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Background: Open-angle glaucoma (OAG) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that may lead to blindness. An elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) is its major risk factor. OAG treatment is currently exclusively directed towards the lowering of the IOP. IOP lowering does not prevent disease progression in all patients and thus other treatment modalities are needed. Earlier studies reported cholesterol-lowering drugs to have neuroprotective properties. The aim of this study was to determine the associations between the use of cholesterol-lowering drugs and incident OAG. Methodology/Principal Findings: Participants in a prospective population-based cohort study underwent ophthalmic examinations, including IOP measurements and perimetry, at baseline and follow-up. The use of statins and non-statin cholesterol-lowering drugs was monitored continuously during the study. Associations between the use of cholesterol-lowering drugs and incident OAG were analyzed with Cox regression; associations between cholesterol-lowering drugs and IOP at follow-up were analyzed with multiple linear regression. During a mean follow-up of 9.8 years, 108 of 3939 eligible participants (2.7%) developed OAG. The hazard ratio for statin use was 0.54 (95% confidence interval 0.31-0.96; P = 0.034) and for non-statin cholesterol-lowering drugs 2.07 (0.81-5.33; P = 0.13). The effect of statins was more pronounced with prolonged use (hazard ratio 0.89 [0.41-1.94; P = 0.77] for use two years or less; 0.46 [0.23-0.94; P = 0.033] for use more than two years; P-value for trend 0.10). The analyzes were adjusted for age and gender, baseline IOP and IOP-lowering treatment, the family history of glaucoma, and myopia. There was no effect of statins on the IOP. Conclusions/Significance: Long-term use of statins appears to be associated with a reduced risk of OAG. The observed effect was independent of the IOP. These findings are in line with the idea that statins have neuroprotective properties and may open a way to a new OAG treatment modality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To estimate the prevalence of glucose intolerance in the elderly, oral glucose tolerance tests were performed as part of the Rotterdam Study, a population-based study in subjects aged 55 years and over. The study population consisted of 2, 668 men and 3, 950 women. Diabetes mellitus was defined as the use of antidiabetes medication, or a random or post-load serum glucose level of ≧11.1 mmol/liter. Impaired glucose tolerance was defined as a post-load serum glucose between 7.8 and 11.1 mmol/liter. In men, the frequency of diabetes mellitus ranged from 5.9% in ages ≪60 years to 19.8% in ages >85 years, and in women from 3.8% in ages ≪60 years to 18.9% in ages >85 years; more than half of the subjects with diabetes were newly diagnosed. The prevalence of impaired glucose tolerance ranged from 8.8% and 11.0% in men and women aged ≪60 years to 24.3% and 34.7% in men and women aged >85 years. The prevalence of diabetes mellitus in the total Rotterdam Study population of 7, 439 elderly men and women was estimated to be 11.3% (95% confidence interval (Cl) 10.5–12.0). Waist/hip ratio, systolic blood pressure, hypertension, and number of cigarettes smoked increased with a worsening of the glucose tolerance from normal, hyperinsulinemia, impaired glucose tolerance to diabetes in both men and women (p ≪ 0.01, adjusted for age). Body mass index was higher in subjects with glucose intolerance, but the frequency of obesity showed a relative decrease with worsening of glucose tolerance. These results show that glucose intolerance, especially impaired glucose tolerance and undetected diabetes mellitus, is common in the elderly. Moreover, not only subjects with diabetes mellitus but also subjects with hyperinsulinemia and Impaired glucose tolerance have an increase of cardiovascular risk factors. Am J Epidemiol 1997; 145: 24–32. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Staphylococcus aureus is capable of persistently colonizing the vestibulum nasi. We hypothesized that polymorphisms in host inflammatory response genes and genetic variation in S. aureus contribute to susceptibility to S. aureus carriage and infection., Methods: The prevalence of persistent nasal carriage of S. aureus in 3851 participants aged 61-101 years was 18% (678 of 3851 participants), whereas 73% of volunteers (2804 of 3851) were not colonized. A total of 1270 individuals had boils. Polymorphisms in TNFA (C -863T), IL4 (C -542T), CFH (Tyr402His), and CRP (C1184T, C2042T, and C2911G) were determined. Genetic similarity among 428 S. aureus isolates was determined by use of amplified fragment length polymorphism analysis (AFLP)-mediated genotyping., Results: The IL4 -524 C/C host genotype was associated with an increased risk of persistent S. aureus carriage, irrespective of S. aureus AFLP genotype. The CRP haplotype 1184C; 2042C; 2911C was overrepresented in individuals who were not colonized . In individuals with boils, carriers of the CFH Tyr402 variant, and the CRP 2911 C/C genotype were overrepresented., Conclusion: Persistent carriage of S. aureus is influenced by genetic variation in host inflammatory response genes. As would be expected in multifactorial host-microbe interactions, these effects are limited. Interestingly, host genotype was associated with the carriage of certain S. aureus genotypes. Apparently, a close interaction between host and bacterial determinants are prerequisites for long-term colonization.