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Clearing pollution helps clear the fog of aging — and may cut the risk of dementia

During the past decade, a growing body of research has shown that air pollution harms older adults' brains, contributing to cognitive decline and dementia. What hasn't been clear is whether improving air quality would benefit brain health.

20 Sep 2022

Private equity sees the billions in eye care as firms target high-profit procedures

Christina Green hoped cataract surgery would clear up her cloudy vision, which had worsened after she took a drug to fight her breast cancer.

19 Sep 2022

Daily multivitamin improves cognitive function in seniors

In a recent study published in the journal Alzheimer's & Dementia, researchers in the United States investigated whether daily administration of a cocoa extract (CE, comprising 500 mg flavanols, including 80 mg epicatechins, 50 mg/day theobromine (50 mg/day), and 15mg/day caffeine) and/or an MVM (multivitamin-mineral) for three years protected cognitive functions among older men and women.

18 Sep 2022

Court ruling may spur competitive health plans to bring back copays for preventive services

Tom and Mary Jo York are a health-conscious couple, going in for annual physicals and periodic colorectal cancer screening tests. Mary Jo, whose mother and aunts had breast cancer, also gets regular mammography tests.

15 Sep 2022

COVID-19 risk substantially reduced in seniors who receive 4th mRNA booster

In a recent study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, researchers in Singapore estimated the effectiveness of the second booster (fourth dose) vaccination with messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) vaccines against symptomatic severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections with the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant and associated hospitalizations with among individuals aged ≥80 years.

14 Sep 2022

‘An Arm and a Leg’: The new cap on Medicare drug costs

On a Sunday afternoon in August, health services researcher Stacie Dusetzina was sitting alone in her office at Vanderbilt University, watching C-SPAN and crying.

12 Sep 2022

While inflation takes a toll on seniors, billions of dollars in benefits go unused

Millions of older adults are having trouble making ends meet, especially during these inflationary times. Yet many don't realize help is available, and some notable programs that offer financial assistance are underused.

12 Sep 2022

‘It’s becoming too expensive to live’: Anxious older adults try to cope with limited budgets

Economic insecurity is upending the lives of millions of older adults as soaring housing costs and inflation diminish the value of fixed incomes.

7 Sep 2022

$Multidisciplinary effort enhances care for older patients with hip fracture$

Multidisciplinary effort enhances care for older patients with hip fracture

A multidisciplinary effort to improve care for older patients who arrive at the emergency room with a hip fracture has decreased the time before they have surgery, shortened hospital stays, and resulted in better follow-up care, UT Southwestern physicians reported in Geriatric Nursing.

5 Sep 2022

Research shows how sensor-based health monitoring could help tackle age-related health problems

Specific changes in our movement patterns can be indicators of several health problems: For instance, decrease in strength often correlates with risk of falls, mild cognitive impairment, depression, sleep problems, respiratory problems, cardiac arrhythmias and increasing myocardial weakness or worsening of a COVID-19 infection.

30 Aug 2022

Higher-cost Medicare Advantage plan not linked to better quality health care for seniors

Enrolling in a higher-cost Medicare Advantage plan may not always get seniors better quality health care, according to a new RAND Corporation study.

29 Aug 2022

Her brother landed in a nursing home. She was sued over his bill.

Lucille Brooks was stunned to discover a nursing home in Monroe County, New York, was suing her. She had never been a patient there. Nor had her husband. "I thought this was crazy," she said, figuring it had to be a mistake.

18 Aug 2022

Study identifies an optimal rTMS treatment regimen for older adults

A new study published in Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience is the first to identify an optimal Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) treatment regimen for older adults with treatment-resistant depression, according to researchers at Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research and the Deanna and Sidney Wolk Center for Memory Health at Hebrew SeniorLife.

16 Aug 2022

Research analyzes the impact of virtual tours on older adults experiencing social isolation

Scientists have long known that social isolation is associated with a number of health problems, including increased risks for stroke and heart disease, as well as mental decline and even premature death. The risks are especially acute for older adults, who are more likely to be socially isolated and lonely. The coronavirus pandemic only exacerbated the problem due to the need for social distancing, particularly to protect the health of the world's elderly population.

16 Aug 2022

No, the Senate-passed reconciliation bill won’t strip $300 billion from Medicare

As Senate Democrats raced to pass what could be their final piece of major legislation before the midterm elections, critics went to the airwaves to blast the proposal as hurting older Americans who rely on Medicare.

11 Aug 2022

UNH researchers receive $2.8 million NIH grant to develop and test social assistive robots

Researchers at the University of New Hampshire will receive a five-year grant totaling $2.8 million from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop and test social assistive robots to aid in the care of individuals with Alzheimer's disease and related dementia in the comfort of their own homes.

9 Aug 2022

Cognitive rehab may help older adults clear covid-related brain fog

Eight months after falling ill with covid-19, the 73-year-old woman couldn't remember what her husband had told her a few hours before. She would forget to remove laundry from the dryer at the end of the cycle. She would turn on the tap at a sink and walk away.

5 Aug 2022

38% of Americans make tradeoffs as inflation hits non-healthcare expenses, West Health-Gallup poll reveals

Higher healthcare prices drove 38% of American adults – representing an estimated 98 million people – to either delay or skip treatment, cut back on driving, utilities, and food, or borrow money to pay medical bills in the last six months, according to a new survey conducted by West Health and Gallup. The survey was conducted in June 2022, the same month inflation reached 9.1%, a new 40-year high.

5 Aug 2022

‘Children are not little adults’ and need special protection during heat waves

After more than a week of record-breaking temperatures across much of the country, public health experts are cautioning that children are more susceptible to heat illness than adults are — even more so when they're on the athletic field, living without air conditioning, or waiting in a parked car.

4 Aug 2022

What is the safety of Molnupiravir against SARS-CoV-2 in the elderly?

A new study assessed the safety of the oral administration of Molnupiravir to elderly patients––aged 80 or older, hospitalized with COVID-19.

1 Aug 2022