AGING AND THE CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM: STRUCTURAL AND FUNCTIONAL ADAPTATIONS
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Keywords
Aging, Heart, Cardiovascular system, Structural Adaptation, Functional adaptation
Abstract
Background-With increasing age, there is a higher prevalence of cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension, atherosclerosis, myocardial infarction, and heart failure. Aging induces several significant structural and functional changes in the heart and blood vessels, impacting cardiovascular performance and increasing the risk of cardiovascular diseases (CVD). This article has explored the structural and functional adaptations in the cardiovascular system due to aging and its implications for health and disease. Materials and Methods- This cross sectional observational study was conducted from May 2021 to Jan 2024 in tertiary care hospital, Agra. In this study considering the measurements made from autopsies subjects and data was collected and compared the findings with the standard age and gender. Results: The study included 20 subjects, comprising 11 (55%) male and 9 (45%) female. Among these, 14 (70%) were age more than 60 years. There was significant increase in myocardial thickness with spheroid shape among 16(80%) subjects and more common in male. There was atherosclerosis and vascular stiffness was noted among 14(70%) subjects and more common in female. A significantly higher prevalence of vascular stiffness that indicated increased workload and decrease its reserve capacity and significant differences observed when compared with standard age and gender. Conclusion- Aging induces significant structural and functional changes in the cardiovascular system, increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease. It is hoped that improved understanding of the aged heart will enable the development of therapies which prevent the genesis of HF or at a minimum help clinicians to treat the unique properties of the failing, senescent heart.
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Reena Gupta
Associate Professor, Department of Anatomy, FH Medical College, Agra (UP)
Arvind kumar Pal
Associate Professor, Department of Physiology, ASMC, Firozabad (UP)
Vasudha Agrawal
Assistant Professor, Department of Anatomy, FH Medical College, Etmadpur, Agra (UP)