The Aging Cardiovascular System

Discusses the advances made in learning how the normal aging process affects the heart & arteries & how to treat cardiovascular diseases. The most important findings are highlighted, & the future of cardiovascular medicine is also included. Chapters include: heat dynamics, measuring the heart, the biology of physical fitness, arteries: young & old, measuring stiffness, when the brain talks to the heart, how a myocyte contracts, exercise & the aging myocyte, what happens during atherosclerosis, & gene therapy. Glossary of terms. Illustrated.

Reviews the best therapies and surgical techniques available to provide quality care for the elderly cardiac patient and of those areas that require further research. The authors detail preventive therapies and the cardiovascular syndromes that disproportionately afflict the older individual, including arrhythmias (particularly atrial fibrillation), syncope, heart failure (particularly diastolic heart failure), and ischemic heart disease. They also delineate the surgical management of the heart patient with discussions of postoperative management and its complications and of specific surgical procedures such as coronary artery bypass grafting, valve surgery, pacemaker and defibibrillators, and surgical management of heart failure.

Early Vascular Aging (EVA): New Directions in Cardiovascular Protection, Second Edition continues to be the most comprehensive and authoritative resource on premature alterations in artery structure and function. The book presents a novel approach to the problem of cardiovascular disease, showing it in relation to great vessels disease and revealing a comprehensive approach to the problem of increased rigidity of the great vessels, its causes, and further consequences. This second edition contains completely updated content with expanded coverage of basic and translational research, systematic reviews of the most prominent literature, discussion of applicability of new evidence and more. Written by an international team of clinicians and researchers, this is a valuable resource to basic and translational scientists, clinical researchers and clinicians in the cardiovascular field interested in prevention, diagnosis and treatment of EVA. Contains all the relevant information available on the main paradigm shifts in vascular aging research, from different fields of knowledge (from basic biology to epidemiology) Reviews the most prominent evidence produced on early vascular aging (EVA), highlighting recent research advances, clinical applications, and research opportunities Formulates, in each chapter, a set of research questions that need to be addressed, challenging the vast research community to take on new directions and collaborations

A panel of clinicians, researchers, and leaders in the field review and discuss the latest findings on the pathophysiology, diagnosis, and management of cardiovascular disease in the older patient. The authors explain the physiological changes associated with the normal aging process that may lead to the development of disease, to adverse consequences once disease develops, and which alter the risk-benefit equation for medical and other interventions designed to diagnose, assess, and treat cardiovascular disease. The focus is on particularly common syndromes in the elderly, including cardiac failure with normal ejection fraction, isolated systolic hypertension, and atrial fibrillation. Wherever possible, the authors take an evidence-based approach to recommendations and rely heavily on prospective clinical trials.

A comprehensive review of all aspects of hypertension in the elderly using the most current clinical data. Topics range from basic concepts, epidemiology and trials, and evaluation and management, to pharmacologic treatment, special populations, and adherence, all presented with an emphasis on the optimal management of patients. The authors examine in detail the mechanisms of hypertension in the elderly, the lifestyle trials and outcomes trials that were conducted in older persons, as well as the problems of clinical evaluation, secondary hypertension, adherence, and target organ damage. Extensive discussions of pharmacologic therapy detail the role of all the major drug classes.