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Biomedical subjects

S H Ferris

Publications and source records attributed to S H Ferris.

At least 109 records · Page 6Linked to original sources
PubMed1977

Senile dementia: treatment with deanol.

Recent research indicates a possible cholinergic involvement in memory processes and thus the possibility that acetylcholine deficiency may underlie memory impairment in senile dementia. Deanol (2-dimethylaminoethanol), which is assumed to increase brain acetylcholine, was given openly for 4 weeks to 14 senile outpatients, to determine the safety of the drug and whether or not it reduces cognitive impairment. The dosage was gradually increased to 600 mg three times daily during the first two weeks, with no adverse effects. Ten patients improved globally and 4 were unchanged (p less than .01). The total score on the Sandoz Clinical Assessment-Geriatric (SCAG) was lowered by the third week (p less than .01), primarily as a result of reduced depression, irritability and anxiety, and increased motivation-initiative. However, neither the clinical ratings nor an extensive pre- versus post-treatment series of cognitive tests revealed changes in memory or other cognitive functions. Since a similar separate study with a different compound produced no behavioral changes, it is unlikely that the improvement with deanol was due entirely to placebo effects. The results thus suggest that although deanol may not improve memory, it may produce positive behavioral changes in some senile patients.

Aged↗
PubMed1976

Cognitive effects of ACTH 4-10 in the elderly.

The polypeptide ACTH 4-10 has been shown to facilitate learning in animals, and possibly to improve attention and memory in normal human subjects. The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of ACTH 4-10 in cognitively impaired elderly subjects. In a double blind, cross over design, 24 cognitively impaired geriatric outpatients (mean age=71.4, 12 with mild and 12 with severe impairment) received injections of 30 mg or 15 mg ACTH 4-10 or matched placebo on 3 successive days. A cognitive test battery of memory and nonmemory tests was administered each day both before and after treatment. The 30 mg dosage produced a slowing of simple visual RT, a nonsignificant improvement trend in verbal associative memory, and significant, severity dependent facilitation or impairment in day later visual memory. The results suggest that the ACTH 4-10 effects on cognitively impaired elderly are dependent on the dosage and on the baseline cognitive level of the subjects.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone↗
PubMed1971

Interocular apparent movement in depth: a motion preference effect.

A new phenomenon is reported in which alternate stimulation of either nasal or temporal hemiretinas produces, respectively, apparent oscillation in depth either behind or ahead of the frontal plane. This control over the perceived movement is dependent on the proper positioning of stimuli presented interocularly and in horizontal arrangements.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Reduced incidence of left-handedness in clinically diagnosed dementia of the Alzheimer type.

Although it is generally held that about 10% of the population is left-handed, reported figures vary widely due to differences in handedness classification criteria and subject characteristics. Among those population studies that have used the same handedness classification criteria, a consistent relationship between increasing right-hand preference and increasing age has been reported. One recent study of Alzheimer's disease (AD) reported a higher incidence of left-handedness in early onset relative to late onset cases. In the present study we examined handedness patterns in three elderly groups; normal (N = 217), depression (N = 73), and AD (N = 114). Our results indicated a reduced frequency of left handedness in AD (2.6%) relative to control (11.1%) and depression (13.7%) groups. Within the limited age range we studied (60-80 years), no relationships were found between age and handedness preference either within or across the groups. Furthermore, for the AD group there was no relationship between severity of global impairment and strength of handedness. Our results suggest that compared to right handers, left handers are less vulnerable to the cognitive changes associated with AD. Nevertheless it is also possible that left handers are overrepresented among early onset dementia patients and die before entering the pool of senile dementia patients. Further work is required to determine if early and late onset AD are associated with different incidences of left handedness.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Positron emission tomography studies of normal aging: a replication of PET III and 18-FDG using PET VI and 11-CDG.

Using PET VI and 11-CDG we replicated our earlier PET III and 18-FDG normal aging findings. Examination of young and old normal volunteers revealed the absence of any absolute regional age-related changes in glucose utilization. For the combined sample (N = 81) we did find evidence to suggest a relative hypofrontal change with increasing age. A strong relationship between age and ventricular size (CT) was also found. These findings suggest the preserved glucose metabolism of the resting aging brain in the presence of structural atrophic changes.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Quantitative EEG correlates of cognitive deterioration in the elderly.

We report on the quantitative analysis of the EEG (QEEG), using the Neurometric method, in large samples of normal elderly; normal subjectively impaired elderly; patients with mild cognitive impairment; patients presenting with a continuum of primary cognitive deterioration from mild to moderately severe as measured by the Global Deterioration Scale (GDS), compatible with dementia of the Alzheimer's type (DAT). Neurometric QEEG measures were found to be a sensitive index of degree of cognitive impairment, especially reflected in increased absolute and relative power in the theta band, with delta increasing in later stages of deterioration. While these abnormalities were widespread, neither localized or lateralized, MANOVA's for GDS and relative power in theta reached highest significance in a bilateral temporo-parietal arc. A possible relationship between hippocampal dysfunction, cognitive deterioration, and theta abnormalities is discussed in relation to these findings. The results suggest that Neurometric QEEG features are sensitive to the earliest presence of subjective cognitive dysfunction and might be useful in the initial evaluation of patients with suspected dementia, as well as in estimating the degree of cognitive deterioration in DAT patients.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Frequency of hippocampal formation atrophy in normal aging and Alzheimer's disease.

We used CT and MR to examine the frequency of occurrence of hippocampal formation atrophy (HA) in a research clinic population of 130 normal elderly, 72 nondemented patients with very mild memory and cognitive impairments (MCI), 73 mild Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients, and 130 patients with moderate to severe AD. HA was found in 29% of the normal elderly group and its frequency of occurrence was strongly related to increasing age. For normal elderly 60-75 years of age, 15% had HA: the proportion rose to 48% in subjects 76-90 years of age. Among the three groups of impaired patients, the frequencies of HA ranged from 78% in the MCI patients to 96% in the advanced AD group. Unlike the normal elderly group, the percentages were not related to age. In both the normal elderly group and MCI group disproportionately more males than females had HA. After controlling for learning and the effects of generalized brain changes as reflected in ventricular size, only in the normal group was HA associated with reduced delayed verbal recall performance. Follow-up examinations for 15 individuals with baseline HA. 4 who at entry were MCI and 11 probable AD, yielded clinical and neuropathologic diagnoses of AD in all cases. The results of the present study indicate that hippocampal formation atrophy is associated with memory and cognitive impairments. Further longitudinal and neuropathologic work is required to validate the relationship between hippocampal formation atrophy and AD.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Age differences in the vulnerability of facial recognition memory to proactive interference.

A facial recognition memory task was administered to 16 young subjects (age range 18-30) and 28 elderly subjects (age range 63-83). A continuous recognition paradigm was used, in which subjects were instructed to identify the repeated faces in an ongoing series of faces presented on a video monitor screen. A signal detection analysis of the data revealed a mild recognition memory deficit in the elderly, due mainly to an increase in false positives during the second half of the test session. This age-specific increase in late-session false alarms may be a result of increased sensitivity of the aged subjects to proactive interference from previously presented faces. Increasing the length of the delay between the initial and repeat presentation of a face decreased recognition accuracy in both groups, but the young subjects were more sensitive to the delay interval effect than the elderly. Multiple presentations of faces produced a comparable improvement in the recognition accuracy of both young and old subjects. The elderly subjects exhibited a more liberal response bias than the young subjects, indicating that impaired memory task performance of the aged subjects cannot be attributed to a more conservative test-taking strategy.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Suicide in two patients with a diagnosis of probable Alzheimer disease.

Two patients meeting the criteria for probable Alzheimer disease (AD) who were participating in a phase 3 clinical program with eptastigmine, a cholinesterase inhibitor, committed suicide. The first patient committed suicide by a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. The second patient committed suicide by jumping from a 19th story window. These two patients shared several clinical features with those found in the literature: being at the early stages of the disease, having a high level education, with preserved insight, having access to firearms, and being aware of not responding to pharmacological treatment.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

A two-year longitudinal study of cognitive function in normal aging and Alzheimer's disease.

A group of 136 elderly subjects were administered a comprehensive neuropsychological test battery, which was readministered 2 years later. Among the 136 elderly subjects, 86 were assigned a diagnosis of probable Alzheimer's disease. An additional 33 young subjects were administered the assessment battery at baseline only. The normal elderly group exhibited no decline in cognitive test performance over the 2-year follow-up interval. Subjects with mild cognitive impairment, however, were as likely to deteriorate between baseline and follow-up as the more severely impaired subjects. The tests that exhibited longitudinal decline in the Alzheimer's disease patients constituted a subset of the tests that revealed cross-sectional deficits relative to the normal elderly. Differences in baseline cognitive test performance and in rate of cognitive deterioration were examined in relatively young versus relatively old Alzheimer's disease patients. Potential psychometric predictors of cognitive decline in the normal elderly were identified.

Adult↗