The Impact of Aging on Cardio and Cerebrovascular Diseases

Abstract

A growing number of evidences report that aging represents the major risk factor for the development of cardio and cerebrovascular diseases. Understanding Aging from a genetic, biochemical and physiological point of view could be helpful to design a better medical approach and to elaborate the best therapeutic strategy to adopt, without neglecting all the risk factors associated with advanced age. Of course, the better way should always be understanding risk-to-benefit ratio, maintenance of independence and reduction of symptoms. Although improvements in treatment of cardiovascular diseases in the elderly population have increased the survival rate, several studies are needed to understand the best management option to improve therapeutic outcomes. The aim of this review is to give a 360° panorama on what goes on in the fragile ecosystem of elderly, why it happens and what we can do, right now, with the tools at our disposal to slow down aging, until new discoveries on aging, cardio and cerebrovascular diseases are at hand.

Keywords: aging; cardiovascular diseases; genetics; molecular mechanisms.

Figure 1

Schematic representation of the major cardio- and cerebrovascular processes involved in the aging progression.

Figure 2

Schematic of the main genes involved in aging regulation and their related molecular mechanisms in heart and vasculature. The green arrows indicate the increase in production/expression; the red arrows indicate the decrease in production/expression.