Review Article

The importance of the cardiovascular system to the frailty syndrome of the elderly

Elias Hountis

• Postgraduate Program “Metabolic Bone Diseases”, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Medical School, Athens, Greece

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Keywords: Cardiovascular system, Elderly people, Frailty, Muscular system, Osteoporosis

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Abstract

“Frailty syndrome“ is usually associated with the elderly and is regarded as a generalized state of increased sensitivity that affects mainly the muscular as whell as the cardiovascular system. The correlation between osteoporosis and the poor state of the muscular system, the loss of muscle strength that occurs with aging creates an increased propensity for falls. The correlation between cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis has been vastly attributed to the effects of osteogenic factors such as BMP’s (bone morphogenetic proteins), ALP (alkaline phosphatas), OPN (osteopontin) and MPG (matrix Gla protein) on vascular calcifications.Currently, a number of studies are seeking to establish a common pathway also between frailty and cardiovascular disease and the importance of interactions between those two systems. in this short article we are presenting some of these new data.

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