The C.A.M. Report
Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Fair, Balanced, and to the Point
  • About this web log

    This blog ran from 2006 to 2016 and was intended as an objective and dispassionate source of information on the latest CAM research. Since my background is in pharmacy and allopathic medicine, I view all CAM as advancing through the development pipeline to eventually become integrated into mainstream medical practice. Some will succeed while others fail. But all are treated fairly here.

  • About the author

    John Russo, Jr., PharmD, is president of The MedCom Resource, Inc. Previously, he was senior vice president of medical communications at www.Vicus.com, a complementary and alternative medicine website.

  • Common sense considerations

    The material on this weblog is for informational purposes. It is not medical advice or counsel. Be smart, consult your health professional before using CAM.

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  • Recent Comments

    Risk of cognitive decline in the elderly following surgery

    Dementia_eIt’s generally assumed that older adults may experience memory loss and other problems in cognition (reasoning) following surgery.

    Results from a study at Washington University, in St. Louis, Missouri suggest otherwise.

    First, the details.

    • The medical records of 575 older adults, some with very mild or mild dementia were reviewed.
    • They were divided into 3 groups.
      • Those with noncardiac surgery
      • With illness
      • Neither
    • They were followed long-term for cognitive function before and after surgery and illness.

    And, the results.

    • Changes in cognition didn’t differ among the 3 groups.
    • However, demented participants declined more markedly than nondemented participants.
    • Of the initially nondemented participants, 23% progressed to dementia; but this wasn’t more common after surgery or illness.

    The bottom line?
    Dr. John Morris concluded, “There has been a widespread belief that the memory and thinking abilities of patients with early Alzheimer’s disease may worsen as a consequence of surgery, but the evidence from this study does not support that belief.”

    11/21/09 20:15 JR

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