ApoE4.Info

So sorry, (((G.))) I'm sending lots of love and healing energy your way.

G, sending positive energy and healing thoughts your way. I hope these complications and surgeries end soon, and your can return to your normal routine. If you're up to it, loopy posts are welcome.

G, add me to the list of sincere well wishers!! Please try not to fret...I'm an honest believer in positive thoughts being good for the body. Just rest and believe all will be well!

~ Sending you some peace today G ~

H Julie, I recently listened to the Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle and found it very calming.
Good Luck,
Maureen

Maureen, I'm reading "The Power of Now", right now, how coincidental! I'm enjoying it; I completely identify with his mention of "knowing" in the depths of your soul and "the watcher vs. the thinker". I'm only into the first 20 or so pages, but good stuff in my opinion...

I love Eckhart Tolle's work, including the Power of Now. For quite a while, I listened to recordings of live programs he did. Some years ago, Oprah did a major event with 10 sessions with Tolle on his book A New Earth. I imagine they are still available for free somewhere, perhaps on Oprah's web site.

More research on propofol.

"We know from previous research that general anaesthetics including propofol act on sleep systems in the brain, much like a sleeping pill," Associate Professor van Swinderen said.

"But our study found that propofol also disrupts presynaptic mechanisms, probably affecting communication between neurons across the entire brain in a systematic way that differs from just being asleep. In this way it is very different than a sleeping pill."

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2 ... 153446.htm

Full text here.

I hope Julie's surgery went well.

Oh dear- have had several emergency ops in the past (bowel obstructions) and the last one took all day as they had to take all the scar tissue out and resect a lot of bowel. Have had a sigmoid colectomy also which was about 4 hrs and others as well. and a more recent vascular surgery. I guess most of them have been life saving but a bit worried about the future cognitive affects.

They won't / can't do any more surgery unless life saving (so another obstruction) so need to keep fingers crossed that doesn't happen.

I am a bit concerned about the future now after that, I also had severe cognitive disfunction and psychosis on recovery from the surgery- which did respond well to a lot of sleep and some meds. So it is possible to recover from such things- and I have 3/4 so maybe that helped. I think this is rare though and I had usually severe episodes and surgery. Maybe being relatively young helps. I guess we need to try and look on the positive side of things. Sometimes these things can't be helped.

I read this useful paper which was helpful. In particular that there is cognitive disfunction which improves. I was told it was related to cortisol and stress, mainly at the time, and the lack of sleep in the time before the op, in combination. https://www.omicsonline.org/does-genera ... p?aid=4796

and this one more specific to APOE4
http://anesthesiology.pubs.asahq.org/ar ... id=1933714

"These results provide the direct evidence for a strong association between the ApoE4 and transient postoperative cognitive dysfunction in patients undergoing inhalation anesthesia. In contrast, presence of the ApoE ε4 allele did not correlate with reduced MMSE scores in the intravenous anesthesia group"

Conclusions
"There is a strong association between ApoE4 and transient POCD in patients undergoing inhalation anesthesia. Compared with inhalation anesthesia, TIVA is more suitable for elderly patients because it has no observable effect on cognitive function of elderly patients after surgery, especially those carrying the ApoE ε4 allele."

Intersting. So it may be more about the type of anaesthetic. I had laughing gas as a child, for a minor op, but think it is mainly IV in the UK. I am unsure about the other type. these articles may be of use to read for anyone considering surgery.

Please note I don't want to frighten anyone, I had more recent surgery and was OK. I'm sure most normal planned surgeries don't result in psychosis! and even if they do, it is possible to return to normal after.

Nothing has been posted in this thread for almost a year. Any new info on anesthesia out there?

I am concerned because someone I know, a 70 year old female ApoE4 carrier has been recommended for Electro Convulsive Therapy (ECT). I expressed my findings/concerns in this thread. Electroshock and 3/4

Anesthesia (intravenous) has to be administered during each ECT session and her recommended regimen will require 3 days a week for 6 weeks, with sessions lasting 15 to 20 minutes. That seems like A LOT of anesthesia to me. From the research I did and the paper I found on the role of ApoE4 in recovering from ECT (yes, a lengthy paper that actually singles out ApoE4 for a particular therapy AND it revealed that in one of the studies, under certain circumstances, ApoE4 actually produced a BETTER response!) So I’m not so much concerned about the procedure, although I’m not cavalier, there ARE risks, but I AM concerned about all that anesthesia. Misguided?

Any thoughts?