Eldercare, Aging and Long Term Care

CNADC - PPA and Frontal Dementia.

What is Primary Progressive Aphasia? Primary Progressive Aphasia (PPA) is a form of dementia that can occur in individuals under the age of 65 (and sometimes as early as in the 40’s), and involves a decline in one or more language functions. It is due to brain cell degeneration. “Aphasia” is a general term used to refer to deficits in language functions. Our language functions include speaking, understanding what others are saying, repeating things we have heard, naming common objects, reading and writing. PPA begins very gradually and initially is experienced as difficulty thinking of common words while speaking or writing. PPA progressively worsens to the point where verbal communication by any means is very difficult. The ability to understand what others are saying or what is being read also declines. In the early stages, memory, reasoning and visual perception are not affected by the disease and so individuals with PPA are able to function normally in many routine daily living activities despite the aphasia. However, as the illness progresses, other mental abilities also decline. The time frame within which these changes occur varies greatly between patients. A few cases have been reported in which language deficits were the only symptoms for at least 10 years. On average, impairments are confined exclusively to the area of language for approximately 5 years, but may spread to other areas after 2 years. Primary Progressive Aphasia A form of dementia caused by a disease process in the brain that results in degeneration of nerve cells in the parts of the brain that control our ability to use language Begins with the slow decline of the ability to use language in speaking, understanding, reading and writing Other types of mental processes are relatively normal initially and may remain normal for years, but begin to decline with time This form of dementia is more prevalent in males than in females in comparison to dementia that involves forgetfulness or memory loss, which is more prevalent in females This form of dementia is also more common in younger individuals, with symptoms usually starting in the 50’s

Basics - Bone, a Masterpiece of Elastic Strength - NYTimes.com.

Bone is built of two basic components: flexible fibers of collagen and brittle chains of the calcium-rich mineral hydroxyapatite. But those relatively simple ingredients, the springy and the salty, are woven together into such a complex cat’s cradle of interdigitating layers that the result is an engineering masterpiece of tensile, compressive and elastic strength. “We only wish we could mimic it,” Dr. Ritchie said. Or at least mimic the signals that keep our 206 bones in line. Diseases of excess bone growth are rare, but bone degradation is an almost inevitable symptom of aging, and the severe form called osteoporosis is considered a major and mounting medical crisis. Unfortunately, said Dr. Mone Zaidi, a professor of medicine at Mount Sinai, “the armamentarium for osteoporosis is quite small compared to that for other age-related diseases like high blood pressure.”

San Francisco Reporter, 90, Covers Science Beat With Verve - NYTimes.com.

It would be hard to find an older newspaper reporter than David Perlman, the 90-year-old science writer for The San Francisco Chronicle.

Why Do We Avoid Advance Directives? - The New Old Age Blog - NYTimes.com.

It’s startling how few Americans have advance directives, an umbrella term including living wills that state your wishes and health care proxies that designate someone to carry them out if you can’t. A Pew Research Center survey in 2006 found that only 29 percent of people had a living will; in 2007, a Harris Interactive study (PDF) put the proportion with advance directives at two in five. Even among “severely or terminally ill patients,” the majority had no advance directives in their medical records, researchers for the federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality reported a few years ago.

Nurse Called Out Of Surgery And Laid Off.

MADISON, Wis. — A nurse was called out of surgery so a manager could tell her she was being laid off. Dean Health said the surgery was minor and the patient wasn't affected, but the manager who summoned the nurse from surgery violated medical protocol. Dean Health spokesman Paul Pitas said the incident happened at Dean's West Clinic in Madison on Wednesday or Thursday. Pitas said there was a period of time in which a nurse wasn't present during the procedure. He said while there were other clinical staff present, the absence of a nurse is a violation of patient care procedures. The Madison-based health care provider announced Wednesday that it planned to "immediately" lay off 90 employees. Pitas declined to name the employees involved or what type of surgery the nurse was attending when she was called away.

Sensors Help Keep the Elderly Safe, and at Home - NYTimes.com.

A wireless sensor under Ms. Branch’s bed detected that she had gotten up. Motion detectors in her bedroom and bathroom registered that she had not left the area in her usual pattern and relayed that information to a central monitoring system, prompting a call to her telephone to ask if she was all right. When she did not answer, that incited more calls — to a neighbor, to the building manager and finally to 911, which dispatched firefighters to break through her door. She had been on the floor less than an hour when they arrived.

Info Long-Term Care: Home Modifications: Use, Cost, and Interactions with Functioning Among Near-Elderly and Older Adults.

From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, this report analyzes new data from a module of the 2006 Health and Retirement Study on assistive home features for near-elderly and older adults. In 2006, two-thirds of the population born in 1953 or earlier (ages 52 and older) had one or more assistive home features, about one-third added at least one of these features, and 40% used at least one feature in the last 30 days.

Exercise reduces falls in older people | Eureka! Science News.

Exercise programmes are an effective option for preventing falls among older people living in the community. There is less evidence at present for the effectiveness of other interventions, such as home safety improvements and vitamin D supplements, according to Cochrane Researchers who carried out a systematic review of the available evidence. Although few falls result in serious injuries, they may have many additional impacts on an older person's quality of life. For example, after a fall, they may feel less confident and decide to restrict their own activities to avoid further accidents. It is therefore important to consider how falls can be prevented in order to provide peace of mind for those at risk, as well as family members.

Study Finds Risk of Dementia Increases After Hypoglycemia - NYTimes.com.

People with Type 2 diabetes may be at increased risk for developing dementia as they age, several studies have suggested. Now researchers say the higher odds may be linked to life-threatening drops in blood sugar, or hypoglycemia, usually caused by excess insulin.

Stem Cells Buy Freedom From Insulin for Type 1 Diabetics - Forbes.com.

A particular type of stem cell transplantation using the patient's own cells led to short-term freedom from insulin injections in 20 of 23 patients newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes participating in an experimental protocol in Brazil. One patient even managed to go four years without needing outside sources of insulin, although the average was 31 months, said the authors of a report in the April 15 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, a themed issue on diabetes.