Alcohol and cardiovascular disease in the geriatric population

Abstract

There has been little focus on the effects of alcohol on the elderly. Although the cardiovascular benefits of moderate alcohol consumption could be of the greatest benefit in this group, so might be the detrimental effects of abuse. In this article, we review available data on the effects of alcohol consumption on cardiovascular disease, cardiomyopathy, arrhythmias, hypertension, and vascular function in older adults. Alcohol consumption has increased in the US population age 65 years and older in the last decade, as has monthly heavy episodic drinking in older alcohol consumers. Studies of alcohol consumption in older subjects suggest that consumption in moderation does not increase the risk of heart failure, hypertension, or atrial arrhythmias, and may in fact improve vascular function and reduce cardiovascular disease events. As in younger subjects, heavy consumption, or abuse of alcohol, negates any potential protective cardiovascular effects, increasing the incidence of heart failure and hypertension. Although alcohol consumed in moderation does not appear harmful in the elderly population, heavier consumption exacerbates hypertension and increases the incidence of heart failure.

Mortality in older adults with frequent alcohol consumption and use of drugs with addiction potential – The Nord Trøndelag Health Study 2006-2008 (HUNT3), Norway, a population-based study

“…Moreover, our study focused on the association between drinking frequency and all-cause mortality. However, alcohol consumption also has other impacts, such as on morbidity [21, 31] and hospitalization [97]. Thus, if we had used other health outcomes such as use of health care resources, we might have found an association between frequent drinking and the outcome.…”

“…Heavy alcohol consumption has also been found to be related to increased mortality from cardiovascular disease [23] and alcohol-related cancer [21, 22]. Furthermore, heavy alcohol consumption is associated with a number of medical conditions, such as heart failure [31], hypertension [31], cardiac arrhythmia [21], stroke [21], liver disease [21], cancer [21], dementia [32] and mental health problems (depression, suicide, cognitive impairment) [33–35] all of which might increase mortality risk. In general, comparison of mortality in relation to alcohol consumption in studies of middle- aged and older adults are complicated due to the use of different alcohol measures, definitions and reference categories [10–16, 22–30].…”

Alcoholism: A Multi-Systemic Cellular Insult to Organs

“…In the case of stroke, studies showed a decreased risk of stroke associated with mild alcohol exposure (<15 g/day), while moderate drinkers showed no difference [ 31 ] compared to non-drinkers. Furthermore, it was reported that in older patients heavy alcohol increased their risk of heart failure and hypertension, whereas moderate alcohol drinking did not show negative effects on cardiovascular function [ 34 ]. Similarly, a meta-analysis and review by Briasoulis et al, 2102, indicated an increased risk of hypertension in men with heavy alcohol exposure, which was less obvious in moderate and low drinkers.…”

The Effect of Alcohol on Cardiovascular Risk Factors: Is There New Information?

“…The cardiovascular health effects of alcohol have classically been described as having a J-shaped curve, in which low-to-moderate consumers present less risk than lifetime abstainers, and heavy drinkers show the highest risk [5,19,20,[22][23][24][25]. Alcohol intake benefits not only healthy individuals, but also patients with established CVD [3,5].…”