Gerontology, Softcover reprint of the original 1st ed. 1989 4th International Symposium Present State and Research Perspectives in the Experimental and Clinical Gerontology

At the beginning of the century the average life span in developed societies was less than 50 years. It is now more than 70 years and will continue to increase in the near future. Aging is a challenge to science and society. There are several theories of aging. The programmed aging hypothesis suggests that aging cannot be altered by any external influence, that aging is programmed from the beginning of life until the end of senescence. Another theory is based on genetic instability, with repair processes correcting errors in the cells that cause aging. Aging processes manifest themselves at the molecular and cellular level, in different organs, and in the whole organism. Most older persons acquire multiple diseases, primarily chronic ones. The multimorbidity of the elderly raises many questions as to nutrition, metabolism, immunity, drug therapy, and rehabilitation. Nutrition may be able to intervene in the aging process. Aging is associated with dec­ lining immunity and reduced resistance to many diseases, and it is pos­ sible that nutritional changes in old age contribute to the declining immunity in the elderly. The elderly take 40% of the prescription drugs in Germany and adverse drug reactions are more frequent in geriatric patients. There are not only problems in drug therapy for elderly pa­ tients, but also in their rehabilitation. The aim of rehabilitation is the restoration of geriatric patients to their former functional and environ­ mental status.

Molecular Aspects of Aging.- DNA — Information and Aging: The Balance Between Alteration and Repair.- Nonenzymatic Glycosylation of Collagen as a Model of Posttranslational Aging.- Age-Dependent Changes in Structure, Properties, and Biosynthesis of Collagen.- Cellular Aspects of Aging.- Advances in Cytogerontology.- Red Blood Cell Membrane — Composition and Aging.- Age-Dependent Phagocytosis by Short-Term Cultured Kupffer Cells.- Aging at the Organ Level.- Changes of Myocardial Structure with Aging.- Regulation of Force of Contraction in the Aged and Diseased Myocardium.- Drug Treatment of Hypertensive Geriatric Patients.- ?-Blockade in the Elderly.- The Aging Human Cerebral Cortex: Morphometry of Areal Differences and Their Functional Meaning.- The Amyloidosis of Alzheimer’s Disease.- Amyloid Deposits Derived from Various Proteins — A Hallmark of Old Age.- Metabolism and Nutrition in the Elderly.- Changes in Structure and Metabolism of Proteoglycans in Aging.- The Effect of Dietary Restriction on Life Span.- Nutritional Problems in Geriatric Patients.- Results from a Longitudinal Study of Initially 70-Year-Old Subjects in Giessen Followed Up for 10 Years.- Neuropathic, Microangiopathic, and Macroangiopathic Complications in Hospitalized Diabetic Patients of Old Age.- Clinical Pharmacology and Aging.- General Aspects of Pharmacokinetics in the Elderly.- Drug-Drug Interactions in Geriatric Patients.- Altered Response to Benzodiazepines in the Elderly.- Treatment with Diuretics in the Elderly.- Prevention and Rehabilitation.- Role of the Day Hospital in Rehabilitation and Resettlement at Home.- Geriatric Rehabilitation — The Present State and Further Developments.