Bringing prevention in geriatrics: Evidences from cardiovascular medicine supporting the new challenge

Aging is a dynamic and systemic process, with high inter-individual heterogeneity, likely partially adaptive. Cardiovascular disease and hypertension are among the leading conditions causing disabilities in older subjects. If, in accordance with most recent definition, prevention is any intervention before the patient receives a diagnosis, prevention is possible at any age. Additionally, disability and CV disease in the elderly may be prevented by targeting factors underlying and modulating the arterial aging process. Cross-talk between arterial and brain aging will be discussed in this context as a paradigmatic clinical model fostering prevention in older subjects. © 2012.