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Biomedical subjects

J W Rowe

Publications and source records attributed to J W Rowe.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2000

Successful aging and disease prevention.

Substantial increases in the relative and absolute number of older persons in our society pose a challenge for biology, social and behavioral science, and medicine. Successful aging is multidimensional, encompassing the avoidance of disease and disability, the maintenance of high physical and cognitive function, and sustained engagement in social and productive activities. Research has identified factors predictive of success in these critical domains. Two additional research domains, resilience and wisdom, are suggested, and a national initiative in health promotion and disease prevention is proposed.

Aging↗
PubMed2000

High urinary catecholamine excretion predicts mortality and functional decline in high-functioning, community-dwelling older persons: MacArthur Studies of Successful Aging.

PURPOSE: Catecholamine release is a marker of stress, and high plasma norepinephrine levels have been associated with increased mortality. The predictive value of high urinary catecholamine excretion for functional decline and mortality in healthier older persons has not been determined. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: We used data from the MacArthur Studies of Successful Aging to determine the effects of high urinary catecholamine excretion on 3- and 7-year mortality and functional decline. In 1988, 765 high-functioning older subjects provided complete overnight urine samples for norepinephrine and epinephrine, and 199 of these provided repeat samples in 1991. Subjects who were in the top tertile of urinary norepinephrine or epinephrine excretion in 1988 were considered high excreters; those in the top tertile in both 1988 and 1991 were considered sustained high excreters. We used bivariate and multivariate analysis to examine the relations between high catecholamine excretion and mortality and Rosow-Breslau functional decline in 1991 and 1995. RESULTS: In multivariate analyses, subjects with high baseline urinary excretion of epinephrine, norepinephrine, or either catecholamine were at higher risk for mortality and functional decline at 3 and 7 years, although the magnitude of risk (adjusted odds-ratios ranged from 1.1 to 3.1) varied depending upon specific catecholamine and outcome measure. Subjects who had sustained high urinary norepinephrine excretion were also at increased risk for 4-year mortality or functional decline. CONCLUSIONS: High urinary catecholamine excretion in high-functioning, community-dwelling older persons likely reflects subclinical sympathetic stimulation and is a marker of increased risk for functional decline and mortality.

Aged↗
PubMed2000

A prospective study of the effect of fracture on measured physical performance: results from the MacArthur Study--MAC.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the impact of fractures on measured physical performance and to assess whether specific fractures have unique sequelae. SUBJECTS: 762 men and women, aged 70 to 79 at baseline, who were part of the MacArthur Study of Successful Aging. DESIGN: A longitudinal case-cohort: those with prevalent fractures at baseline were excluded; cases were persons with a medically diagnosed hip, arm, spine, or wrist fracture during the follow-up period (1988-1995). MEASURES: Eight physical performance tests: turning a circle, walking fast, chair stands, timed tap, tandem stand, grip strength, single leg stand, and balance (average of single leg and tandem stands) measured at baseline and follow-up. ANALYSIS: Two fracture groups were defined: (1) those with incident wrist fractures (n = 7) and (2) those with a fracture of the hip, arm, or spine (combined fractures group, n = 16). Change in physical performance was analyzed using crude, age-adjusted, and multiply-adjusted ANCOVA models. RESULTS: The combined fracture group demonstrated statistically significant (P < .05) declines seven of eight of the performance tests compared with individuals without fractures. In contrast, individuals with wrist fractures did not experience a statistically significant decline in any performance measure compared with the no fracture group. CONCLUSIONS: Relative to those without fractures, individuals with a hip, arm, or clinical spinal fracture show similar global declines in physical performance, whereas those with wrist fracture demonstrate no physical performance decrements.

Aged↗
PubMed2000

The effect of race and health-related factors on naming and memory. The MacArthur Studies of Successful Aging.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of the analyses was to examine the impact of health-related variables on race differences in neuropsychological functioning (Boston Naming Task). METHODS: Using cross-sectional data from the MacArthur Successful Aging Study, the authors examined the relationship of demographic characteristics, health status, health habits, physical functioning, and speed of performance to naming and incidental recall of items from the Boston Naming Task. Participants were 1,175 healthy African American and European American older persons 70 to 79 years old. RESULTS: Regression analyses indicated that although race differences persisted for confrontational naming after controlling for demographic and health factors, there was no effect due to race for incidental recall scores or for savings scores for recall. DISCUSSION: The racial differences found in test performance may reflect differences in cultural appropriateness of the material rather than differences in ability.

Black or African American↗
PubMed1999

The relation between cortisol excretion and fractures in healthy older people: results from the MacArthur studies-Mac.

BACKGROUND: In persons with depression, higher urinary cortisol is associated with lower bone mineral density. OBJECTIVE: To examine the relation between urinary free cortisol (UFC) and fractures. SETTING: Community-based samples from Durham, NC, East Boston, MA, and New Haven, CT. PARTICIPANTS: 684 men and women, aged 70 to 79 at baseline, who were part of the MacArthur Study of Successful Aging. DESIGN: Cohort study. Participants with previous history of fractures at baseline were excluded. MEASURES: The primary exposure variable was overnight (8:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m.) UFC (microg/g creatinine) at baseline (1988). Outcomes were self-reported hip, arm, spine, wrist, or other fracture during the follow-up period (1988-1995). Covariates were baseline age, gender, race, body mass index, current physical activity, lower extremity strength, depression subscale of the Hopkins Symptom Checklist, and current use of cigarettes and alcohol. ANALYSIS: Logistic regression was used to predict the occurrence of incident fractures (1988-1995) as a function of quartiles of baseline UFC. Models were adjusted for age, gender, and race and were also multiply adjusted for the remaining covariates listed above. Gender-stratified models and models that excluded corticosteroid users were also run. RESULTS: In multiply adjusted models, higher baseline levels of UFC were significantly associated with incident fractures. Odds of fracture (95% Confidence Intervals) for increasing quartiles of baseline UFC, multiply adjusted, were: 2.28 (.91, 5.77); 3.40 (1.33, 8.69); 5.38 (1.68, 17.21). Results were not materially influenced by exclusion of persons using corticosteroids. CONCLUSIONS: Higher baseline UFC is an independent predictor of future fracture.

Age Distribution↗
PubMed1999

The future of aging.

In 1984, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation funded a long-term research program that brought together 16 scientists from various disciplines to study what factors contribute to successful physical and mental aging. Last year, two of those scientists published Successful Aging, in which they discuss the study's generally encouraging findings. In the sections excerpted below, they share some sometimes surprising insights into how people age in America.

Aged↗
PubMed1997

Price of adaptation--allostatic load and its health consequences. MacArthur studies of successful aging.

BACKGROUND: Exponential growth in the population of older adults presents clinicians with special concerns about factors affecting risks for declines in cognitive and physical functioning. OBJECTIVES: To examine the hypothesis that risks for such declines and for disease outcomes, such as cardiovascular disease, are related to differences in allostatic load, the cumulative physiologic toll exacted on the body over time by efforts to adapt to life experiences. To present an operational definition of allostatic load, along with preliminary evidence of its predictive validity in relation to salient outcomes of aging. METHODS: Data from a longitudinal, community-based study of successful aging were used to develop a measure of allostatic load based on 10 parameters reflecting levels of physiologic activity across a range of important regulatory systems. Allostatic load is the sum of the number of parameters for which the subject was rated in the highest-risk quartile. RESULTS: Higher allostatic load scores were associated with poorer cognitive and physical functioning and predicted larger decrements in cognitive and physical functioning as well as being associated with an increased risk for the incidence of cardiovascular disease, independent of sociodemographic and health status risk factors. CONCLUSIONS: Findings are consistent with the conceptualization of allostatic load as an index of wear and tear on the body, with elevations in allostatic load predicting an increased risk for a decline in cognitive and physical functioning as well as cardiovascular disease in a cohort of older men and women. From a clinical perspective, the concept of allostatic load may provide the basis for a more comprehensive assessment of major risks in the aging process.

Adaptation, Physiological↗
PubMed1997

Intraindividual variability in perceived control in an older sample: the MacArthur successful aging studies.

Two aspects of perceived control, locus of control (LOC) and perceived competence (COM), command significant attention in personality and aging research. Mainly, these concepts are regarded as stable variables of considerable promise for predicting a range of outcomes. The authors concentrate on week-to-week within-person variability in self-reported LOC and COM. Using data collected over 7 months, the authors first demonstrates that the responses of a panel of older participants are structurally consistent with dominant conceptions of perceived control and that the responses maintain an underlying structure over the frequently repeated protocol. They next show that the within-person variation over weekly measurements is coherent information rather than "noise" and that individual differences in magnitude of week-to-week variability are a relatively stable attribute that predicts mortality status 5 years later. Implications of the findings for both methodological and substantive concerns are discussed.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1997

Successful aging.

Substantial increases in the relative and absolute number of older persons in our society pose a challenge for biology, social and behavioral science, and medicine. Successful aging is multidimensional, encompassing the avoidance of disease and disability, the maintenance of high physical and cognitive function, and sustained engagement in social and productive activities. Research has identified factors predictive of success in these critical domains. The stage is set for intervention studies to enhance the proportion of our population aging successfully.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1997

Increase in urinary cortisol excretion and memory declines: MacArthur studies of successful aging.

Cortisol production is increased during stress, and the actions of cortisol on receptors in the brain and other body organs are involved in allostasis, the process of adaptation to stress, as well as in allostatic load, the wear and tear associated with excessive exposure to cortisol. Using data from a community-based longitudinal study of older men and women, aged 70-79 yr, we tested the hypothesis that exposure to increasing levels of cortisol is associated with declines in memory performance. Associations between 12-h urinary free cortisol excretion and performance on tests of memory (delayed verbal recall and spatial recognition), abstraction, and spatial ability were examined. Among the women, greater cortisol excretion was associated with poorer baseline memory performance, independent of socio-demographic, health status, health behavior, and psychosocial characteristics. Moreover, women who exhibited increases in cortisol excretion over a 2.5-yr follow-up period were more likely to show declines in memory performance. By contrast, women who experienced declines in cortisol exhibited improvements in memory performance. No significant associations were found among the men. The results for the women suggest that decrements in memory performance associated with increases in cortisol may not represent irreversible effects, as declines in cortisol were associated with improvements in memory.

Aged↗
PubMed1995

Self-esteem and neuroendocrine response to challenge: MacArthur studies of successful aging.

The role of self-esteem in modulating patterns of neuroendocrine response to challenge at older ages was examined in 16 healthy 70-yr-olds. Responses to two challenges were examined: (1) a driving simulation designed to reflect a 'real life' challenge situation; and (2) a pharmacologic, corticotropin-releasing-hormone (CRH) challenge (1 micrograms/kg). Both challenges evoked significant elevations in cortisol and adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH). Levels of self-esteem were significantly and negatively associated with peak elevations in cortisol in response to the driving simulation challenge (r = -0.51, p = 0.04). ACTH responses showed similar trends (r = -0.41, p = 0.12). Self-esteem levels were not correlated with responses to the CRH challenge. These data indicate that psychological characteristics such as self-esteem may play a role in modulating patterns of neuroendocrine response to cognitive/behavioral challenges in everyday life in older individuals.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1995

Lipid provisioning of turtle eggs and hatchlings: total lipid, phospholipid, triacylglycerol and triacylglycerol fatty acids.

Lipid composition of eggs and hatchlings was studied in painted, snapping and Blanding's turtles from western Nebraska. The average total lipid proportions of the egg yolk, post-embryonic yolk and hatchling soma dry masses were high in painted turtles (29.80%, 42.16% and 14.18%, respectively) relative to snapping and Blanding's turtles (egg yolk < 14%, postembryonic yolk < 17%, hatchling soma < 2%). The proportion of total egg yolk lipid used during development varied among species (painted turtles, x = 45.4%; snapping turtles, x = 68.9%; Blanding's turtles, x = 86.6%). Total lipid data are consistent with patterns reported for turtle species whose hatchlings overwinter in the nest (e.g., painted turtles) vs those whose hatchlings emerge in the fall (e.g., snapping and Blanding's turtles). In all species, the total lipid quantity of egg and hatchling components was primarily triacylglycerol (> 63%), an energy storage form. Predominant triacylglycerol fatty acids in eggs and hatchlings were 16:0, 16:1 and 18:1, and concentration changes of some yolk fatty acids occurred during development. The average phospholipid (a membrane form) quantity of the egg and hatchling components was relatively low in painted turtles (< 2% of the total lipid). In snapping and Blanding's turtles, the relatively large phospholipid proportion of the post-embryonic yolks (approximately 7%) could potentially contribute more to post-embryonic growth in these species than the phospholipids of painted turtle post-embryonic yolks.

Animals↗