The Challenge of Senior In-Home Caregiving

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GIVEN THAT SO MANY older adults prefer to age in place for as long as possible, the assistance of home health aides has become a major industry and means of helping people stay in their homes longer. But it’s a sector of the senior housing market that’s often recognized more for its challenges than for how it can empower families to live their best lives.

As both a consumer of home health aide services and a senior care industry insider, Matt Perrin, co-founder of the independent online senior living facility review site Ro & Steve, says the challenge families face when arranging stable and qualified in-home senior care services are pressing, and very real.

“For us as consumers, it just comes down to a stability issue,” he says, explaining how arranging appropriate care for his wife’s father, who lives with them in New Hampshire, has been an ongoing process that requires flexibility and a lot of advocacy. From simple logistics of making sure the Perrin family has coverage when they need it to making sure the caregivers they’re working with are a good fit for his father-in-law’s temperament and medical conditions, the whole endeavor is an ongoing process that has involved working with several agencies and many different caregivers.

Full story at US News

Hearing loss and cognitive decline: Study probes link

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Recent research adds to a growing body of knowledge that links hearing loss with cognitive decline, which is a hallmark of dementia and often precedes the disease.

After analyzing 8 years of data from a health study of more than 10,000 men, scientists at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, both in Boston, MA, found that hearing loss is tied to an appreciably higher risk of subjective cognitive decline.

In addition, the analysis revealed that the size of the risk went up in line with the severity of hearing loss.

Full story at Medical News Today

Extremely high blood pressure in African-Americans is 5 times the national average

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Extremely high blood pressure that leads to strokes, heart attacks and acute kidney damage, classified as hypertensive emergency, is five times higher in inner-city African-American patients than the national average, according to a recent study co-lead by a Rutgers researcher.

The study, which is the largest one of its kind to compare the development of hypertensive emergency in a United States inner city, appears in the journal Blood Pressure.

One in three adults have high blood pressure known as hypertension, with the highest rates among African-Americans. In addition to being very common, high blood pressure in African-Americans develops earlier in life but has lower control rates compared to other racial-ethnic groups. Higher than average blood pressure results in the development of serious health complications that come with it. The study sought to determine the prevalence and risk factors of high blood pressure escalating to severe cases among African-Americans.

Full story at Science Daily

‘Bugs’ in the gut might predict dementia in the brain

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The makeup of bacteria and other microbes in the gut may have a direct association with dementia risk, according to preliminary research to be presented in Honolulu at the American Stroke Association’s International Stroke Conference 2019, a world premier meeting for researchers and clinicians dedicated to the science and treatment of cerebrovascular disease.

Researchers studying the population of bacteria and microbes in the intestines, known as gut microbiota, have found these “bugs” impact risks for diseases of the heart and more. Japanese researchers studied 128 (dementia and non-dementia) patients’ fecal samples and found differences in the components of gut microbiota in patients with the memory disorder suggesting that what’s in the gut influences dementia risk much like other risk factors.

The analysis revealed that fecal concentrations of ammonia, indole, skatole and phenol were higher in dementia patients compared to those without dementia. But levels of Bacteroides — organisms that normally live in the intestines and can be beneficial — were lower in dementia patients.

Full story at Science Daily

Addressing Prescription Drug Addiction in Older Adults

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WHEN THINKING ABOUT prescription drug addiction, one might understandably and automatically picture a young adult. Those 18 to 25 years of age “are the biggest abusers of prescription … opioid pain relievers, ADHD stimulants and anti-anxiety drugs,” according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse. However, research shows that there’s been a surge over the past decade in opioid misuse – which includes heroin as well as the powerful prescription pain narcotics like fentanyl fueling an overdose epidemic – in older adults.

In fact, between 2002 and 2014, opioid abuse nearly doubled in those 50 and older (from about 1 to 2 percent), while declining in younger age groups. And a report from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality released in September found that, among people 65 and older, opioid-related emergency room visits were up 74 percent from 2010 to 2015 and opioid-related inpatient stays were up 34 percent. (That compares to a 17 percent decrease in non-opioid related hospital stays and ER visits.) In 2015, there were 124,300 opioid-related hospital admissions of patients 65 and up in the U.S. “So it’s a big problem,” says Dr. Arlene Bierman, director of AHRQ’s Center for Evidence and Practice Improvement, who was involved in the research and is the corresponding author on the report.

Full story at US News

How Exercise Can Help in Peripheral Artery Disease

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IT’S SOMETIMES CALLED “window-shopper’s disease.” As walking brings on leg cramps and pain, people with peripheral artery disease must frequently stop for breaks. When they rest, pain subsides. When they resume walking, PAD pain kicks back in.

PAD is common among older adults. About one in every 20 Americans over age 50 has PAD, with up to 12 million people affected overall, according to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.

People may mistakenly believe painful walking is part of normal aging. However, PAD is linked to higher risks of cardiovascular complications such as heart attacks or strokes. PAD shouldn’t be suffered stoically or in silence. If you have symptoms, you need a medical evaluation.

Full story at US News

Why Power of Attorney Can Be Key for Senior Health Care

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IN THE VAST constellation of legal documents you could encounter over your lifetime, some are more critical than others. For older adults, a few legal instruments take on outsized importance, particularly in the context of ensuring adequate health care as we age. While some documents that older adults may need are focused on the financial side of your affairs, others concern how decisions will be made about your health care. The information that follows will focus on the documents related to health care that may come into play as you age.

As you navigate these legal waters for yourself or a loved one, some legal terms and documents you may encounter include:

  • Living will
  • Advance directive
  • Do not resuscitate order
  • Physician orders for life-sustaining treatment
  • Health care proxy
  • Power of attorney
  • Guardianship or conservatorship

Full story at US News

Targeting ‘hidden pocket’ for treatment of stroke and seizure

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The ideal drug is one that only affects the exact cells and neurons it is designed to treat, without unwanted side effects. This concept is especially important when treating the delicate and complex human brain. Now, scientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory have revealed a mechanism that could lead to this kind of long-sought specificity for treatments of strokes and seizures.

According to Professor Hiro Furukawa, the senior scientist who oversaw this work, “it really comes down to chemistry.”

When the human brain is injured, such as during a stroke, parts of the brain begin to acidify. This acidification leads to the rampant release of glutamate.

“We suddenly get more glutamate all over the place that hits the NMDA receptor and that causes the NMDA receptor to start firing quite a lot,” explains Furukawa.

Full story at Science Daily

Why Older Adults Should Eat More Protein (And Not Overdo Protein Shakes)

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Older adults need to eat more protein-rich foods when losing weight, dealing with a chronic or acute illness, or facing a hospitalization, according to a growing consensus among scientists.

During these stressful periods, aging bodies process protein less efficiently and need more of it to maintain muscle mass and strength, bone health and other essential physiological functions.

Even healthy seniors need more protein than when they were younger to help preserve muscle mass, experts suggest. Yet up to one-third of older adults don’t eat an adequate amount due to reduced appetite, dental issues, impaired taste, swallowing problems and limited financial resources. Combined with a tendency to become more sedentary, this puts them at risk of deteriorating muscles, compromised mobility, slower recovery from bouts of illness and the loss of independence.

Full story at Kaiser Health News

Following heart health guidelines also reduces diabetes risk

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Lifestyle and health factors that are good for your heart can also prevent diabetes, according to a new study by researchers at The Ohio State University College of Medicine that published today in Diabetologia, the journal of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes.

Diabetes is a growing problem in the United States, with nearly a third of the population living with diabetes or prediabetes, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Dr. Joshua J. Joseph, an endocrinologist and assistant professor at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, wants to bring those numbers down. He studies various ways to prevent diabetes. His latest work looked at how cardiovascular health can impact diabetes risk.

“This research adds to our collective understanding about how physicians can help their patients prevent a number of serious diseases, including heart disease, cancer and now diabetes,” said Dr. K. Craig Kent, dean of the College of Medicine.

Full story at Science Daily