Gérontôpole, University of Toulouse, France
Brief description and aims of work
Toulouse University Hospital (CHU) represents the reference in the health sector in the south of France. It’s the fourth largest French hospital in terms of activity. The Minister of Health announced in April 2007 the creation of the first “Gérontopôle” in Toulouse, whose one of its main missions is to develop clinical research on Alzheimer's disease in older adults.
The Gérontopôle has 3 objectives responding to the needs of the elderly:
- For the frail elderly: Allowing access to diagnosis, innovation and clinical research
- For the healthy elderly: Creation of an Institute of Ageing for the development and validation of strategies of prevention and education
- For the dependant elderly: Integration of the Gérontopôle and the geriatric care pathway in order to develop clinical research, including demented patients.
Bruno Vellas, MD, PhD, professor, is in charge of the activities and contributions from the Toulouse University Hospital within the Consortium. He is the Chair of Toulouse Gérontopôle and the Chief of Department of Internal Medicine and Geriatrics in Toulouse University hospital. He coordinates national and international research projects in Alzheimer Disease. Furthermore, Bruno Vellas has much experience with complex major research projects involving different stakeholders (CenGeps network, Aging Team Inserm U558) and EU projects (EADC -European Alzheimer’s Disease Consortium).
Team members
| Prof. Bruno Vellas |
| Maria Soto, MD, Head of Alzheimer Acute Care Unit |
| Agathe Milhet, Clinical Research Attached |
Selected recent publications
- Vellas B, Coley N, Andrieu S. Disease modifying trials in Alzheimer's disease: perspectives for the future. J Alzheimers Dis 2008; 15: 289-301
- Lechowski L, de Stampa M, Denis B, Tortrat D, Chassagne P, Robert P, Teillet L, Vellas B. Patterns of loss of abilities in instrumental activities of daily living in Alzheimer's disease: the REAL cohort study: Dement Geriatr Cogn Disord 2008; 25: 46-53
- Soto ME, Nourhashémi F, Arbus C, Villars H, Balardy L, Andrieu S, Vellas B. Special acute care unit for older adults with Alzheimer's disease. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry 2008; 23: 215-9
- Soto ME, Andrieu S, Cantet C, Reynish E, Ousset PJ, Arbus C, Gillette-Guyonnet S, Nourhashémi F, Vellas B; REAL.FR group. Predictive value of rapid decline in mini mental state examination in clinical practice for prognosis in Alzheimer's disease; Dement Geriatr Cogn Disord 2008; 26: 109-16
- Benoit M, Andrieu S, Lechowski L, Gillette-Guyonnet S, Robert PH, Vellas B. The REAL-FR group. Apathy and depression in Alzheimer's disease are associated with functional deficit and psychotropic prescription. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry 2008; 23: 409-14
- • Reynish E, Cortes F, Andrieu S, Cantet C, Olde Rikkert M, Melis R, Froelich L, Frisoni GB, Jönsson L, Visser PJ, Ousset PJ, Vellas B, ICTUS Study Group. The ICTUS Study: a prospective longitudinal observational study of 1,380 AD patients in Europe. Study design and baseline characteristics of the cohort. Neuroepidemiology 2007; 29; 29-38
- Nourhashémi F, Ousset PJ, Gillette-Guyonnet S, Cantet C, Andrieu S, Vellas B. A 2-year follow-up of 233 very mild (CDR 0.5) Alzheimer's disease patients (REAL.FR cohort). Int J Geriatr Psychiatry 2008; 23: 460-5
- Gillette-Guyonnet S, Andrieu S, Nourhashemi F, Reynish E, Vellas B. Response to letter from Garcia and colleagues on cholinesterase inhibitors and Alzheimer's disease outcomes. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 2007; 62: 679-80
- Soto M, Reynish E, Nourhashémi F, Vellas B. Clinical aspects of Alzheimer's disease. Presse Med 2007; 36: 1491-9