Alzheimer’s Dementia After Exposure to Anesthesia and Surgery in the Elderly: A Matched Natural Experiment Using Appendicitis

This study examines elderly patients with appendicitis, a common condition that strikes mostly at random after controlling for some known associations. Methods: A matched natural experiment of patients undergoing appendectomy for appendicitis versus control patients without appendicitis using Medicare data from 2002 to 2017, examining 54,996 patients without previous diagnoses of ADRD, cognitive impairment, or neurological degeneration, who developed appendicitis between ages 68 through 77 years and underwent an appendectomy (the ‘‘Appendectomy’’ treated group), matching them 5:1 to 274,980 controls, examining the subsequent hazard for developing ADRD. Results: The hazard ratio (HR) for developing ADRD or death was lower in the Appendectomy group than controls: HR = 0.96 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.94–0.98], P
Source: Annals of Surgery - Category: Surgery Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research