high serum markers of inflammation, coronary artery disease, low cardiac index, and valvular pathology...

Acute hypertensive encephalopathy in elderly patients appears reversible mild cognitive impairment. The erythrocyte sedimentation rate and blood creatinine measured during a hypertensive crisis are predictors of decline of visual-spatial orientation after two weeks of treatment.

Gastrointestinal (GI) tract bleeding, in particular originating within the long segment of the small intestine, remains a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge. The authors describe the potential utility of emergency double balloon enteroscopy (DBE) for small bowel bleeding. An elderly woman was admitted because of a hypertensive crisis to the medical department of a regional hospital. Her medical history was significant for non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) abuse. While in hospital she had massive obscure GI bleeding...

BACKGROUND: Immediate-release nifedipine is on the PRISCUS list of drugs that should not be given to elderly patients. We studied the use of this calcium-channel blocker under real-life conditions. METHODS: In 2009, we carried out a cross-sectional study based on the Statutory Health Insurance Sample AOK Hesse/KV Hesse with a sample size of 260 672 insurees. We used an anatomic-therapeutic-chemical classification (C08) to identify prescriptions for calcium-channel blockers...

A complex clinical, neurological, laboratory, ultrasound and neuroimaging examination of 70 patients, aged 31-59 years, suffering from vertebrobasilar transient ischemic attack (TIA) was carried out in order to determine clinical and pathogenetic peculiarities of the disease in young and middle aged patients. The hemodynamically significant atherosclerotic lesion of the large cerebral arteries (LCA) as a cause of TIA was observed more rarely in the young and middle age groups than in elderly and aged people...

A 79-year-old woman with progressive systemic sclerosis (PSS) presented with acute pulmonary edema, hypertension and renal failure. Administration of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor under suspicion of PSS renal crisis resulted in worsening of the renal function, which necessitated hemodialysis. Magnetic resonance arteriogram (MRA) demonstrated stenosis of the right renal artery, and ischemic nephropathy was diagnosed. Renal function improved after the discontinuation of ACE inhibitor. ACE inhibitor/angiotensin II receptor blocker (ARB), which is recommended for PSS renal crisis, should be avoided in ischemic nephropathy...

Hypertension (HT) increases the risks of major cardiovascular events and affects a majority of elderly populations. Thus, blood pressure control is the mainstay for prevention of cardiovascular diseases. However, there is only a limited number of parameters for management of HT. This study was performed on consecutive patients between the ages of 35 and 70 years with normotension (NT) and HT in order to determine the possible consequences of HT on retinal vasculature and to avoid debility-induced weight loss...

BACKGROUND: Heart disease and stroke are two of the major leading causes of death and disability in the world. Mainly affecting the elderly population, heart disease and stroke are important risk factors for Alzheimer's disease (AD). METHODS: This review examines the evidence linking chronic brain hypoperfusion (CBH) produced by several types of heart disease and stroke on the development of AD. RESULTS: The evidence indicates a strong association between such risk factors as coronary artery bypass surgery (CABG), atrial fibrillation, aortic/mitral valve damage, hypertension, hypotension, congestive heart failure, cerebrovascular-carotid atherosclerosis, and transient ischemic attacks in producing CBH...

HISTORY AND PHYSICAL EXAMINATION: A 65-year-old woman presented in a hypertensive crisis and with angina pectoris. She had a history of hypertension for several years and medication included five different antihypertensive drugs. On physical examination a faint systolic murmur was heard. Weak femoral pulses were felt, but not the arterial pulses distal to the groin. INVESTIGATIONS: An attempt to perform coronary arteriography failed because it was impossible to pass the catheter across the aortic arch...

Thyroid storm is an uncommon but life-threatening manifestation of hyperthyroidism which, unless appropriately treated by combined therapy, causes 30-60% of deaths in hospitalized patients. Mental deterioration leading to apathy and eventually coma is a rare clinical presentation of this pathology, frequently observed in the elderly. We present the case of a 77-year-old hypertensive woman who was hospitalized for fast onset of coma, probably due to the unusual combination of a hypernatremic hyperosmolar state and an unexpected thyroid storm (TS)...

A hypertensive emergency is a situation in which uncontrolled hypertension is associated with acute end-organ damage, such as aortic dissection, pulmonary edema, acute coronary syndromes, cerebral infarction or hemorrhage, hypertensive encephalopathy, acute renal failure and eclampsia. With the exception of stroke, blood pressure must be reduced quickly, usually by using intravenous antihypertensive agents. Blood pressure reduction should be gradual while maintaining organ perfusion, which may be easily compromised in elderly and chronically hypertensive patients...

The clinical diagnosis of renal artery stenosis relies on a high index of suspicion and confirmation by noninvasive imaging modalities. There are three distinct clinical syndromes associated with renal artery stenosis: renin-dependent hypertension, essential hypertension, and ischemic nephropathy. Clinical features that should heighten suspicion for renal artery stenosis include abrupt-onset or accelerated hypertension at any age, unexplained acute or chronic azotemia, azotemia induced by angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, asymmetric renal dimensions, and congestive heart failure with normal ventricular function...

Moclobemide is a reversible inhibitor of monoamine-oxidase-A (RIMA) and has been extensively evaluated in the treatment of a wide spectrum of depressive disorders and less extensively studied in anxiety disorders. Nearly all meta-analyses and most comparative studies indicated that in the acute management of depression this drug is more efficacious than placebo and as efficacious as tricyclic (or some heterocyclic) antidepressants or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). There is a growing evidence that moclobemide is not inferior to other antidepressants in the treatment of subtypes of depression, such as dysthymia, endogenous (unipolar and bipolar), reactive, atypical, agitated, and retarded depression as with other antidepressants limited evidence suggests that moclobemide has consistent long-term efficacy...

Standard therapy for ACTH-independent bilateral macronodular adrenocortical hyperplasia (AIMAH), a rare form of Cushing's syndrome, is bilateral adrenalectomy. Patients with AIMAH are usually elderly, with a variety of complications, and at risk for surgery. Postoperatively, they must receive lifelong corticosteroids and spend the remainder of their lives avoiding adrenal crisis. Therapy using metyrapone, a potent inhibitor of steroidogenesis, provides the advantages of avoiding the surgery. Its effectiveness is further anticipated because adrenal steroidogenic enzymes are reportedly weak in AIMAH...

Hypertension is a widespread entity in the surgical intensive care unit. Not only is the clinical spectrum varied, but the armamentarium available to the clinician is also wide-ranging. Sodium nitroprusside, a potent vasodilator with a short half-life, is often used for hypertensive crisis and to deliberately maintain a low blood in certain clinical conditions. Cyanide toxicity is a known complication of sodium nitroprusside use. Herein is reported a case of probable cyanide toxicity in an elderly trauma patient...

Anesthesia for surgery of primary hyperparathyroidism (HPT) usually concerns asymptomatic elderly women with moderate hypercalcemia. Cardiovascular repercussions of the endocrine disorder are possible, but they are not frequent except for hypertension. Hyperparathyroid crisis is a life-threatening condition with severe hypercalcemia. Intravenous diphosphonates are very effective drugs to control hypercalcemia. The improvement is transient but allows curative parathyroidectomy to be performed with a minimal risk of cardiac arrhythmias...

Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) are mainly used in psychiatry for the treatment of depressive disorders and in neurology for the treatment of Parkinson's disease. While the classical, nonselective and nonreversible MAOIs, such as phenelzine and tranylcypromine, are characterised by the risk of inducing a hypertensive crisis when dietary tyramine is ingested, the selective monoamine oxidase-B (MAO-B) inhibitor selegiline (deprenyl) and, even more so, the selective and reversible monoamine oxidase-A (MAO-A) inhibitor moclobemide, are free from this potential interaction...

We report a case of renal crisis in a patient with elderly onset systemic scleroderma (SSc). A sixty-one-year-old woman was diagnosed as having SSc with rapidly advancing generalized skin sclerosis. After experiencing an upper respiratory infection, she suddenly developed renal failure, hemolytic anemia and malignant hypertension. Laboratory examination revealed uremia with a significantly high plasma renin level. Ophthalmologic study revealed Keith-Wagner's retinopathy Grade IV. Combination therapy including captopril, systemic corticosteroid and prostaglandin E1 venous infusion for the hemolytic uremic syndrome was effective and saved her from the renal crisis...

Hypertensive crisis is a rare condition with increased blood pressure and evidence of new or progressive severe end-organ damage. The patients should be admitted to hospital, and the blood pressure reduced gradually. Blood pressure should not be normalized, but a reduction in mean arterial pressure of 20-25% or to a diastolic blood pressure > 100-110 mmHg should be achieved. Patients at particular risk for further complications are elderly, patients with hypovolaemia, renal insufficiency, ischaemic heart disease and patients with neurological deficits...