Viral hepatitis in the elderly.

Science.gov (United States)

Carrion, Andres F; Martin, Paul

2012-05-01

As life expectancy continues to rise, elderly adults represent a rapidly growing proportion of the population. The likelihood of complications of acute and chronic liver disease and overall mortality are higher in elderly populations. Several physiological changes associated with aging, greater prevalence of co-morbid conditions, and cumulative exposure to hepatotropic viruses and environmental hepatotoxins may contribute to worse outcomes of viral hepatitis in the elderly. Although pharmacotherapy for hepatitis B and C continues to evolve, the efficacy, tolerability, and side effects of these agents have not been studied extensively in elderly adults. Immunization against hepatitis A and B in naïve elderly adults is an important public health intervention that needs to be revised and broadened.

The elderly and general anesthesia

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Steinmetz, J; Rasmussen, L S

2010-01-01

Due to the aging population, the number of elderly patients taking advantage of healthcare services is increasing. A general physical decline of all organ systems and a high frequency of chronic disease accompanying aging.Comorbidity and polypharmacy are therefore common in the elderly. Hence, th......, the administration of general anesthesia to the elderly can be a very challenging task. This paper aims to highlight some of the important issues presented to the elderly undergoing surgery and to suggest some strategies for management....

Perceived reasons for, opinions about, and suggestions for elders considering suicide: elderly outpatients' perspectives.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Ying-Jen; Tsai, Yun-Fang; Ku, Yan-Chiou; Lee, Shwu-Hua; Lee, Hsiu-Lan

2014-07-01

The purposes of this study were to explore elderly outpatients' perceived reasons for, opinions of, and suggestions for elderly people considering suicide in Taiwan. Elderly outpatients (N = 83) were recruited in 2011-2012 by convenience sampling from three randomly selected medical centers in Taiwan. Data were collected in individual interviews using a semi-structured guide and analyzed by content analysis. Findings revealed that most participants had heard of elderly suicide, with television news as the main source for their information. Their opinions about elderly suicide reflected judgmental attitudes, negative emotional reactions, expectations of social welfare, and could happen after losing one's meaning in life. Their suggestions for elderly people considering suicide fell into four major themes: give up suicidal ideas, seek help, enhance social welfare, and attend religious activities. Since television news was the main source for participants' information about elderly suicide, this mass medium should be used in suicide prevention to disseminate suicide knowledge, increase access to help, and strengthen suicide-protective factors among the elderly. Furthermore, no participants mentioned depression as a reason for attempted or completed suicide among older people despite depression being a well-known suicide-risk factor. Future suicide-prevention programs should emphasize the role of depression in suicide among older people. Participants also did not suggest that older people considering suicide seek help from the health system. Thus, older people should be educated about the role of the health system in suicide prevention and trained as gatekeepers to recognize signs of suicide ideation and respond appropriately.

Israeli Perspectives on Elder Abuse

Science.gov (United States)

Rabi, Keren

2006-01-01

Despite the prevailing agreement among researchers that the increasing rate of elder abuse in Israel is relatively understudied, not sufficiently identified, and not appropriately addressed, literature on elderly abuse in the Israeli society remains limited. The common discourse on aging, eldercare, and elder abuse and neglect, mainly revolves…

Epilepsy in the Elderly

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lu-An Chen

2012-06-01

Full Text Available Elderly people are the largest and continuously fastest growing population among patients with epilepsy. Elderly patients with epilepsy are very different from other age groups in many respects and clinicians shouldn’t treat them in the same way as younger adults. Accurate diagnosis of epilepsy in the elderly is much more difficult and atypical manifestations and misdiagnoses are certainly not the exception. Syncope is probably the most important differential diagnosis. High clinical suspicion and proper investigation are the best tools for prompt diagnosis. Etiologies of late-onset epilepsy are mainly symptomatic and cerebrovascular diseases are the most common causes in this age group, followed by degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease. It is appropriate to consider starting antiepileptic drug (AED treatment at the first-ever seizure in elderly patients who have remote symptomatic causes such as stroke and dementia. According to the high recurrence rate of seizure and the good response to AEDs in elderly patients, the proper choice from various AEDs for seizure control is very important. Decision-making for AED choice depends on many different factors, including pharmacological properties, efficacy, tolerability from side effects, drug interactions, and medical comorbidities. The newer AEDs with lesser adverse effects and fewer drug interactions appear to be reasonable treatment options for elderly patients. However, more evidence from clinical trials in this specific age group is warranted.

Poverty among Elderly in India

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Srivastava, Akanksha; Mohanty, Sanjay K.

2012-01-01

Using consumption expenditure data of the National Sample Survey 2004-2005, this paper estimates the size of elderly poor and tests the hypotheses that elderly households are not economically better-off compared to non-elderly households in India. Poverty estimates are derived under three scenarios--by applying the official cut-off point of the…

Phenomenology of ELDER dark matter

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Kuflik, Eric; Perelstein, Maxim; Lorier, Nicolas Rey-Le; Tsai, Yu-Dai

2017-08-01

We explore the phenomenology of Elastically Decoupling Relic (ELDER) dark matter. ELDER is a thermal relic whose present density is determined primarily by the cross-section of its elastic scattering off Standard Model (SM) particles. Assuming that this scattering is mediated by a kinetically mixed dark photon, we argue that the ELDER scenario makes robust predictions for electron-recoil direct-detection experiments, as well as for dark photon searches. These predictions are independent of the details of interactions within the dark sector. Together with the closely related Strongly-Interacting Massive Particle (SIMP) scenario, the ELDER predictions provide a physically motivated, well-defined target region, which will be almost entirely accessible to the next generation of searches for sub-GeV dark matter and dark photons. We provide useful analytic approximations for various quantities of interest in the ELDER scenario, and discuss two simple renormalizable toy models which incorporate the required strong number-changing interactions among the ELDERs, as well as explicitly implement the coupling to electrons via the dark photon portal.

Understanding elder abuse in family practice

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Yaffe, Mark J.; Tazkarji, Bachir

2012-01-01

Abstract Objective To discuss what constitutes elder abuse, why family physicians should be aware of it, what signs and symptoms might suggest mistreatment of older adults, how the Elder Abuse Suspicion Index might help in identification of abuse, and what options exist for responding to suspicions of abuse. Sources of information MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and Social Work Abstracts were searched for publications in English or French, from 1970 to 2011, using the terms elder abuse, elder neglect, elder mistreatment, seniors, older adults, violence, identification, detection tools, and signs and symptoms. Relevant publications were reviewed. Main message Elder abuse is an important cause of morbidity and mortality in older adults. While family physicians are well placed to identify mistreatment of seniors, their actual rates of reporting abuse are lower than those in other professions. This might be improved by an understanding of the range of acts that constitute elder abuse and what signs and symptoms seen in the office might suggest abuse. Detection might be enhanced by use of a short validated tool, such as the Elder Abuse Suspicion Index. Conclusion Family physicians can play a larger role in identifying possible elder abuse. Once suspicion of abuse is raised, most communities have social service or law enforcement providers available to do additional assessments and interventions. PMID:23242889

[Articles on elderly in Serbian medical journals].

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Despotović, Nebojsa; Milosević, Dragoslav P; Erceg, Predrag; Davidović, Mladen

2009-01-01

Population aging is a feature of all countries in the world. According to statistics, the Republic of Serbia is one of the countries with the majority of the elderly. Taking this into account, are articles on the elderly well represented in domestic medical journals? The aim of the paper was to determine whether there was a sufficient number of articles on the elderly in domestic medical journals. The articles on the elderly were searched using search engines in domestic and foreign medical journals for the last 5 years compared with the number of articles on children in the same publications for the same period. In the Serbian Citation Index, 11 articles on the topic of the elderly, and 487 on children were registered. In Srpski arhivza celokupno lekarstvo, there was registered only one article on the topic of the elderly, and 30 on children. In Vojnosanitetskipregled, 2 articles on the elderly and 13 on children were registered (p articles on the elderly and 759 articles on children; in the JAMA, there were 63 articles on the elderly and 303 articles on children; and in The Lancet, in the last five years, 46 articles on the elderly and 148 articles on children were published. The themes of the elderly were rarely represented in Serbian medical journals.This has reduced the interest of physicians in medical problems of this growing population of patients and further sent them away from making standards in the diagnosis and treatment of the elderly.

Rib and sternum fractures in the elderly and extreme elderly following motor vehicle crashes.

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Bansal, Vishal; Conroy, Carol; Chang, David; Tominaga, Gail T; Coimbra, Raul

2011-05-01

As the population ages, the need to protect the elderly during motor vehicle crashes becomes increasingly critical. This study focuses on causation of elderly rib and sternum fractures in seriously injured elderly occupants involved in motor vehicle crashes. We used data from the Crash Injury Research and Engineering Network (CIREN) database (1997-2009). Study case criteria included occupant (≥ 65 years old) drivers (sitting in the left outboard position of the first row) or passengers (sitting in the first row right outboard position) who were in frontal or side impacts. To avoid selection bias, only occupants with a Maximum Abbreviated Injury Scale (MAIS) 3 (serious) or greater severity injury were included in this study. Odds ratios were used as a descriptive measure of the strength of association between variables and Chi square tests were used to determine if there was a statistically significant relationship between categorical variables. Of the 211 elderly (65-79 years old) occupants with thoracic injury, 92.0% had rib fractures and 19.6% had sternum fractures. For the 76 extreme elderly (80 years or older) with thoracic injury, 90.4% had rib fractures and 27.7% had sternum fractures. Except for greater mortality and more rib fractures caused by safety belts, there were no differences between the extreme elderly and the elderly occupants. Current safety systems may need to be redesigned to prevent rib and sternum fractures in occupants 80 years and older. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Elder Abuse and Neglect

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Muge Gulen

2013-06-01

Full Text Available Abuse and neglect are preventable societal problems that influence elderly individuals physically, spiritually and socially. Elder abuse is neglected for many years and is a growing problem all over the world. The aim of this article is to review the evaluation of elderly individuals who are exposed to abuse and neglect with systematic detailed history and physical examination and to describe individual, familial, and social measures that should be taken to prevent these abuses. [Archives Medical Review Journal 2013; 22(3.000: 393-407

Elder abuse telephone screen reliability and validity.

Science.gov (United States)

Buri, Hilary M; Daly, Jeanette M; Jogerst, Gerald J

2009-01-01

(a) To identify reliable and valid questions that identify elder abuse, (b) to assess the reliability and validity of extant self-reported elder abuse screens in a high-risk elderly population, and (c) to describe difficulties of completing and interpreting screens in a high-need elderly population. All elders referred to research-trained social workers in a community service agency were asked to participate. Of the 70 elders asked, 49 participated, 44 completed the first questionnaire, and 32 completed the duplicate second questionnaire. A research assistant administered the telephone questionnaires. Twenty-nine (42%) persons were judged abused, 12 (17%) had abuse reported, and 4 (6%) had abuse substantiated. The elder abuse screen instruments were not found to be predictive of assessed abuse or as predictors of reported abuse; the measures tended toward being inversely predictive. Two questions regarding harm and taking of belongings were significantly different for the assessed abused group. In this small group of high-need community-dwelling elders, the screens were not effective in discriminating between abused and nonabused groups. Better instruments are needed to assess for elder abuse.

Benzodiazepine poisoning in elderly.

Science.gov (United States)

Vukcević, Natasa Perković; Ercegović, Gordana Vuković; Segrt, Zoran; Djordjević, Snezana; Stosić, Jasmina Jović

2016-03-01

Benzodiazepines are among the most frequently ingested drugs in self-poisonings. Elderly may be at greater risk compared with younger individuals due to impaired metabolism and increased sensitivity to benzodiazepines. The aim of this study was to assess toxicity of benzodiazepines in elderly attempted suicide. A retrospective study of consecutive presentations to hospital after self-poisoning with benzodiazepines was done. Collected data consisted of patient's characteristics (age, gender), benzodiazepine ingested with its blood concentrations at admission, clinical findings including vital signs and Glasgow coma score, routine blood chemistry, complications of poisoning, details of management, length of hospital stay and outcome. According the age, patients are classified as young (15-40-year old), middle aged (41-65-year old) and elderly (older than 65). During a 2-year observational period 387 patients were admitted because of pure benzodiazepine poisoning. The most frequently ingested drug was bromazepam, the second was diazepam. The incidence of coma was significantly higher, and the length of hospital stay significantly longer in elderly. Respiratory failure and aspiration pneumonia occurred more frequently in old age. Also, flumazenil was more frequently required in the group of elderly patients. Massive benzodiazepines overdose in elderly may be associated with a significant morbidity, including deep coma with aspiration pneumonia, respiratory failure, and even death. Flumazenil is indicated more often to reduce CNS depression and prevent complications of prolonged unconsciousness, but supportive treatment and proper airway management of comatose patients is the mainstay of the treatment of acute benzodiazepine poisoning.

Pneumonia and hospitalizations in the elderly

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Francesco Cacciatore

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Pneumonia in the elderly is a common and severe problem. In this review we analyze the state of the art for pneumonia in the elderly. Several aspects are discussed: i how common is the disease; signs and symptoms in the elderly; ii the elderly must always be hospitalized and which is the best place - Intensive Care Unit or medical ward?; iii the role of comorbidities; iv etiology and pathogenesis; medical treatment - when and how to start; v antibiotic resistance; vi antibiotics in hospital acquired and ventilator related pneumonia; vii assisted non-invasive ventilation; viii the treatment in the terminally ill elderly patient.

Elder Abuse - Multiple Languages

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... Are Here: Home → Multiple Languages → All Health Topics → Elder Abuse URL of this page: https://medlineplus.gov/languages/ ... V W XYZ List of All Topics All Elder Abuse - Multiple Languages To use the sharing features on ...

Tocopherol in Elder Self-Neglect

Science.gov (United States)

Aung, K.; Burnett, J.; Dyer, C.; Smith, S. M.

2009-01-01

Although elder self-neglect is the most common form of elder mistreatment, its pathophysiology is not well understood. Alpha-tocopherol is a lipid soluble antioxidant required for the preservation of cell membranes. Since the association between tocopherol and cognitive impairment in older adults has been described, we explored the possibility of its role in elder self-neglect. OBJECTIVE: (1) To determine whether serum tocopherol levels are associated with elder self-neglect, and (2) to assess the association of serum tocopherol levels and cognitive function in elder self-neglect. METHODS: Serum tocopherol levels were measured in a cohort of 67 self-neglecting elders and 67 matched controls, recruited for the Consortium for Research in Elder Self-neglect of Texas. Pearson s correlation tests were performed to assess bivariate associations between serum tocopherol levels and cognitive function. RESULTS: Mean serum alpha-tocopherol levels were 10.8 +/- 4.7 ug/mL in self-neglect group and 13.0 +/- 4.9 ug/mL in control group (p = 0.006, unpaired student s t-test). None of the participants from either group had alpha-tocopherol level lower than the reference range. Mean serum gamma-tocopherol levels were 2.0 +/- 1.0 ug/mL in self-neglect group and 2.0 +/- 1.1 in control group (p=0.83). Proportion of the elders with gamma-tocopherol level lower than the reference range were 4.5% (3/66) in self-neglect group and 10.4% (7/67) in control group (p=0.32, Fisher s Exact Test). Among the self-neglecting elders, no association was found between serum alpha-tocopherol levels and the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) or the Wolf-Klein Clock Drawing Test (CDT) scores (r =-0.42, p=0.75 for MMSE; r=0.08, p=0.54 for CDT). No association was found between serum gamma-tocopherol levels and the MMSE or the CDT (r=-0.12, p=0.35 for MMSE; r=0.05, p=0.68 for CDT). CONCLUSION: In our sample, neither alpha-tocopherol nor gamma-tocopherol appears to have a role in pathophysiology of elder

Elder Financial Exploitation: Implications for Future Policy and Research in Elder Mistreatment

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Price, Thomas

2011-07-01

Full Text Available Recent advances in the understanding of elder mistreatment have demonstrated that financial exploitation tends to be one of the most common forms of mistreatment affecting older populations. Agencies such as the World Bank and World Health Organization show significant concern regarding financial exploitation and its connection to physical and emotional injury to victims. The World Bank uses the term “financial violence” as a means of generally describing the harm caused to an individual as a result of financial exploitation or abuse. The proportion of financial exploitation in relation to other forms of elder mistreatment is defined in our research. We discuss the potential impact of elder financial exploitation on victims as well as explore the implications for future research and policy development focused on financial aspects of elder mistreatment and call for further study in the concept of financial exploitation as a violent act. [West J Emerg Med. 2011;12(3:354-356.

Two Principles of good elderly care

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dahl, Hanne Marlene; Eskelinen, Leena; Boll Hansen, Eigil

) which is a possibility for the elderly to choose a private provider. Stressing the self-determination of the elderly and the help provided as service is potentially at odds with one of the existing principles of elderly care, namely the professional principle of help-to-self help. It aims at activating...... the elderly person to manage as much as possible themselves and is based upon a socio-pedagogical culture, where the professional is teaching elderly people about the proper behavior. It’s based upon a formal knowledge of aging and upon different techniques to motivate and involve the elderly....... These are clearly different logics. However, no research has so far studied how these concepts are translated from a national to the municipal level to groups of home helpers and to individual home helpers. And how are these principles played out in different contexts of private firms and public providers...

FAMILY PRACTICE APPROACH TO ELDERLY PATIENTS

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Marija Petek Šter

2004-10-01

Full Text Available Background. The number of elderly patients, i.e. people over 64 years, is growing. With longer life span the proportion of elderly people will be even higher. Elderly patients are a heterogeneous group of patients with considerable differences in health status, functional capacity, emotions, fears, beliefs and views.Health care of elderly patients in primary care is a responsibility of family doctors. One third of all family practice consultations are in the age group over 64. A consultation in the elderly is different from a consultation in younger patients. The consultation length in those patients is longer and the office visits of elderly are more frequent. If we want to deliver a quality care for the elderly, we have to care for them and manage their illness in psychological, physical, family and social context, which is a core stone of biopsychosocial model of medical practice. Besides medical knowledge and patient participation, all these elements make a foundation of the holistic approach. In elderly a special attention to their attitude towards aging, dying, loneliness and to the fears connected to those issues should be taken into account. Coordination with other services and with patients’ families is also necessary. Family physician is in the best position to recognise abuse, neglection or limitations in patient autonomy.We should be aiming to achieve a connection between the doctor and the patient through continuity between the doctor, the patient and his/her family. Good connection will make management of elderly patients more effective and the patients will accept and follow therapeutic plan.

Helicobacter Pylori Infection in the Elderly

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Jyh-Ming Liou

2008-12-01

Full Text Available The elderly often seek medical attention because of gastroduodenal diseases. Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori infection is associated with several gastroduodenal diseases and its prevalence increases with age worldwide. It is estimated that 10–15% of infected patients will have peptic ulcer disease and 1% of patients will have gastric cancer or mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma. Notably, the most severe clinical outcomes, i.e., gastric cancer and complicated peptic ulcer diseases, usually occur in elderly patients. Thus the test-and-treatment strategy is not recommended for elderly patients with uninvestigated dyspepsia. However, biopsy specimens for the rapid urease test and histology should be taken from both the antrum and corpus to increase the detection rate in elderly patients, especially in those with atrophic gastritis. The urea breath test may increase the detection rate if the rapid urease test or histology are negative in elderly patients with atrophic gastritis. Standard triple therapy and sequential therapy can achieve satisfactory eradication rates for H. pylori in elderly patients. Elderly patients with peptic ulcers may have a similar benefit from treatment of H. pylori infection as non-elderly patients. Eradication of H. pylori infection may also lead to improvement in histologic grading of gastritis, but the risk of gastric cancer cannot be completely reduced, especially in patients with existing premalignant lesions.

Burden in family caregivers of the elderly: prevalence and association with characteristics of the elderly and the caregivers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lara de Sa Neves Loureiro

2013-10-01

Full Text Available A cross-sectional, epidemiological study aimed to estimate the prevalence of burden among family caregivers of impaired elderly residents in the city of João Pessoa, and to identify associations between the mean burden and social and demographic characteristics of the elderly and the caregivers. A total number of 240 elderly residents in a previously drawn census tract participated in this research. The sample was composed of 52 elderly and their caregivers. For data collection, a questionnaire was applied with questions on social and demographic characteristics of elderly and caregivers, and the Burden Interview Scale was used. Results showed a high prevalence of burden among caregivers (84.6%, in which a statistically significant association was found with the following characteristics: retired elderly, elderly as head of family, spousal caregivers, and caregivers with less education. The findings of this study may contribute to the development of activities focused on formal and emotional support for the caregivers.

Benzodiazepine poisoning in elderly

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Perković-Vukčević Nataša

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Background/Aim. Benzodiazepines are among the most frequently ingested drugs in self-poisonings. Elderly may be at greater risk compared with younger individuals due to impaired metabolism and increased sensitivity to benzodiazepines. The aim of this study was to assess toxicity of benzodiazepines in elderly attempted suicide. Methods. A retrospective study of consecutive presentations to hospital after self-poisoning with benzodiazepines was done. Collected data consisted of patient's characteristics (age, gender, benzodiazepine ingested with its blood concentrations at admission, clinical findings including vital signs and Glasgow coma score, routine blood chemistry, complications of poisoning, details of management, length of hospital stay and outcome. According the age, patients are classified as young (15-40-year old, middle aged (41-65-year old and elderly (older than 65. Results. During a 2-year observational period 387 patients were admitted because of pure benzodiazepine poisoning. The most frequently ingested drug was bromazepam, the second was diazepam. The incidence of coma was significantly higher, and the length of hospital stay significantly longer in elderly. Respiratory failure and aspiration pneumonia occurred more frequently in old age. Also, flumazenil was more frequently required in the group of elderly patients. Conclusion. Massive benzodiazepines overdose in elderly may be associated with a significant morbidity, including deep coma with aspiration pneumonia, respiratory failure, and even death. Flumazenil is indicated more often to reduce CNS depression and prevent complications of prolonged unconsciousness, but supportive treatment and proper airway management of comatose patients is the mainstay of the treatment of acute benzodiazepine poisoning.

Elder Mistreatment Perpetrators with Substance Abuse and/or Mental Health Conditions: Results from the National Elder Mistreatment Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Labrum, Travis; Solomon, Phyllis L

2018-03-01

A large portion of persons who commit elder mistreatment have long been known to have indicators of substance abuse and/or mental health conditions (SAMHC). However, few studies have specifically examined elder mistreatment by persons with SAMHC, preventing the development of specialized intervention strategies. Using results from the National Elder Mistreatment Study, the current article examines victim, perpetrator, and interaction characteristics between cases of emotional and physical elder mistreatment in which the perpetrator is reported to have vs. not have SAMHC. Chi square tests and Mann-Whitney-Wilcoxon non-parametric tests were performed. 210 perpetrators of emotional elder mistreatment were reported to have SAMHC with 412 perpetrators of emotional mistreatment reported to not have SAMHC. 57 perpetrators of physical elder mistreatment were reported to have SAMHC with 38 perpetrators of physical mistreatment not having SAMHC. Emotional elder mistreatment committed by persons with SAMHC was associated with the following characteristics: perpetrator-unemployment, history of involvement with police, and fewer friendships; victim-female gender, greater emotional problems, and greater occurrences of lifetime emotional mistreatment; interaction-co-residence, and reporting of mistreatment to authorities. Physical elder mistreatment committed by persons with SAMHC was associated with police involvement of the perpetrator and greater occurrences of lifetime physical mistreatment experienced by the victim. These findings indicate that victims of elder mistreatment by persons with SAMHC are in particular need of intervention services as they have greater histories of mistreatment and experience greater emotional problems. Implications for effectively intervening in cases of elder mistreatment by persons with SAMHC are discussed.

Elderly Care Centre

Science.gov (United States)

Wagiman, Aliani; Haja Bava Mohidin, Hazrina; Ismail, Alice Sabrina

2016-02-01

The demand for elderly centre has increased tremendously abreast with the world demographic change as the number of senior citizens rose in the 21st century. This has become one of the most crucial problems of today's era. As the world progress into modernity, more and more people are occupied with daily work causing the senior citizens to lose the care that they actually need. This paper seeks to elucidate the best possible design of an elderly care centre with new approach in order to provide the best service for them by analysing their needs and suitable activities that could elevate their quality of life. All these findings will then be incorporated into design solutions so as to enhance the living environment for the elderly especially in Malaysian context.

Elder Abuse Awareness Project.

Science.gov (United States)

Doyle, Kathleen; Morrow, Marilyn J.

1985-01-01

The Elder Abuse Awareness Project was undertaken: (1) to determine the incidence of abuse and neglect in seven Illinois counties; and (2) to develop, produce, and distribute educational materials on elder abuse for the service provider and for senior citizens. Results are presented and discussed. (MT)

Elder abuse in Chinese populations: a global review.

Science.gov (United States)

Dong, XinQi

2015-01-01

This review focuses on the epidemiology of elder abuse in the global Chinese population with respect to its prevalence, risk factors, and consequences, as well as the perceptions of elder abuse. Evidence revealed that elder abuse and its subtypes are common among the global Chinese population with prevalence ranging from 0.2% to 64%. Younger age, lower income levels, depression, cognitive impairment, and lack of social support were consistently associated with self-reported elder abuse. Caregiver burden was a constant risk factor for the proclivity to elder abuse by caregivers. The adverse health outcomes of elder abuse included suicidal ideation and psychological stress. Some primary research gaps exist: such as, lack of consistency in measurements and recall periods, insufficient studies on the causal relationships between potential risk factors and elder abuse, consequences of elder abuse, and possible interventions. In order to reduce the risk of elder abuse in the global Chinese population, collaboration is encouraged among researchers, health care professionals, social service providers, and policy makers.

Differences in the clinical presentation and the frequency of complications between elderly and non-elderly scrub typhus patients.

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Jang, Mi-Ok; Kim, Ji Eun; Kim, Uh Jin; Ahn, Joon Hwan; Kang, Seung-Ji; Jang, Hee-Chang; Jung, Sook-In; Park, Kyung-Hwa

2014-01-01

Age can affect the clinical features and severity of infectious disorders, such as scrub typhus. We performed this study to examine differences between elderly and non-elderly scrub typhus patients, and to identify risk factors predictive of disease outcomes. This retrospective study included patients admitted to a tertiary hospital with scrub typhus between 2001 and 2011. A total of 615 patients were enrolled in this study, 328 of which were >65 years of age. Of the elderly patients, 46.0% (151/328) experienced at least one complication compared to only 23.0% (66/287) in younger patients. A linear trend was observed between age and complication rates (p=0.002). The most common complication in elderly patients was acute kidney injury (75, 22.9%). Treatment failure was reported in 10 elderly patients (3.0%) compared to one non-elderly patient (0.3%). Mental confusion and dyspnea of clinical manifestations at admission were common in elderly patients. Frequency of fever, rash, and eschar were similar in both groups. The following four factors were significantly associated with severe scrub typhus in elderly patients: (1) white blood cell (WBC) counts>10,000/mm(3) (OR=2.569, CI=1.298-5.086), (2) MDRD GFR10 points (OR=3.304, CI=1.793-60.87). Complications and mortality were more common in elderly patients, often associated with delays in diagnosis and treatment. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

[The medical autonomy of elderly in Taiwan].

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Chen, Kai-Li; Chen, Ching-Huey

2014-10-01

The elderly population is increasing rapidly in Taiwan. With the average life expectancy on the rise, the elderly have become major consumers of healthcare products and services. Factors that influence respect for autonomy, a core value of medical ethics, may be related to family, society, and the medical culture. Especially in patients who are already elderly, aging causes declines in physical, mental and societal capacities. Practicing a respect for patient autonomy is particularly challenging for healthcare professionals in Taiwan due the unique culture background of elderly Taiwanese patients. This article reviews and integrates the literature related to the issue of patient autonomy and elaborates on medical decision-making among elderly patients in Taiwan in the contexts of: the disadvantages faced by the elderly, the background of Chinese culture, and the current medical decision-making environment. A few suggestions are proposed to help preserve the medical-decision-making autonomy of elderly patients in Taiwan.

Elder Abuse Awareness Module.

Science.gov (United States)

Goettler, Darla

The Elder Abuse Prevention Project sponsored by the Seniors' Education Centre, University Extension, University of Regina (Saskatchewan, Canada) emerged from a provincial workshop held by the Centre in 1989. The workshop was designed to examine possible avenues for addressing elder abuse issues in Saskatchewan. The purposes of the project were to…

Elder-Abuse Offenders: A Typology.

Science.gov (United States)

Ramsey-Klawsnik, Holly

2000-01-01

Addresses some of the perplexing issues involved in understanding and responding to elder-abuse offenders. Offers a typology of offenders to elucidate the dynamics when people mistreat the elderly. (Contains 13 references.) (Author)

Elder Abuse in Japan

Science.gov (United States)

Arai, Mizuho

2006-01-01

Perceptions of elder abuse were examined in Japanese women (n =100) and men (n =46). Japanese women and men both emphasized physical aggression, followed by neglect and blaming, when giving examples of extremely abusive behavior. Physical aggression was also the most frequently mentioned type of moderate elder abuse, followed by neglect, economic…

Stress and optimism of elderlies who are caregivers for elderlies and live with children.

Science.gov (United States)

Oliveira, Nathalia Alves de; Souza, Érica Nestor; Luchesi, Bruna Moretti; Inouye, Keika; Pavarini, Sofia Cristina Iost

2017-01-01

to evaluate the relation between stress and optimism of elderlies who are informal caregivers for elderlies and live with children. cross-sectional study on 50 elderlies who provide care to elderlies, live with children, and are registered in the primary health care. The interviews occurred in the participant's residence and we evaluated characteristics of the care-dependent elderly and of the children, sociodemographic characteristics, stress through the Perceived Stress Scale and optimism through the Pinto and Pais-Ribeiro Spirituality Scale, in the elderly caregiver. For statistical analysis we used the Spearman correlation test. the mean level of stress was 23.9 points and of optimism was 3.3 points. Correlation analysis showed that the higher the level of optimism the significantly lower the level of perceived stress of elderlies who provided care to elderlies and lived with children. inversely proportional correlation was identified between stress and optimism. avaliar a relação entre estresse e otimismo de idosos cuidadores informais de idosos e que residem com crianças. Método: estudo transversal com 50 idosos cuidadores de idosos que residem com crianças e são cadastrados na atenção básica. As entrevistas ocorreram no domicílio do participante e foram avaliadas características do idoso dependente de cuidados e das crianças, características sociodemográficas, estresse por meio da Escala de Estresse Percebido e o otimismo por meio da Escala de Espiritualidade de Pinto e Pais-Ribeiro, no idoso cuidador. Para análise estatística foi utilizado o teste correlação de Spearman. o nível médio de estresse foi de 23,9 pontos e de otimismo foi de 3,3 pontos. A análise de correlação mostrou que quanto maior o nível de otimismo significativamente menor foi o nível de estresse percebido dos idosos cuidadores de idosos que residiam com crianças. foi identificada correlação inversamente proporcional entre estresse e otimismo.

Diabetes in the elderly

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Katarzyna Mordarska

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The prevalence of both type 2 diabetes and prediabetes increases with advancing age. The most important factors leading to hyperglycaemia are as follows: deficiency of insulin secretion developing with age, and growing insulin resistance caused by a change in body composition and sarcopaenia. Clinical features of diabetes in the elderly could be different. Diabetes in elderly people is often diagnosed with delay due to atypical symptoms (dementia, urinary incontinence and occurrence of mainly postprandial hyperglycaemia. Elderly people are more exposed to diabetes complications, have more risk of myocardial infarction and end-stage renal disease, and are hospitalised more often due to hypoglycaemia than are younger patients. Elderly people with diabetes are a heterogeneous group with different life expectancy, concomitant of chronic diseases, and the ability to self-control blood glucose or give themselves an injection. The therapy should be individualised. Older people with long-term diabetes and numerous chronic complications need a more liberal approach to reach specific goals of therapy. Additional goals should be avoiding hypoglycaemia, safety of the therapy, and its acceptance by the patient.

Addressing elder abuse: the Waterloo restorative justice approach to elder abuse project.

Science.gov (United States)

Groh, Arlene; Linden, Rick

2011-04-01

The Community Care Access Centre (CCAC) of Waterloo Region, in partnership with a number of other social service agencies, designed and implemented a restorative justice model applicable to older adults who have been abused by an individual in a position of trust. The project was very successful in building partnerships, as many community agencies came together to deal with the problem of elder abuse. The program also raised the profile of elder abuse in the community. However, despite intensive efforts, referrals to the restorative justice program were quite low. Because of this, the program moved to a new organizational model, the Elder Abuse Response Team (EART), which has retained the guiding philosophy of restorative justice but has broadened the mandate. The team has evolved into a conflict management system that has multiple points of entry for cases and multiple options for dealing with elder abuse. The team has developed a broad range of community partners who can facilitate referrals to the EART and also can help to provide an individualized response to each case. The transition to the EART has been successful, and the number of referrals has increased significantly. Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

Elderly long-stay institutions: possibilities contemporary housing

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Eliana Novaes Procopio de Araujo

2011-09-01

Full Text Available The elderly process proposes new challenges. The elderly living will be discussed. The overload in family nucleous direct for the necessity in institutions service. The work about management in psycogerontology services in institutions aimed the humanization of elderly care, families and health professionals. The construction of a new project of life in institutions promotes a better quality of life to elderly, as well as to their families and health professionals.  

National Center on Elder Abuse

Science.gov (United States)

... Research Synthesize and disseminate high quality research on elder abuse to encourage the translation of research into practice. ... to further the field for those interested in elder abuse identification and prevention. What’s Happening National Center on ...

Metabolic syndrome in Iranian elderly

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Nizal Sarrafzadegan

2012-01-01

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: This study aimed to compare Iranian elderly with the youth and middle aged population in terms of the prevalence of metabolic syndrome and its components in Iranian elderly METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted using the information from the third phase of Isfahan Healthy Heart Program. Male and female residents of Isfahan who aged over 19 years were selected by multistage cluster random sampling. A questionnaire including demographic characteristics, health status, medical history, medications used, as well as waist circumference, weight, height and systolic and diastolic blood pressures was completed for all participants. Fasting blood samples were obtained from all subjects and examined for fasting blood sugar and lipid profile. RESULTS: The prevalence of metabolic syndrome in individuals aged over 60 years was significantly higher than those under 60 (49.5% vs. 17.5%, respectively; P < 0.001. It was also more prevalent among elderly females than in males (59.2% vs. 39.8%, respectively; P < 0.005. Some anthropometric measures such as height, body mass index, abdominal circumference, waist-hip ratio, and waist to height ratio were significantly different in men and women below 60 years in comparison with those over 60 years (P < 0.05. Moreover, there were significant differences in most studied parameters between the elderly and non-elderly women (P < 0.001. Based on the findings of this study, the risk factors for cardiovascular diseases were significantly more prevalent in men and women over 60 years. T-test and Mann-Whitney were used for quantitative data and the square-chi test is performed for qualitative data.    CONCLUSION: This study showed that metabolic syndrome has a relatively high prevalence in Iranian elderly people (especially in women. Therefore, early diagnosis and management of the complication are recommended among this high-risk group. Keywords: Metabolic Syndrome, Elderly, Iran

Bacterial Pneumonia in Elderly Japanese Populations

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Naoya Miyashita

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Bacterial pneumonia is one of the most important infectious diseases in terms of incidence, effect on quality of life, mortality, and impact on society. Pneumonia was the third leading cause of death in Japan in 2011. In 2016, 119 650 Japanese people died of pneumonia, 96% of whom were aged 65 years and above. The symptoms of pneumonia in elderly people are often atypical. Aspiration pneumonia is seen more frequently than in young people because of swallowing dysfunction in the elderly. The mortality rate is also higher in the elderly than in young people. In Japan, the population is aging at an unprecedented rate, and pneumonia in the elderly will be increasingly important in medicine and medical economics in the future. To manage pneumonia in the elderly, it is important to accurately evaluate its severity, administer appropriate antibiotic treatment, and implement effective preventive measures.

Sexuality through the eyes of the elderly.

OpenAIRE

Uchôa,Yasmim da Silva; Costa,Dayara Carla Amaral da; Silva Junior,Ivan Arnaldo Pamplona da; Silva,Saulo de Tarso Saldanha Eremita de; Freitas,Wiviane Maria Torres de Matos; Soares,Soanne Chyara da Silva

2016-01-01

Abstract Objective: to identify the perception of elderly persons about sexuality. Methods: a quantitative, observational and analytical cross-sectional study was performed in an institution specializing in elderly care in Belém, in the state of Pará. A questionnaire, produced by the authors, was applied to 200 elderly persons, aiming to identify issues related to sexuality both in their youth and today, as well as stimulant strategies and sexuality inhibiting factors among the elderly, amo...

The Canadian elder standard - pricing the cost of basic needs for the Canadian elderly.

Science.gov (United States)

MacDonald, Bonnie-Jeanne; Andrews, Doug; Brown, Robert L

2010-03-01

We determined the after-tax income required to finance basic needs for Canadian elders living with different circumstances in terms of age, gender, city of residence, household size, homeowner or renter status, means of transportation, and health status. Using 2001 as our base year, we priced the typical expenses for food, shelter, medical, transportation, miscellaneous basic living items and home-based long-term care for elders living in five Canadian cities. This is the first Canadian study of basic living expenses tailored to elders instead of adults in general, prepared on an absolute rather than a relative basis. We also accounted for an individual's unique life circumstances and established the varying effect that they have on the cost of basic expenses, particularly for home care. We found that the maximum Guaranteed Income Supplement and Old Age Security benefit did not meet the cost of basic needs for an elder living in poor circumstances.

Elder Abuse: Systematic Review and Implications for Practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Dong, Xin Qi

2015-06-01

This article is based on the lecture for the 2014 American Geriatrics Society Outstanding Scientific Achievement for Clinical Investigation Award. Elder abuse is a global public health and human rights problem. Evidence suggests that elder abuse is prevalent, predictable, costly, and sometimes fatal. This review will highlight the global epidemiology of elder abuse in terms of its prevalence, risk factors, and consequences in community populations. The global literature in PubMed, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, BIOSIS, Science Direct, and Cochrane Central was searched. Search terms included elder abuse, elder mistreatment, elder maltreatment, prevalence, incidence, risk factors, protective factors, outcomes, and consequences. Studies that existed only as abstracts, case series, or case reports or recruited individuals younger than 60; qualitative studies; and non-English publications were excluded. Tables and figures were created to highlight the findings: the most-detailed analyses to date of the prevalence of elder abuse according to continent, risk and protective factors, graphic presentation of odds ratios and confidence intervals for major risk factors, consequences, and practical suggestions for health professionals in addressing elder abuse. Elder abuse is common in community-dwelling older adults, especially minority older adults. This review identifies important knowledge gaps, such as a lack of consistency in definitions of elder abuse; insufficient research with regard to screening; and etiological, intervention, and prevention research. Concerted efforts from researchers, community organizations, healthcare and legal professionals, social service providers, and policy-makers should be promoted to address the global problem of elder abuse. © 2015, Copyright the Author Journal compilation © 2015, The American Geriatrics Society.

[Diagnosis of gastric ulcer in the elderly].

Science.gov (United States)

Ashida, Kiyoshi; Fukuchi, Takumi; Yamashita, Hiroshi

2010-11-01

It is well known that gastric ulcers are most often found at anglus and upper corpus in the elderly. The number of gastric ulcer found at upper corpus hold half of all cases in the elderly patients with bleeding ulcer. Sixty percent of the elderly patients with bleeding ulcer took NSAIDs including low-dose aspirin in authors' hospital. Now it is easy to treat and cure bleeding ulcers due to development of endoscopic hemostasis and antiulcer drugs such as proton pump inhibitor(PPI). However, the elderly patients sometimes result in fatal outcome on bleeding from gastric ulcer. Therefore, it is important to prevent ulcer complications by PPI for the high-risk group such as elderly patients taking NSAIDs.

Report on the Elderly 2001

NARCIS (Netherlands)

M.M.Y. de Klerk

2001-01-01

Original title: Rapportage ouderen 2001. The Report on the Elderly 2001 (Rapportage ouderen 2001) presents a broad picture of the social position of the elderly in the Netherlands. Central themes addressed are participation in education and the labour market, financial position,

Report on the Elderly 1998

NARCIS (Netherlands)

M.M.Y. de Klerk; J.M. Timmermans

1999-01-01

Original title: Rapportage ouderen 1998. The Report on the Elderly 1998 (Rapportage ouderen 1998) describes various aspects of the life situation of the elderly: labour market position, financial situation, housing conditions, health status and use of care services. Extensive attention is

Increased gait unsteadiness in community-dwelling elderly fallers

Science.gov (United States)

Hausdorff, J. M.; Edelberg, H. K.; Mitchell, S. L.; Goldberger, A. L.; Wei, J. Y.

1997-01-01

OBJECTIVE: To test the hypothesis that quantitative measures of gait unsteadiness are increased in community-dwelling elderly fallers. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective, case-control study. SETTING: General community. PARTICIPANTS: Thirty-five community-dwelling elderly subjects older than 70 years of age who were capable of ambulating independently for 6 minutes were categorized as fallers (age, 82.2 +/- 4.9 yrs [mean +/- SD]; n = 18) and nonfallers (age, 76.5 +/- 4.0 yrs; n = 17) based on history; 22 young (age, 24.6 +/- 1.9 yrs), healthy subjects also participated as a second reference group. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Stride-to-stride variability (standard deviation and coefficient of variation) of stride time, stance time, swing time, and percent stance time measured during a 6-minute walk. RESULTS: All measures of gait variability were significantly greater in the elderly fallers compared with both the elderly nonfallers and the young subjects (p elderly fallers was similar to that of the nonfallers. There were little or no differences in the variability measures of the elderly nonfallers compared with the young subjects. CONCLUSIONS: Stride-to-stride temporal variations of gait are relatively unchanged in community-dwelling elderly nonfallers, but are significantly increased in elderly fallers. Quantitative measurement of gait unsteadiness may be useful in assessing fall risk in the elderly.

Report on the Elderly 1998

NARCIS (Netherlands)

M.M.Y. de Klerk; J.M. Timmermans

2000-01-01

Report on the Elderly 1998 describes various aspects of the living circumstances of the elderly: the labour market position, financial situation, housing circumstances, health and uptake of health care. Extensive attention is also devoted to the scale and consequences of psychiatric disorders

Report on the Elderly 2001

NARCIS (Netherlands)

M.M.Y. de Klerk; J.M. Timmermans

2001-01-01

(Full translation from the Dutch: Rapportage Ouderen 2001) Report on the Elderly 2001 presents an overview of the position of the elderly in Dutch society. The central themes of the Report are participation in education and the labour market, financial status, housing situation,

Health conditions of young and old elderly

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Cibelle Barbosa Reis

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Objective: to evaluate the elderly about the socio-demographic profile and health conditions in the age groups from 60 to 75 years old (“young” elderly and above 76 years (“old” elderly. Methods: this is a cross-sectional study and home based. The data were collected applying a questionnaire based on the model developed by the Older Americans Resources and Services. Results: 118 elderly participated in the study, being 68.6% “young”, 58% illiterate, 85.2% with income less than two minimum wages and 70.4% with non-white skin. The “old” elderly had a higher proportion of loss of the companion (p=0.002, non-communicable chronic diseases (p=0.023 and dependence to perform activities of daily living (p=0.036. Both age groups had low physical activity, excessive consumption of medicaments and chewing problems. Conclusion: the model of health facing the elderly, should not be restricted to treatment of diseases but cover their functional capacity.

[Nutrition and frail elderly at risk].

Science.gov (United States)

Barrière-Arnoux, Cécile

2015-01-01

Good health for elderly people depends on some extent on their nutritional status. During the completion of a master's degree in nursing sciences, a study highlighted the need to develop measuring tools for screening for undernutrition in the elderly in community nursing practice. A programme for raising awareness of the consequences of undernutrition in elderly people is an area to develop through broader frailty screening in primary care.

An Elderly Employment Model For The Thai Automotive Industry

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Pornrat Sadangharn

2017-10-01

Full Text Available This research aims at studying an elderly employment model for the Thai automotive industry. Mixed methods with a sequential exploratory strategy were utilized. Grounded theory was employed by using in-depth interviews to investigate the characteristics of elderly employment in the Thai automotive industry. For this stage of the research, theoretical and purposive sampling was used to select 32 key informants from four groups of stakeholders: (1 elderly workers, (2 employers or human resource managers, (3 government officers, and (4 academics. The findings were then validated using a quantitative approach with structural equation modelling (SEM. A total of 308 elderly workers and human resource managers were surveyed regarding their opinion about elderly employment. Based on the survey, the elderly employment model in the Thai automotive industry, which is comprised of the approach to elderly employment, elderly employment preparation, and key success factors for elderly employment, was revealed to be a good fit. 

Vaccines for the elderly.

Science.gov (United States)

Del Giudice, Giuseppe; Weinberger, Birgit; Grubeck-Loebenstein, Beatrix

2015-01-01

The aging of the human population is posing serious challenges to research and to public health authorities in order to prevent diseases that more frequently affect the elderly, a portion of the population that will increase more and more in the coming years. While some vaccines exist and are used in the elderly to effectively fight against some infections (e.g. influenza, pneumococci, varicella-zoster virus, diphtheria, and tetanus), still a lot of work remains to be done to better adapt these vaccines and to develop new ones for this age group. The prevention of infectious diseases affecting the elderly can be successful only through a holistic approach. This approach will aim at the following: (1) a deeper understanding of the mechanisms leading to the senescence of the immune system, (2) a better and broader use of vaccines recommended for the elderly, (3) the use of vaccines currently considered only for other age groups and (4) actively priming the population when they are immunological competent, before the physiological waning of immune responsiveness may affect the beneficial effects of vaccination. © 2014 S. Karger AG, Basel

Stress, Anxiety and Depression Levels Among Elderly Referrals to Tehran Elderly Club

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Mohtasham Ghafari

2012-07-01

Full Text Available Objectives: Stress and anxiety have well–known effects in the pathogenesis of many physical and mental disorders. Aging adults are vulnerable to the effects of a negative stressor factors so, this study aims to investigate the level of stress anxiety and depression among the elderly referred to elderly clubs of Tehran in 2009. Methods & Materials: This is a cross-sectional study carried out on 104 aging adults, selected from elderly clubs of Tehran on 2009. Depression, Anxiety and Stress questionnaires (DASS-21, were filled out for this group. Finally obtained data was statistically analyzed by means of SPSS15 using T- test and One Way ANOVA at the significant level P≤0.05. Results: Of the total subjects under study 24% were male, and 76% female, with a mean age of 63.37±4.32 and 65.08±4.82 years respectively. The proportion of women with high anxiety score was higher than men. There were also higher anxiety levels in illness people (P<0.001. Conclusion: This study on depression, anxiety and stress as an indicator of lifestyle reveals high stress levels in the elderly population, which warrants appropriate planning and community-based interventions, to improve lifestyle and reduce stress level in aging adults.

Elderly who take care of elderly: a study on the Frailty Syndrome

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Ariene Angelini dos Santos-Orlandi

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Objective: Identifying prevalence of frailty in elderly caregivers inserted in a high social vulnerability context and its correlation with sociodemographic and health aspects. Method: Descriptive, correlational and cross-sectional study. Forty elderly caregivers were evaluated with: questionnaire for caregiver characterization, Mini Mental State Examination, Katz Index, Lawton instrumental activities of daily living scale, Geriatric Depression Scale and the frailty phenotype proposed by Fried. Interviews were conducted at their residences and scheduled in advance. All ethical precautions were observed. Data were analyzed with the Stata statistical program version 11.0. Results: 10% of elderly caregivers were frail. There was a significant correlation between frailty and sex, instrumental activities of daily living and cognition. Conclusion: Female caregivers, partially dependent individuals regarding instrumental activities of daily living and with worse cognitive state deserve a special attention from health services.

Brief hospitalizations of elderly patients

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Strømgaard, Sofie; Rasmussen, Søren Wistisen; Schmidt, Thomas Andersen

2014-01-01

BACKGROUND: Crowded departments are a common problem in Danish hospitals, especially in departments of internal medicine, where a large proportion of the patients are elderly. We therefore chose to investigate the number and character of hospitalizations of elderly patients with a duration of less...

Stretching the Limits of Renal Transplantation in Elderly Recipients of Grafts from Elderly Deceased Donors

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Peters-Sengers, H.; Berger, S.P.; Heemskerk, M.B.; Arashi, D. Al; Heide, J.J. van der; Hemke, A.C.; Berge, I.J. Ten; Idu, M.M.; Betjes, M.G.; Zuilen, A.D. van; Hilbrands, L.B.; Vries, A.P. de; Nurmohamed, A.S.; Christiaans, M.H.; Heurn, L.W. van; Fijter, J.W. de; Bemelman, F.J.

2017-01-01

An increasing number of elderly patients (>/=65 years) receive a donor kidney from elderly donors after brain death (DBD) or after circulatory death (DCD). These organs are allocated within the Eurotransplant Senior Program, but outcomes must be evaluated. From the Dutch Organ Transplantation

Stretching the Limits of Renal Transplantation in Elderly Recipients of Grafts from Elderly Deceased Donors

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Peters-Sengers, Hessel; Berger, Stefan P; Heemskerk, Martin B A; Al Arashi, Doaa; Homan van der Heide, Jaap J; Hemke, Aline C; Ten Berge, Ineke J M; Idu, Mirza M; Betjes, Michiel G H; van Zuilen, Arjan D; Hilbrands, Luuk B; de Vries, Aiko P J; Nurmohamed, Azam S; Christiaans, Maarten H; Ernest van Heurn, L W; de Fijter, Johan W; Bemelman, Frederike J

An increasing number of elderly patients (>= 65 years) receive a donor kidney from elderly donors after brain death (DBD) or after circulatory death (DCD). These organs are allocated within the Eurotransplant Senior Program, but outcomes must be evaluated. From the Dutch Organ Transplantation

Benzodiazepine poisoning in elderly

OpenAIRE

Perković-Vukčević Nataša; Vuković-Ercegović Gordana; Šegrt Zoran; Đorđević Snežana; Jović-Stošić Jasmina

2016-01-01

Background/Aim. Benzodiazepines are among the most frequently ingested drugs in self-poisonings. Elderly may be at greater risk compared with younger individuals due to impaired metabolism and increased sensitivity to benzodiazepines. The aim of this study was to assess toxicity of benzodiazepines in elderly attempted suicide. Methods. A retrospective study of consecutive presentations to hospital after self-poisoning with benzodiazepines was done. Collecte...

Pathophysiologic Response to Burns in the Elderly

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Marc G. Jeschke

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Over the last decades advancements have improved survival and outcomes of severely burned patients except one population, elderly. The Lethal Dose 50 (LD50 burn size in elderly has remained the same over the past three decades, and so has morbidity and mortality, despite the increased demand for elderly burn care. The objective of this study is to gain insights on why elderly burn patients have had such a poor outcome when compared to adult burn patients. The significance of this project is that to this date, burn care providers recognize the extreme poor outcome of elderly, but the reason remains unclear. In this prospective translational trial, we have determined clinical, metabolic, inflammatory, immune, and skin healing aspects. We found that elderly have a profound increased mortality, more premorbid conditions, and stay at the hospital for longer, p  0.05, but a significant increased incidence of multi organ failure, p < 0.05. These clinical outcomes were associated with a delayed hypermetabolic response, increased hyperglycemic and hyperlipidemic responses, inversed inflammatory response, immune-compromisation and substantial delay in wound healing predominantly due to alteration in characteristics of progenitor cells, p < 0.05. In summary, elderly have substantially different responses to burns when compared to adults associated with increased morbidity and mortality. This study indicates that these responses are complex and not linear, requiring a multi-modal approach to improve the outcome of severely burned elderly.

Exploring elderly people’s relationships with new media

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Givskov, Cecilie; Christensen, Christa Lykke

focuses on how the new digital media environment influences the daily lives of elderly people and the meaning they attribute to ageing. The first specific focus of ours is on how elderly people relate to new media and how media for interpersonal communication influence and shape elderly people’s social...... and mediatization to get closer to an understanding of how media on one hand are naturalized elements of elderly people’s everyday life serving a variety of purposes and on the other hand influence and set the agenda of what seems important to elderly people to be interested in and concerned about. We propose......The background of this proposal is a newly established Danish research project on the representation of ageing in the media and elderly people ́s media use. It investigates ways in which elderly people’s media practices and interpretations shape the experience of ageing. Part of this project...

Handgrip strength and physical activity in frail elderly

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Maria Helena Lenardt

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract OBJECTIVE To investigate the association between handgrip strength (HS and physical activity in physical frailty elderly. METHOD Cross-sectional quantitative study with a sample of 203 elderly calculated based on the population estimated proportion. Tests were applied to detect cognitive impairment and assessment of physical frailty. Descriptive statistics and multivariate analysis by binary logistic regression were used, and also Student's t-test and Fisher's exact test. RESULTS A total of 99 (64.3% elderly showed decreased handgrip strength and 90 (58.4% elderly presented decrease in physical activity levels. There was a statistically significant difference between these two components (p=0.019, in which elderly who have decreased HS have lower levels of physical activity. For low levels of physical activity and decreased HS, there was no evidence of significant difference in the probability of the classification as frail elderly (p<0.001. CONCLUSION The components handgrip strength and physical activity are associated with the frail elderly. The joint presence of low levels of physical activity and decreased handgrip strength leads to a significantly higher probability of the elderly to be categorized as frailty.

HEALTH STATUS OF ELDERLY A COMMUNITY BASED STUDY

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Vartika Saxena

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Background: People at or over the age of 60, constitute above 7.7% of total population. Traditionally this segment of population depends on their children for their health and social welfare, However owing to the social and cultural changes that are taking place within the Indian society, this support may not be as readily available, as it is believed. With the changing demography of India, there is urgent need to look at the health status of elderly for planning appropriate health facilities for them. Objectives: To study biosocial, nutritional and chronic disease risk factor profile of elderly population. Methods: Cross-sectional Study was conducted in Doiwala block of Dehradun district, Uttarakhand. 122 elderly persons of age 60 years and above were interviewed on predesigned questionnaire by house to house visit in the selected village. Results: Overall prevalence of risk factors found to be higher amongst elderly females. Unutrition was higher amongst elderly males. In all, 48.6% elderly were underweight ,10.3% were overweight and 5.6% cases were in obese category. As per the Waist and hip ratio 47.2% elderly belonged to the moderate to high risk category. 30.8% people were hypertensive. Conclusions: Prevalence of high-risk factors for chronic diseases is quite high amongst elderly population, especially amongst elderly females.

Frontiers in the Education of the Elderly.

Science.gov (United States)

Peterson, James A.

Demographic trends indicate a continued population rise among the elderly, suggesting an expanded market for adult education efforts. Early retirement, unemployment due to technological change, as well as the need for older workers to stay current in their fields all point in the direction of education of the elderly. The elderly report great…

Mental health first aid for the elderly: A pilot study of a training program adapted for helping elderly people.

Science.gov (United States)

Svensson, Bengt; Hansson, Lars

2017-06-01

Epidemiological studies have shown a high prevalence of mental illness among the elderly. Clinical data however indicate both insufficient detection and treatment of illnesses. Suggested barriers to treatment include conceptions that mental health symptoms belong to normal aging and lack of competence among staff in elderly care in detecting mental illness. A Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) training program for the elderly was developed and provided to staff in elderly care. The aim of this study was to investigate changes in knowledge in mental illness, confidence in helping a person, readiness to give help and attitudes towards persons with mental illness. Single group pre-test-post-test design. The study group included staff in elderly care from different places in Sweden (n = 139). Significant improvements in knowledge, confidence in helping an elderly person with mental illness and attitudes towards persons with mental illness are shown. Skills acquired during the course have been practiced during the follow-up. The adaption of MHFA training for staff working in elderly care gives promising results. Improvements in self-reported confidence in giving help, attitudes towards persons with mental illness and actual help given to persons with mental illness are shown. However, the study design allows no firm conclusions and a randomized controlled trail is needed to investigate the effectiveness of the program. Outcomes should include if the detection and treatment of mental illness among the elderly actually improved.

DYSELECTROLYTEMIA IN ELDERLY: A HOSPITAL BASED STUDY

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Tanushree

2016-03-01

Full Text Available INTRODUCTION Dyselectrolytemia is a common problem affecting elderly hospitalised patients. Although hypo/hypernatremia is the most common electrolyte abnormality found in elderly, abnormalities in other electrolytes may also occur in various settings. Information regarding the pattern of electrolyte abnormalities in elderly is lacking in this part of the country. With this background the following case control study was taken up with the following aims and objectives. OBJECTIVES • To study the various patterns of dyselectrolytemia in elderly and compare them with young. • To evaluate and compare the various aetiological factors and comorbid conditions involved in the occurrence of electrolyte abnormalities in these groups of patients. RESULTS The mean age of the study population was 66.174 years (SD- 6.512 years and of the control group was 41.94 years (SD - 10.924 years. Hyponatraemia was the most common electrolyte abnormality encountered in both the groups (57% vs. 60%, p- 0.61. The incidence of hyperkalaemia was significantly higher in the older age group (19.5% vs. 11.5%, p-0.03. Also, in the elderly, the presence of abnormalities in more than one electrolyte level was significantly higher than the young (25.5% vs. 14%, p -0.005. The average length of hospital stay in the elderly was 10.05 days (SD- 4.40 days whereas in the young was 6.35 days (SD- 3.27 days, p <0.0001. The mortality rate was also significantly higher in the elderly group (16% vs. 3.5%, p<0.0001. CONCLUSION Dyselectrolytemia is a common pathological condition encountered in the elderly population which is associated with a very high morbidity and mortality when compared with the young. Hence, elderly patients particularly with associated comorbid conditions should be screened routinely for the presence of associated electrolyte disturbances.

Collaborative Elder Abuse Prevention Project Quarterly Report.

Science.gov (United States)

McDaniel, Garry L.

The Texas Department of Human Services, in collaboration with 13 other public and private organizations, co-sponsored a statewide collaborative elder abuse prevention project, to prevent abuse of elderly and disabled adults. The goal of this project is to develop a comprehensive, long-range plan for the prevention of elder abuse, a method for…

Report on the Elderly 2006

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Alice de Boer

2006-01-01

The Report on the Elderly 2006 presents an overview of the changes in the life situation and life course of the elderly. Key themes are participation in education and employment, leisure time use, financial position, health and care provisions. Attention is also given to the end of working life,

[Association between supporting child and elder abuse in China].

Science.gov (United States)

Wen, X; Hu, Y K; He, P; Wang, Z J; Zheng, X Y

2017-04-10

Objective: To examine the association between child-supporting from their folks and elder abuse in China so as to provide evidence for prevention and control of elder abuse. Methods: Based on the third survey on the Status of Chinese women, organized by the All-China Women's Federation and the National Bureau of Statistics, 7 159 residents aged 65 and older were included and general information on supporting child and elder abuse were gathered. Chi-square test and logistic regression were used to investigate the association between supporting child from elderly and elder abuse. Results: The overall prevalence of elder abuse was 6.71 % . Risks of elder people being abused by family numbers varied from different supporting child situations. After adjusting for potential confounding factors, ORs for the elderly appeared as follows: OR =1.99 (95 %CI : 1.56-2.54) for those who only providing support to male children; OR =2.07 (95 %CI : 1.51-3.79) for those only providing support to the female offspring and OR =2.32 (95 % CI : 1.72-3.13) for those who did not support their children regardless of their sex identity. Elderly who provided support to their children on both sexes were exposed to lower risk of being abused than those who only supporting their male offspring. There was no significant difference appearing on the risk of elder abuse between those elderly who only supporting the male ( OR =1.00) or the female offspring ( OR =1.04, 95 % CI : 0.63-1.71), among all the participants in our study. However, such associations were different in urban and rural areas. Conclusions: High prevalence of abuse was seen in China. The pattern of supporting child was associated with risk of elder abuse. Elderly who showed poor support to their children were under higher risk of being abused by their family members.

A cross-sectional study on quality of life among the elderly in non-governmental organizations' elderly homes in Kuala Lumpur.

Science.gov (United States)

Onunkwor, Obinna Francis; Al-Dubai, Sami Abdo Radman; George, Philip Parikial; Arokiasamy, John; Yadav, Hemetram; Barua, Ankur; Shuaibu, Hassana Ojonuba

2016-01-12

There is a rapid increase in the population of the elderly globally, and Malaysia is anticipated to become an ageing nation in 2030. Maintaining health, social participation, reducing institutionalization, and improving quality of life of the elderly are public health challenges of the 21(st) century. Quality of life among elderly in Elderly Homes in Malaysia is under researched. This study aims to determine the quality of life and its associated factors among the Elderly in Elderly Homes in Kuala Lumpur. This was a cross-sectional study among 203 residents aged 60 years or more in eight randomly selected Elderly Homes in Kuala Lumpur in September 2014. Stratified simple random sampling was used to select participants. Study instruments included World Health Organization Quality of Life Questionnaire-Brief Version (WHOQOL-BREF), Multidimensional Scale for Perceived Social Support, and a questionnaire for Socio-demographic variables. Data collection was by face to face interview. Univariate and Multivariate analysis were used to determine associations, and P-value leisure activity, physical activity, duration of residence, type of accommodation, co-morbidities, and social support. This study confirms that multiple factors are associated with quality of life among elderly in elderly homes. Social support, chronic co-morbidities, gender and outdoor leisure activity were significantly associated with all the domains of quality of life. Among the four domains of quality of life, the physical domain had the highest score while the social domain had the lowest score. This emphasizes the need for more social support-related interventions in these homes.

Elder Abuse: What's a Clinician To Do?

Science.gov (United States)

Reis, Bruce E.

Incidence rates are critically examined in light of varying definitions of what constitutes elder abuse. It is suggested that the clinician's position of mandatory reporting is an unrealistic response in many cases of elder abuse due to the lack of adequate support services for either the abuser or the elder. Outcome studies are used to support…

EPILEPSY IN ELDERLY PATIENTS (DIAGNOSTIC FEATURES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. A. Gulyaev

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Physicians frequently consider that epilepsy is a disease in children and young adults; however, its incidence in elderly patients is not lower and commonly higher than those among children and young people. Among the causes of epilepsy in elderly patients, there is a predominance of acute and chronic cerebral circulatory disorders (50 % of all cases. Other causes of epilepsy (neurodegenerative processes, tumors, etc. are rarely encountered in the elderly. However, there is actually no real pattern of incidence of epilepsy in the elderly since the diversity and features of its clinical manifestations in these patients, as well as difficulties in describing their status make the diagnosis of the disease very hard in this category of patients. Seizures without loss of consciousness, which are especially associated with the development of transient muscle tone disorders and autonomic dysfunction, are commonly regarded as benign vertigo, autonomic or mental disorders. This study has indicated that the development of epilepsy in the elderly, which results from cerebrovascular and neurodegenerative pathology, is not a rare, but relatively common neurological disorder. By taking into account the aging tendency in economically developed countries, the increasing number of elderly patients with epilepsy is an important medical and economic problem that calls for in-depth investigation, timely diagnosis,and treatment.

Renal Transplantation from Elderly Living Donors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jacob A. Akoh

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Acceptance of elderly living kidney donors remains controversial due to the higher incidence of comorbidity and greater risk of postoperative complications. This is a review of publications in the English language between 2000 and 2013 about renal transplantation from elderly living donors to determine trends and effects of donation, and the outcomes of such transplantation. The last decade witnessed a 50% increase in living kidney donor transplants, with a disproportionate increase in donors >60 years. There is no accelerated loss of kidney function following donation, and the incidence of established renal failure (ERF and hypertension among donors is similar to that of the general population. The overall incidence of ERF in living donors is about 0.134 per 1000 years. Elderly donors require rigorous assessment and should have a predicted glomerular filtration rate of at least 37.5 mL/min/1.73 m2 at the age of 80. Though elderly donors had lower glomerular filtration rate before donation, proportionate decline after donation was similar in both young and elderly groups. The risks of delayed graft function, acute rejection, and graft failure in transplants from living donors >65 years are significantly higher than transplants from younger donors. A multicentred, long-term, and prospective database addressing the outcomes of kidneys from elderly living donors is recommended.

Benzodiazepine abuse among the elderly

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shalini Singh

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Benzodiazepines belong to the hypnotic-sedative class of drugs which have anxiolytic, sedative, and hypnotic properties. These drugs have been in clinical use for at least half a century. The propensity for development of dependence, especially on prescription benzodiazepines, coupled with the risk of falls and cognitive impairment due to benzodiazepines makes the elderly population susceptible to adverse outcomes with the use of benzodiazepines, and hence, cautious use is desired in this population. This review discusses the various aspects pertaining to benzodiazepine abuse in the elderly including pharmacology, prevalence of abuse, adverse consequences of benzodiazepine abuse, and subsequently assessment and management of elderly patients with benzodiazepine abuse.

Oral health in frail elderly

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hoeksema, Albert

2016-01-01

Ageing points towards increasing health problems and rising costs for the society. One of these health problems is the deteriorating oral health in care dependent elderly. The latter is related to the high need for care on many levels in these elderly. The lack of attention for oral care can be

[Dignity of the elderly].

Science.gov (United States)

Ribera Casado, José Manuel

2015-01-01

A discussion is presented on what is understood by «dignity» when applied to the elderly, highlighting it universal character and contrasting it with the greater risks of suffering «indignities» to which the elderly are exposed. The discussion is divided into 3 sections. In the first, the risk factors in this sense could lead to physiological losses and illnessess, which in in the physical, mental and social sense are associated with ageing. In the second, the question of discrimination of the elderly as a form of aggression due to age, and is so widespread and infrequently studied. Lastly, it is discussed how to interpret the advice of the United Nations on how to promote active ageing as a defence system against indignities. It concludes with the message that neither the limitations that accompany the ageing process, nor the different forms of aggression that the elderly may be subjected to, provide sufficient argument neither for a loss of individual nor collective dignity. This is something which we all must endeavour to achieve and which must be maintained and be respected by individuals and by society at all times. Copyright © 2015 SEGG. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

Prevalence of falls in elderly women

OpenAIRE

Vitor,Priscila Regina Rorato; Oliveira,Ana Carolina Kovaleski de; Kohler,Renan; Winter,Gabriele Regiane; Rodacki,Cintia; Krause,Maressa Priscila

2015-01-01

OBJECTIVE: To verify prevalence of falls and fear of falling, and to compare functional fitness among elderly women fallers and non-fallers. METHODS: Seventy-eight elderly women participated in this study. Cases of falls and the fear of falling were self-reported by the elderly women, while the functional fitness was measured by a set of functional tests. Mean and standard deviation were used to describe the sample. Independent t-test was used to compare functional fitness between groups. RES...

National profiling of elder abuse referrals.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Clancy, Marguerite

2011-05-01

there is little consistent data on patterns of reporting of elder abuse in Europe. Between 2002 and 2007, the Irish Health Service Executive developed dedicated structures and staff to support the prevention, detection and management of elder abuse without mandatory reporting. Public awareness campaigns, staff training and management briefings heightened awareness regarding this new service. Central to this process is the development of a national database which could provide useful insights for developing coordinated responses to elder abuse in Europe.

Traditional use of medicinal plants by elderly

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexandre Rocha Alves Pereira

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Objective: identify the traditional use of medicinal plants by the elderly. Methods: exploratory and descriptive study conducted in the Intermunicipal Consortium on Health. Three hundred and fifty-one questionnaires were applied to the elderly to survey socio-demographic information and issues related to plants. Results: the use of plants was reported by 78.4% of the elderly, and these were collected in backyards. The most often cited plants were mint, boldo, fennel, lemongrass and chamomile. Regarding the reason for use, 33.3% participants said that “it’s not harmful to health”, 61.8% usually indicate the use to other people. Most elderly make use of plants in a safe manner, and these are present in the daily lives of these people as a therapeutic method. Conclusion: the elderly make use of medicinal plants as an important therapeutic resource.

Self-care as a health resource of elders

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Høy, Bente; Wagner, Lis; Hall, Elisabeth O.C.

2007-01-01

into self-care as a significant health resource of elders with different health status. It suggests that an elder's self-care ability is determined by the interaction of various sub-resources and conditions and emphasizes the constantly evolving nature of self-care. The framework may be of use in clinical...... practice, policy-making and research into health care of frail or robust elders.......AIM: To review the literature related to self-care and health promotion for elders and to develop an understanding of self-care as a health resource. BACKGROUND: Self-care may improve health and prevent illness and disabilities in elders. Although studies of self-care are numerous, the significance...

Psychological Effects of Light Exercise for Elderly Subjects

OpenAIRE

山田, 裕章; 峰松, 修; 冷川, 昭子; 吉川, 和利; 緒方, 道彦

1987-01-01

Psychological effects of light exercise were evaluated in healthy elderly, middle aged women and elderly with borderline hypertension. The exercises were walking and stretching for healthy elderly, elderly with hypertension and playing beginner's tennis for healty middle aged women. The subjects took exercise three hours a day, twice a week during three months period. Psychometric test battery was used Yatabe-Guilford Personality Inventry (Y-G test). Manifest Anxiety Scale (MAS), Maudsely Per...

Prevalence of falls in elderly women.

Science.gov (United States)

Vitor, Priscila Regina Rorato; de Oliveira, Ana Carolina Kovaleski; Kohler, Renan; Winter, Gabriele Regiane; Rodacki, Cintia; Krause, Maressa Priscila

2015-01-01

To verify prevalence of falls and fear of falling, and to compare functional fitness among elderly women fallers and non-fallers. Seventy-eight elderly women participated in this study. Cases of falls and the fear of falling were self-reported by the elderly women, while the functional fitness was measured by a set of functional tests. Mean and standard deviation were used to describe the sample. Independent t-test was used to compare functional fitness between groups. The prevalence of falls in this sample was 32.4%. Among women fallers, 40% self-reported a high fear of falling. It is recommended that functional and resistance exercises are included in the preventive strategies for reducing risk factors for falls and its determinants in elderly women. Level of Evidence II, Prognostic-Prospective Study.

Intelligent monitoring system of bedridden elderly

Science.gov (United States)

Dong, Rue Shao; Tanaka, Motohiro; Ushijima, Miki; Ishimatsu, Takakazu

2005-12-01

In this paper we propose a system to detect physical behavior of the elderly under bedridden status. This system is used to prevent those elderly from falling down and being wounded. Basic idea of our approach is to measure the body movements of the elderly using the acceleration sensor. Based on the data measured, dangerous actions of the elderly are extracted and warning signals to the caseworkers are generated via wireless signals. A feature of the system is that the senor part is compactly assembled as a wearable unit. Another feature of the system is that the system adopts a simplified wireless network system. Due to the network capability the system can monitor physical movements of multi-patients. Applicability of the system is now being examined at hospitals.

The problem of Elder Abuse: review of foreign investigations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gorfan Ya.Yu.

2013-03-01

Full Text Available The article analyzes the empirical findings obtained by foreign scholars and centered on the problem of Elder Abuse. It also contains the description of some elaborated strategies to resist the criminal victimization of the elderly. The article cites data about the crimes against the elderly persons in different countries. It also describes theoretical approaches to understanding the reasons for Elder Abuse. It then compares and analyzes the risk factors for some crimes committed against the elders which are disclosed by foreign scholars. With reference to conclusions drawn by the foreign investigators the author of the article indicates the possible ways of victimological prophylaxes of crimes against elders.

Safety and efficacy of ipragliflozin in elderly versus non-elderly Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: a subgroup analysis of the STELLA-LONG TERM study.

Science.gov (United States)

Maegawa, Hiroshi; Tobe, Kazuyuki; Tabuchi, Hiromi; Nakamura, Ichiro; Uno, Satoshi

2018-03-01

This subgroup analysis of STELLA-LONG TERM interim data explored the long-term safety and efficacy of ipragliflozin in non-elderly vs. elderly Japanese type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients. STELLA-LONG TERM is an ongoing 3-year prospective surveillance study of Japanese T2DM patients receiving ipragliflozin 50 mg once daily. In this subgroup analysis, patient characteristics, laboratory variables, and adverse drug reactions (ADRs) were compared between non-elderly (<65 years) and elderly (≥65 years) patients. Non-elderly patients had significantly higher body mass index and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol than elderly patients (P < 0.001). The proportion of patients with hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) <8.0% was significantly higher among elderly patients (P < 0.001). HbA1c, fasting plasma glucose, and body weight significantly decreased from baseline to 3 and 12 months in both groups (all P < 0.05 vs. baseline). The ADR incidence was 10.83% vs. 10.42% in non-elderly and elderly patients. The incidence of skin complications was 0.98% vs. 1.65% and that of renal disorder was 0.47% vs. 0.95% in non-elderly and elderly patients (both P = 0.003). Ipragliflozin was effective in non-elderly and elderly Japanese T2DM patients in a real-world clinical setting. The incidence of renal disorder and skin complications was significantly higher in elderly vs. non-elderly patients.

[Motivational orientation and depressive symptoms in the elderly].

Science.gov (United States)

Altintas, E; Guerrien, A

2009-04-01

This article is focused on motivation and depression in later life. For about 20 years, research on the motivation of elders has underlined the importance of the cognitive evaluation of life contexts, notably in terms of self-determination. This cognitive evaluation determines the motivational orientation for daily activities (notably the levels of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation). The purpose of this research was specifically to study the relationships between the existence of four types of motivation (intrinsic, self-determined extrinsic, nonself-determined extrinsic and amotivation) and the consequences for adaptation and well-being. The study, therefore, focused on the possible links between motivation and geriatric-depression level and explored the nature of this link. Forty persons aged 60 or over (31 women: 80.48+/-9.24; nine men: 80.56+/-9.48) who live in nursing homes (20 elderly) or in their own homes (20 elderly) were enrolled. Elderly persons were assessed with specific and standardized tools: the Elderly Motivation Scale (EMS, in the French version: EMPA) and the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS). For the statistical analyses of the results, correlations and Mann-Whitney test were used. We found that in elderly people, the motivational styles (the four types of motivation) can be reliably measured and are related to geriatric depression. First, significant positive links were noticed between intrinsic motivation and depression scores and between self-determined extrinsic motivation and depression scores. Conversely, significant negative links were noticed between nonself-determined extrinsic motivation and depression scores and between amotivation and depression scores. The most self-determined elders presented low-depression levels, whereas the more nonself-determined elders showed high-depression levels. Moreover, motivational styles significantly differed in the two groups (depressive or not depressive). The most depressive elders showed

Nutritional habits of elderly people living at home

OpenAIRE

Premoš, Barbara

2014-01-01

Aging is a process that is accompanied by biological, psychological and social changes. These changes can affect the nourishment of elderly people. Elderly people are becoming less independent with years and more dependent on others. Family members, to whom the elderly people trust the most, offer them assistance. On the market, there are various services that provide assistance in different cases. In the diploma work I have been investigating how the elderly people eat, which foods are u...

Value of laparoscopic appendectomy in the elderly patient.

Science.gov (United States)

Kirshtein, Boris; Perry, Zvi Howard; Mizrahi, Solly; Lantsberg, Leonid

2009-05-01

Acute appendicitis (AA) in elderly patients (60 years of age and older) is a challenging problem associated with significant morbidity and mortality when perforation is present. We hypothesized that laparoscopic appendectomy (LA) would enable an earlier correct diagnosis and have advantages in elderly patients. We performed a retrospective review of patients who underwent laparoscopic appendectomy for suspected AA. Data of elderly patients were compared to data of younger patients (18 to <60 years of age). Fifty-four LA were performed in elderly patients and 423 in younger patients. Patients over the age of 60 years had more co-morbidities and required more frequent use of anticoagulants. Preoperative imaging (ultrasound or computerized tomography) was significantly more frequent in elderly patients (36% versus 15%), and was associated with a higher rate of confirmation of acute appendicitis (78% versus 55%), which allowed a decrease in the rate of negative surgical explorations to 4.1% in elderly patients compared to 10.2% in younger patients. Complicated appendicitis and conversions were more frequent in the elderly patients. This resulted in prolonged operative time and longer hospital stay for this group. The overall complication rate was equivalent in the two groups, without differences in the occurrence either of infectious complications or of complications related to surgical site. There were no deaths following appendectomy in our series. Laparoscopic appendectomy is safe in the elderly population and is not associated with any increase in morbidity. The high incidence of complicated appendicitis in elderly patients affects operative time and length of hospital stay following laparoscopic appendectomy, and it can also lead to an increased rate of conversion to an open procedure. Use of preoperative abdominal computerized tomography scan is mandatory in elderly patients to provide an early diagnosis and to decrease unnecessary surgical exploration when acute

Robots in Elderly Care

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alessandro Vercelli

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Low birth rate and the long life expectancy represent an explosive mixture, resulting in the rapid aging of population. The costs of healthcare in the grey society are increasing dramatically, and soon there will be not enough resources and people for care. This context requires conceptually new elderly care solutions progressively reducing the percentages of the human-based care. Research on robot-based solutions for elderly care and active ageing aims to answer these needs. From a general perspective, robotics has the power to completely reshape the landscape of healthcare both in its structure and its operation. In fact, the long-term sustainability of healthcare systems could be addressed by automation powered by digital health technologies, such as artificial intelligence, 3D-printing or robotics. The latter could take over monotonous work from healthcare workers, which would allow them to focus more on patients and to have lesser workload. Robots might be used in elder care with several different aims. (i Robots may act as caregivers, i.e. assist the elderly, (ii they can provide remainders and instructions for activities of daily life and safety, and/or assist their carers in daily tasks; (iii they can help monitor their behaviour and health; and (iv provide companionship, including entertainment and hobbies, reminiscence and social contact. The use of Robots with human subjects/patients raise several sensitive questions. First of all, robots may represent information hubs, and can collect an incredible amount of data about the subjects and their environment. In fact, they record habits such as sleeping, exercising, third persons entering in the house, appointments. Communications may be continuously recorded. Moreover, by connecting with medical devices, they can store medical data. On one hand, this represents a very powerful tool to collect information about the single subject (precision medicine, about disease (thus eventually finding

Factors associated with sarcopenia in institutionalized elderly.

Science.gov (United States)

Mesquita, Alice Ferreira; Silva, Emanuelle Cruz da; Eickemberg, Michaela; Roriz, Anna Karla Carneiro; Barreto-Medeiros, Jairza Maria; Ramos, Lílian Barbosa

2017-03-30

The sarcopenia is a negative aspect for the health of the elderly, increased the risk for disease and mortality. Additionally can contributes greatly to functional reducing capacity and quality of life. To identify the prevalence and factors associated with sarcopenia in institutionalized elderly. This is a cross-sectional study, conducted with 216 elderly people, aged ≥ 60 years, of both sexes, residents in long-term care facilities in Salvador-Bahia, Brazil. To identify sarcopenia was used the skeletal muscle Index. Covariates were considered: gender, age, time of institutionalization, type of institution, body mass index and functional capacity. The Association between sarcopenia and covariates was evaluated using the Poisson regression model with robust variance. The prevalence of sarcopenia in the elderly was 72.2% and this condition was associated with male sex (PR = 1,33; CI 95% = 1,081,65), thinness (PR = 1,29; CI 95% = 1,16-1,43) and obesity (PR = 0,37; CI 95% = 0,23-0,61). The prevalence of sarcopenia was high among the elderly living in long-term institutions, especially among men. Elderly with thinness showed greater impairment of muscle reserves, while the state of obesity was protective.

[Family functioning of elderly with depressive symptoms].

Science.gov (United States)

Souza, Rosely Almeida; Desani da Costa, Gislaine; Yamashita, Cintia Hitomi; Amendola, Fernanda; Gaspar, Jaqueline Correa; Alvarenga, Márcia Regina Martins; Faccenda, Odival; Oliveira, Maria Amélia de Campos

2014-06-01

To classify families of elderly with depressive symptoms regarding their functioning and to ascertain the presence of an association between these symptoms, family functioning and the characteristics of the elderly. This was an observational, analytical, cross-sectional study performed with 33 teams of the Family Health Strategy in Dourados, MS. The sample consisted of 374 elderly divided into two groups (with and without depressive symptoms). The instruments for data collection were a sociodemographic instrument, the GeriatricDepression Scale (15 items) and the Family Apgar. An association was observed between depressive symptoms and family dysfunction, female gender, four or more people living together, and physical inactivity. The functional family may represent effective support for the elderly with depressive symptoms, because it offers a comfortable environment that ensures the well-being of its members. The dysfunctional family can barely provide necessary care for the elderly, which can exacerbate depressive symptoms.

Brachytherapy for elderly patients with stage II tongue cancer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kimura, Tomoki; Hirokawa, Yutaka; Fujita, Minoru; Murakami, Yuji; Kenjo, Masahiro; Kaneyasu, Yuko; Ito, Katsuhide

2003-01-01

In treatment choices of stage II (T2N0M0) tongue cancer, brachytherapy is less invasive and superior in function preservation, therefore its role is more important in elderly patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate treatment results and morbidity of brachytherapy for elderly patients with stage II tongue cancer. Between 1980 and 2001, 198 patients with stage II tongue cancer were treated with brachytherapy at Hiroshima University Hospital. Patient ages ranged from 21 to 89 years old (median: 62 years old). Patients were divided into three groups as follows: 119 patients younger than 65 years old (Non-Elderly group), 53 patients between 65 and 75 years old (Junior Elderly group), and 26 patients 75 years or older (Senior Elderly group). Radiotherapy was performed in 101 patients with brachytherapy alone, and in 97 patients with brachytherapy and external radiotherapy. Chemotherapy was also performed in 77 patients. Follow-up period ranged from 4 to 243 months (median: 55 months). The 5-year local control rate was 85% in the Non-Elderly group, 85% in the Junior Elderly group and 81% in the Senior Elderly group. There was no significant difference among these groups. The 5-year cause-specific survival rate was 85%, 81% and 70% respectively. The Senior Elderly group showed poorer cause-specific survival rate than the other two groups (p=0.03). There was also a tendency of higher incidence of neck metastasis and low salvage rate by neck dissection in the Senior Elderly group. Although the Senior Elderly group showed poorer cause-specific survival rate, the local control rate was similar to those of the other two groups. Brachytherapy is an effective treatment option for elderly patients with stage II tongue cancer. (author)

A Survey of Abuse of the Elderly in Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, Jeff; And Others

Many elderly persons suffer abuse and neglect from which they cannot escape. Questions concerning the extent of elder abuse, the kinds of abuse, and underlying factors associated with elder abuse in Texas were explored in a survey of professionals most likely to encounter elder abuse in their work. Questionnaires (1,508) were mailed to agencies…

Measuring safety climate in elderly homes.

Science.gov (United States)

Yeung, Koon-Chuen; Chan, Charles C

2012-02-01

Provision of a valid and reliable safety climate dimension brings enormous benefits to the elderly home sector. The aim of the present study was to make use of the safety climate instrument developed by OSHC to measure the safety perceptions of employees in elderly homes such that the factor structure of the safety climate dimensions of elderly homes could be explored. In 2010, surveys by mustering on site method were administered in 27 elderly homes that had participated in the "Hong Kong Safe and Healthy Residential Care Home Accreditation Scheme" organized by the Occupational Safety and Health Council. Six hundred and fifty-one surveys were returned with a response rate of 54.3%. To examine the factor structure of safety climate dimensions in our study, an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) using principal components analysis method was conducted to identify the underlying factors. The results of the modified seven-factor's safety climate structure extracted from 35 items better reflected the safety climate dimensions of elderly homes. The Cronbach alpha range for this study (0.655 to 0.851) indicated good internal consistency among the seven-factor structure. Responses from managerial level, supervisory and professional level, and front-line staff were analyzed to come up with the suggestion on effective ways of improving the safety culture of elderly homes. The overall results showed that managers generally gave positive responses in the factors evaluated, such as "management commitment and concern to safety," "perception of work risks and some contributory influences," "safety communication and awareness," and "safe working attitude and participation." Supervisors / professionals, and frontline level staff on the other hand, have less positive responses. The result of the lowest score in the factors - "perception of safety rules and procedures" underlined the importance of the relevance and practicability of safety rules and procedures. The modified OSHC

[Depression in the elderly. Clinical aspects].

Science.gov (United States)

Barbier, D

2001-02-24

DIFFICULT DIAGNOSIS: Depression in the elderly can take on many often misleading aspects. Sadness may be considered legitimate or "normal" for an elderly person. Depression may masquerade as an organic disorder where somatic complaints, pain and anxiety predominate. All these different clinical forms may mislead the clinician. THE MASK OF HYPOCHONDRIA: A tendency to hypochondria, found in more than one-half of all depressed elderly subjects, may be reinforced by bouts of complementary examinations. The patient is convinced of having an unrecognized organic disease. The mask of hypochondria must be considered with special care because it is a major risk factor for attempted and successful suicide. THE MASK OF DELUSIONS: Elderly patients often develop a state of melancolia-like depression with delusions. Delusions may be congruent with the predominant depressed mood, for example a guilt feeling for an act never committed, or inversely, non-congruent with the thymic state (persecution, negation delusin), for example Cotard syndrome where the patient is persuaded that his/her organs are malfunctioning or have disappeared. Despite these impressive mood disorders that often incite prescription of a neuroleptic, these elderly patients respond favorably to antidepressor treatment.

Robots in Elderly Care

OpenAIRE

Alessandro Vercelli; Innocenzo Rainero; Ludovico Ciferri; Marina Boido; Fabrizio Pirri

2018-01-01

Low birth rate and the long life expectancy represent an explosive mixture, resulting in the rapid aging of population. The costs of healthcare in the grey society are increasing dramatically, and soon there will be not enough resources and people for care. This context requires conceptually new elderly care solutions progressively reducing the percentages of the human-based care. Research on robot-based solutions for elderly care and active ageing aims to answer these needs. From a general p...

SIMILARITIES OF ELDERLY AND THERAPY-RELATED AML

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Francesco D'Alò

2011-11-01

Full Text Available Acute myeloid leukemia (AML is a clonal disorder of the hematopoietic stem cell, typical of the elderly, with a median age of over 60 years at diagnosis. In AML, older age is one of the strongest independent adverse prognostic factor, associated with decreased complete response rate, worse disease-free and overall survival, with highest rates of treatment related mortality, resistant disease and relapse, compared to younger patients. While clinical risk factors do not significantly differ between older and younger patients, outcomes are compromised in elderly patients not only by increased comorbidities and susceptibility to toxicity from therapy, but it is now recognized that elderly AML represents a biologically distinct disease, that is itself more aggressive and less responsive to therapy. In elderly individuals prolonged exposure to environmental carcinogens may be the basis for the aggressive biology of the disease. This may also be the basis for similarities between elderly AML and therapy-related myeloid malignancies, mimicking toxic effects of previous cytotoxic treatments on hematopoietic stem cells. Age is itself a risk factor for t-MN, which are more frequent in elderly patients, where also a shorter latency between treatment of primary tumor and t-MN has been reported. Similarities between therapy-related malignancies and elderly AML include morphological aspects, as the presence of multilineage dysplasia preceding and/or concomitant to the development of leukemia, and adverse cytogenetics, including poor karyotype and chromosome 5 and/or 7 abnormalities. Looking at molecular prognosticators in elderly AML, similar to t-MN,  reduced frequency of favorable factors, as reduced number of NPM1 and CEBPA mutated cases has been observed, together with increased incidence of negative factors, as increased MDR1 expression, accelerated telomere shortening  and frequency of methylation changes. Given the unfavorable prognosis of elderly and

Lung cancer in elderly

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wagnerova, M.

2007-01-01

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in Europe and USA. The median age of diagnosis is currently 69 years, however this is gradually increasing with the aging population. Patients over age of 70 represent 40 % of all patients with non-small cell lung cancer. Age alone has not been found to be a significant prognostic factor in many malignancies, including lung cancer with performance status and stage being of greater importance. In lung cancer it is also evident that older patients gain equivalent benefit from cancer therapies as their younger counterparts. Elderly patients are under-treated in all aspects of their disease course from histological diagnosis to active therapy with surgical resection, radiotherapy or chemotherapy, irrespective of performance status or co-morbidities. Elderly patients are also underrepresented in lung cancer clinical trials. In this review is presented knowledge about lung cancer in elderly. (author)

Screening for Elder Abuse among Turkish Older People: Validity of the Hwalek-Sengstock Elder Abuse Screening Test (H-S "East")

Science.gov (United States)

Özmete, Emine; Megahead, Hamido A.

2017-01-01

Objective: This study aims to adapt "The Hwalek-Sengstock Elder Abuse Screening Test (H-S "East")" (Neale, Hwalek, Scott, Sengstock, & Stahl, 1991) to Turkish and to assess its validity and reliability while determining the factors that affect elder abuse. Method: The sample of the study is composed of 465 elderly women and…

IDENTIFYING DEMENTIA IN ELDERLY POPULATION : A CAMP APPROACH

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Anand P

2015-06-01

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Dementia is an emerging medico social problem affecting elderly, and poses a challenge to clinician and caregivers. It is usually identified in late stage where management becomes difficult. AIM: The aim of camp was to identify dementia in elderly population participating in screening camp. MATERIAL AND METHODS : The geriatric clinic and department of psychiatry jointly organised screening camp to detect dementia in elderly for five days in September 2014 to commemorate world Alzheimer’s day. The invitation regarding camp was sent to all senio r citizen forums and also published in leading Kannada daily newspaper. Mini Mental Status Examination and Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4 th edition criteria (DSM IV was used to identify dementia. RESULTS: Elderly male participate d in camp in more number than females and dementia was identified in 36% elderly with education less than 9 th standard. Dementia was found in 18% in our study population. CONCLUSION: The camp help identify elderly suffering from dementia and also created a wareness about it. Hypertension and diabetes mellitus were common co morbidity in study population. Our study suggested organising screening camp will help identify elderly living with dementia.

Different manifestation of depressive disorder in the elderly.

Science.gov (United States)

Shahpesandy, Homayun

2005-12-01

To compare the clinical manifestation of depressive disorder in elderly, and younger adults. To compare the clinical manifestation of depressive disorder, we evaluate 46 elderly (33 female, and 13 male, mean age 71.1) and 60 younger adults (40 female, and 20 male, mean age 44.5 years). All patients suffering from depressive disorders according to ICD-10. For evaluation and comparison of depressive symptomatology we used the HAM-D-17. The results analysed by the SPSS. The clinical manifestation of depression is different in the elderly. Elderly depressed patients compared with their younger counterparts, scored significantly less in Depressed mood, but significantly higher in Work and activities, Retardation, Somatic symptoms-general, Hypochondriasis, Insomnia-middle, Insomnia-late, Anxiety-somatic, and Somatic symptoms-gastrointestinal. On the other hand, younger patients scored significantly higher in Feelings of guilt, and Genital symptoms. Clinical presentation of depressive disorder is different in the elderly, depressed mood is often absent or masked. Anxiety, somatization, and hypochondriasis are more often present in the elderly depressed patients than in younger patients. The elderly people are also more likely than their younger counterparts to complain of insomnia.

Consumer panel study on elderly people's wishes concerning services.

Science.gov (United States)

Valkila, Noora; Litja, Heli; Aalto, Leena; Saari, Arto

2010-01-01

This study informs on the wishes and needs of elderly people themselves regarding services for the elderly. The data for the study were gathered using a consumer panel method. Elderly people desire assistance in heavy cleaning chores, in outdoor activities and in carrying out their personal business. Elderly people felt that there should be more recreational services available. Elderly people link aging with feelings of insecurity and loneliness. Becoming a service user for the first time is felt to be a very difficult step to take, and so this decision is postponed as long as possible. The elderly people desire a service for assessing their individual service needs in an organized, expert and objective fashion. The study indicates that elderly people value the human contact gained through service provision. The consumer panel method for collecting data was successful. Copyright © 2009 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

The violence against the elderly in films

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Lucy Gomes Vianna

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Introduction: With the aging of the population, the issue of violence against the elderly need to be debated, in order to enlighten and educate the população about this issue. The movies utilization is a effective educational resource, contributing to reflection and understanding of these situation. Objective: To collect and analyze images in film productions that express the different types of violence against the elderly. Material and methods: Analysis of the national and international filmography, identifying scenes in commercial films portraying the violence against the elderly. We searched up the sites www.cinema10.com.br, www.adorocinema.com, www.cinemateca.gov.br, www.filmesdecinema.com.br, www.cineplayers, www.interfilmes,  www.cineclick.com.br, and  www.revistaforum.com.br. The films with scenes of violence against the elderly were listed. Results: We listed up 58 films showing scenes displaying different types of violence against the elderly: 24 (41% physical violence; 18 (31% psychological violence; 14 (24% social violence, 10 (17% self-neglect, 10 (17% economic abuse, 6 (10% abandonment, 3 (5% sexual violence, and 3 (5% negligence. Conclusion: Using film imagery, we can diffuse the issue of mistreatment against the elderly, as well as broaden the instances to denounce this violence. Thus, we search  to focus on the elderly citizenship, guaranteeing their rights and attending reframe the context and the images of aging.  

Conflicting views on elder care responsibility in Japan.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Kristen Schultz

2016-05-01

I examine the attitudinal ambivalence created by conflicting social expectations regarding parent-child devotion, filial obligation and family membership, and gender norms in a national population of Japanese adults. I ask: in a context of rapidly changing family and elder care norms, how do different beliefs and attitudes overlap and conflict and how are they related to elder care preferences? I analyze data from the 2006 Japanese General Social Survey and use Latent Class Analysis to identify latent groups in the population defined by their beliefs and examine the relationship between class membership and elder care preferences. I found variation in the population with respect to the measured beliefs as well as a relationship between patterns of beliefs and choice of elder caregiver. I found conflicting expectations regarding elder care responsibility in one latent class and this class also expressed elder care preferences that conflict with at least some of their strongly held beliefs. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Depressive symptoms and health problems among Chinese immigrant elders in the US and Chinese elders in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Bei; Chi, Iris; Plassman, Brenda L; Guo, Man

2010-08-01

Researchers speculate that depression tends to be more prevalent among immigrant elders due to their lack of resources, acculturation stress, language problems, and social isolation. However, other characteristics of elderly immigrants, such as the healthy immigrant effect, may counteract these potential risk factors. This study examined whether depressive symptoms differed between Chinese immigrant elders and their counterparts in China and whether health conditions were similarly associated with depressive symptoms in these two samples. Depression and health information was collected from 177 Chinese immigrant elders in Boston, the US in 2000 and from 428 education and gender-matched elders in Shanghai, China in 2003. Chinese immigrants had a significantly lower score on the modified Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) and its subscales: somatic symptoms and depressive affect. The association remained for the subscale depressive affect in multivariate analyses. Arthritis and back or neck problems were associated with a higher level of depressive symptoms among Chinese immigrants, while problems in walking were associated with depression among their counterparts in China. Pain was an underlying contributor to the association between depression and these health problems in both the groups. This study suggests that Chinese immigrant elders might be more resilient than their counterparts despite many challenges they face after moving abroad. With the growing number of older Chinese immigrants in the US, a better understanding of depressive symptoms is essential to provide culturally competent services to better serve this population.

Leukocyte telomere dynamics in the elderly

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Steenstrup, Troels; Hjelmborg, Jacob V B; Mortensen, Laust H

2013-01-01

Limited data suggest that leukocytes of the elderly display ultra-short telomeres. It was reported that in some elderly persons leukocyte telomere length (LTL) shows age-dependent elongation. Using cross-sectional and longitudinal models, we characterized LTL dynamics in participants...

Caustic Ingestion in the Elderly: Influence of Age on Clinical Outcome

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Blazena Caganova

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Caustic poisonings are still associated with many fatalities. Studies focusing on the elderly are rare. The purpose of the present study was to compare the clinical outcomes of caustic ingestion injury in elderly and non-elderly adults with regard to gender, intent of exposure, substance ingested, severity of mucosal injury, complications, and mortality. Caustic substance exposures reported to the National Toxicological Information Centre in Slovakia during 1998–2015 were reviewed retrospectively. The patients were divided into two groups: the non-elderly (<60 years and elderly adults (≥60 years. The mortality rate in the elderly was significantly higher (elderly 23.0% vs. non-elderly 11.3%; p = 0.041. The risk of fatal outcome in the elderly was increased by acid ingestion (OR = 7.822; p = 0.002, particularly hydrochloric acid (OR = 5.714, p = 0.006. The incidence of respiratory complications was almost two times higher in the elderly was 31.1% vs. 17.4% for the non-elderly (p = 0.037. Respiratory complications significantly correlated with an increased mortality rate (p = 0.001 in the elderly whereas there was no association between GI complications and mortality in the elderly (p = 0.480. Elderly patients with respiratory complications had the poorest clinical outcomes. The highest risk of complications and fatalities was observed in patients after hydrochloric acid ingestion.

Family functioning of elderly with depressive symptoms

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Rosely Almeida Souza

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Objective: To classify families of elderly with depressive symptoms regarding their functioning and to ascertain the presence of an association between these symptoms, family functioning and the characteristics of the elderly. Method: This was an observational, analytical, cross-sectional study performed with 33 teams of the Family Health Strategy in Dourados, MS. The sample consisted of 374 elderly divided into two groups (with and without depressive symptoms. The instruments for data collection were a sociodemographic instrument, the GeriatricDepression Scale (15 items and the Family Apgar. Results: An association was observed between depressive symptoms and family dysfunction, female gender, four or more people living together, and physical inactivity. Conclusion: The functional family may represent effective support for the elderly with depressive symptoms, because it offers a comfortable environment that ensures the well-being of its members. The dysfunctional family can barely provide necessary care for the elderly, which can exacerbate depressive symptoms.

A Model of Active Ageing through Elder Learning: The Elder Academy Network in Hong Kong

Science.gov (United States)

Tam, Maureen

2013-01-01

This article presents the Elder Academy (EA) Network as the policy and practice in promoting active ageing through elder learning in Hong Kong. First, the article examines how the change in demographics and the prevalent trend of an ageing population have propelled the government in Hong Kong to tackle issues and challenges brought about by an…

The impact of elder abuse education on young adults.

Science.gov (United States)

Hayslip, Bert; Reinberg, Julie; Williams, Jennifer

2015-01-01

The present study examined the effectiveness of educational interventions in altering tolerance for and behavioral intentions of elder abuse among college student young adults. Participants were 225 undergraduates who were assigned to one of four educational groups: Elder Abuse Education, Aging Education, Family Education, and a Pre- and Posttest only condition. While the Elder Abuse Education group reported less tolerance and intentions for elder abuse compared to the other groups at the immediate posttest, a decrement in such positive changes at 1-month follow-up was observed in such persons. These mixed findings suggest that while specific interventions may reduce elder abuse tolerance, supplemental educational efforts over time may be necessary to maintain intervention-specific gains in intentions and behaviors particular to elder abuse.

Elder Abuse and Neglect in Turkey: A Systematic Review

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Neslihan Lok

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Along with a growing elderly population in the world and in our country, elder abuse and neglect has been a major problem. The purpose of this study is to identify and systematically review the studies investigating elder abuse and neglect in Turkey. Evaluation of the studies on elder abuse and neglect in Turkey showed that the elderly are often abused by family members and they are often exposed to emotional, physical, economic and psychological abuse. All of the studies reviewed in this paper were descriptive cross-sectional studies investigating elder abuse and neglect. The studies reviewed presented significant results revealing the prevalence of elder abuse and neglect in Turkey. In conclusion, this systematic review revealed that research on this issue in Turkey is insufficient and there is a need for studies conducted with larger samples covering an entire city. [Psikiyatride Guncel Yaklasimlar - Current Approaches in Psychiatry 2015; 7(2: 149-156

Struggles in (Elderly) Care

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dahl, Hanne Marlene

This book provides a critical engagement with the intensified struggles to be found within elderly care provision. Various social and political processes, including the forces of globalisation and the de-gendering of care, have changed how we might understand this national and global political...... of contestation. Dahl approaches these issues from a post-structuralist and radical feminist position, while drawing from feminist sociology, feminist political science, nursing philosophy and feminist history. In particular, Struggles In (Elderly) Care highlights how the predominantly feminist theorization...

Management of epilepsy in elderly

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Harsono Harsono

2003-03-01

Full Text Available Management of epilepsy in elderly requires understanding the unique biochemical and pharmacological characteristics of these patients. Management decisions must be based on accurate classification of seizures or epilepsy syndromes, a thorough neurological assessment to define etiology, and a comprehensive assessment of the patient’s health and living situation. Concomitant illnesses such as neurological, psychiatric, metabolic, or cardiac disorders will require individualization of plans and instructions. Specific problems of treatment of epilepsy in the elderly compared to childhood patients are as follows: distinctive range of causes of epilepsy, distinctive differential diagnosis, concurrent pathologies unrelated to epilepsy, pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic differences, and distinctive psychosocial effects. (Med J Indones 2003; 12: 40-7 Keywords:  epilepsy, elderly, management, concomitant illness, pharmacokinetic

Kidney transplantation in the elderly.

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Neeraj; Nori, Uday; Pesavento, Todd

2009-08-01

Recent outcome data, ongoing organ shortage and proposed changes in allocation policies are driving the need to review current practices and possible future course of kidney transplantation in the elderly patients. A proposed new kidney allocation system based on matching donor and recipient characteristics to enable 'age-matched' kidney allocation is currently being discussed in the USA. While this system benefits younger recipients, implications for elderly recipients receiving older grafts remain a matter of debate. Despite improved outcomes, there remain significant challenges to kidney transplantation in the elderly, including organ shortage, poor transplant rate, evolving allocation policies, high wait-list mortality and nonstandardized immunosuppression. Prospective studies are needed to evaluate the strategies to meet these challenges and to study the impact of proposed new allocation system.

[Liver diseases in the elderly].

Science.gov (United States)

Bruguera, Miguel

2014-11-01

Liver diseases in the elderly have aroused less interest than diseases of other organs, since the liver plays a limited role in aging. There are no specific liver diseases of old age, but age-related anatomical and functional modifications of the liver cause changes in the frequency and clinical behavior of some liver diseases compared with those in younger patients. This review discusses the most important features of liver function in the healthy elderly population, as well as the features of the most prevalent liver diseases in this age group, especially the diagnostic approach to the most common liver problems in the elderly: asymptomatic elevation of serum transaminases and jaundice. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier España, S.L.U. and AEEH y AEG. All rights reserved.

[Vitamin D supplementation in the elderly: guidelines and practice].

Science.gov (United States)

Chel, V G M; Elders, P J M; Tuijp, M L M; van den Berg, H H; van Drongelen, K I; Siedenburg, R C; Ooms, M E; Lips, P T A

2013-01-01

In 2008, the Health Council of the Netherlands published an advice on vitamin D supplementation for the elderly. Nevertheless, suspicion arose at the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport and the Netherlands Nutrition Centre that vitamin D supplementation in the elderly is still insufficient. We aimed to determine the extent to which general practitioners and elderly care physicians actually followed the advice of the Health Council. Questionnaire study. Brief questionnaires were sent to all elderly care physicians in the Netherlands. Some questions were also posed to general practitioners at a network meeting of the Academic Network of GP Practices of the VU University Medical Center in Amsterdam. More than two-thirds of the respondents, both elderly care physicians and general practitioners, are familiar with the guidelines of the Health Council of the Netherlands on vitamin D supplementation in the elderly, but about half do not prescribe vitamin D when the guideline advises to do so. When supplementation is prescribed, about half of the elderly care physicians and a fifth of the general practitioners uses an insufficient dose. The guidelines of the Health Council of the Netherlands on vitamin D supplementation in the elderly are not sufficiently followed by elderly care physicians and general practitioners. Awareness of and support for the vitamin D supplementation guidelines among health care providers is still limited.

Radiologists' Training, Experience, and Attitudes About Elder Abuse Detection.

Science.gov (United States)

Rosen, Tony; Bloemen, Elizabeth M; Harpe, Jasmin; Sanchez, Allen M; Mennitt, Kevin W; McCarthy, Thomas J; Nicola, Refky; Murphy, Kieran; LoFaso, Veronica M; Flomenbaum, Neal; Lachs, Mark S

2016-12-01

Elder abuse is underrecognized, and identification of subtle cases requires a high index of suspicion among all health care providers. Because many geriatric injury victims undergo radiographic imaging, diagnostic radiologists may be well positioned to identify injury patterns suggestive of abuse. Little is known about radiologists' experience with elder abuse. Our goal was to describe knowledge, attitudes, training, and practice experience in elder abuse detection among diagnostic radiologists. We conducted 19 interviews with diagnostic radiologists at a large urban academic medical center using a semistructured format. Data from these sessions were coded and analyzed to identify themes. Only two radiologists reported any formal or informal training in elder abuse detection. All subjects believed they had missed cases of elder abuse. Even experienced radiologists reported never having received a request from a referring physician to assess images for evidence suggestive of elder abuse. All subjects reported a desire for additional elder abuse training. Also, subjects identified radiographic findings or patterns potentially suggestive of elder abuse, including high-energy injuries such as upper rib fractures, injuries in multiple stages of healing, and injuries inconsistent with reported mechanism. Radiologists are uniquely positioned to identify elder abuse. Though training in detection is currently lacking, providers expressed a desire for increased knowledge. In addition, radiologists were able to identify radiographic findings suggestive of elder abuse. On the basis of these findings, we plan to conduct additional studies to define pathognomonic injury patterns and to explore how to empower radiologists to incorporate detection into their practice.

Radiologists’ Training, Experience, and Attitudes About Elder Abuse Detection

Science.gov (United States)

Rosen, Tony; Bloemen, Elizabeth M.; Harpe, Jasmin; Sanchez, Allen M.; Mennitt, Kevin W.; McCarthy, Thomas J.; Nicola, Refky; Murphy, Kieran; LoFaso, Veronica M.; Flomenbaum, Neal; Lachs, Mark S.

2017-01-01

OBJECTIVE Elder abuse is underrecognized, and identification of subtle cases requires a high index of suspicion among all health care providers. Because many geriatric injury victims undergo radiographic imaging, diagnostic radiologists may be well positioned to identify injury patterns suggestive of abuse. Little is known about radiologists’ experience with elder abuse. Our goal was to describe knowledge, attitudes, training, and practice experience in elder abuse detection among diagnostic radiologists. SUBJECTS AND METHODS We conducted 19 interviews with diagnostic radiologists at a large urban academic medical center using a semistructured format. Data from these sessions were coded and analyzed to identify themes. RESULTS Only two radiologists reported any formal or informal training in elder abuse detection. All subjects believed they had missed cases of elder abuse. Even experienced radiologists reported never having received a request from a referring physician to assess images for evidence suggestive of elder abuse. All subjects reported a desire for additional elder abuse training. Also, subjects identified radiographic findings or patterns potentially suggestive of elder abuse, including high-energy injuries such as upper rib fractures, injuries in multiple stages of healing, and injuries inconsistent with reported mechanism. CONCLUSION Radiologists are uniquely positioned to identify elder abuse. Though training in detection is currently lacking, providers expressed a desire for increased knowledge. In addition, radiologists were able to identify radiographic findings suggestive of elder abuse. On the basis of these findings, we plan to conduct additional studies to define pathognomonic injury patterns and to explore how to empower radiologists to incorporate detection into their practice. PMID:27732066

Return Migration among Elderly, Chronically Ill Bosnian Refugees

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Handlos, Line Neerup; Olwig, Karen Fog; Bygbjerg, Ib Christian

2015-01-01

Elderly migrants constitute a considerable share of global return migration; nevertheless, literature on the health aspects of the return migration among these migrants is still scarce. This study explores the significance of return migration among elderly, chronically ill Bosnian refugees from...... Denmark and the role of health issues in their decision to return. It is based on semi-structured interviews with 33 elderly, chronically ill Bosnian refugees who have moved back to Bosnia and Herzegovina, and 10 elderly, chronically ill Bosnian refugees who have remained in Denmark. The interviews show...

Pharmacological Management of Anxiety Disorders in the Elderly

Science.gov (United States)

Crocco, Elizabeth A.; Jaramillo, Sindy; Cruz-Ortiz, Caroline; Camfield, Katherine

2017-01-01

Opinion Statement Anxiety disorders are common in the elderly. Additionally, anxiety symptoms often accompany co-morbid psychiatric, medical, as well as neurodegenerative diseases in the older population. Anxiety in the elderly, often accompanied by depression, can lead to worsening physical, cognitive and functional impairments in this vulnerable population. Antidepressants are considered first line treatment. Both SSRIs and SNRIs are efficacious and well-tolerated in the elderly. Some SSRIs are strong inhibitors of the cytochrome P450 hepatic pathway whereas others have less potential for drug interaction. Those antidepressants with more favorable pharmacokinetic profiles should be considered first-line in the treatment of anxiety. Mirtazapine and vortioxetine are also considered safe treatment options. Buspirone may have benefit, but lacks studies in elderly populations. Although tricyclic/tetracyclic antidepressants (TCAs) and monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) may be effective in the elderly, their side effect and safety profiles are suboptimal and thus are not recommended in late-life. Benzodiazepines and beta blockers should generally be avoided when treating anxiety in the elderly. There is not enough evidence to support the use of antipsychotics or mood stabilizers given their risk of problems in both the long and short term. In addition, antipsychotics have a black box warning for increased mortality in elderly patients with dementia. PMID:28948135

Management of chronic constipation in the elderly.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Gallagher, Paul F

2012-02-03

Constipation is a significant healthcare problem in the elderly. However, while undoubtedly common in the elderly, data on the prevalence of constipation in general and of its subtypes vary considerably, depending on the nature of the study population and their location. Furthermore, the complexity of the pathophysiology of constipation in this age group is little appreciated. Assumptions regarding \\'age-related changes in colorectal physiology\\' are, for the most part, not supported by scientific evidence and may serve to distract the clinician from uncovering the contributions of co-morbid diseases and the impact of iatrogenic factors. The evidence base from which one can develop recommendations on the management of constipation in the elderly is, for the most part, slim. This becomes most starkly apparent when one attempts to critically assess specific approaches to management. There is insufficient evidence to support the use of many commonly used laxatives both in the general population and in the elderly. Lifestyle interventions have value for some patients but data are lacking on the benefits of these interventions for patients with chronic constipation. Data in the elderly do not exist for most new pharmacological approaches to constipation. Pending the availability of good data, management of constipation in the elderly should be tailored to each individual\\'s needs and expectations, regardless of age or place of residence. In certain situations, constipation may be complicated by the development of impaction; preventive strategies are important in this context. We urge enrolment of many more elderly individuals with chronic constipation in clinical trials designed to address their particular needs.

Management of hypertension in the elderly.

Science.gov (United States)

Pimenta, Eduardo; Oparil, Suzanne

2012-03-13

Hypertension is the most-prevalent modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality worldwide. Hypertension is highly prevalent among older adults (≥65 years), and aging of the population will substantially increase the prevalence of this condition. Age-related endothelial dysfunction and increased arterial stiffness contribute to the increased prevalence of hypertension, particularly systolic hypertension, among the elderly. The incidence of some forms of secondary hypertension also increases with age, mainly owing to the use of drugs (especially NSAIDs that have pressor effects) and the presence of chronic kidney disease, obstructive sleep apnea, and renal artery stenosis. Guidelines differ in thresholds and goals for antihypertensive drug therapy in the elderly because of a paucity of high-level evidence from randomized controlled trials and inconsistencies in the definition of 'elderly'. Medical treatment of hypertension reduces cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in the elderly, and all guidelines recommend lifestyle modifications and medical treatment for elderly patients whose blood pressure exceeds prescribed thresholds and who are at moderate or high cardiovascular disease risk. In the absence of comorbidities, which constitute 'compelling indications' for the use of specific antihypertensive drugs or drug classes, no clear evidence exists to support recommendations for the use of particular antihypertensive-drug classes in older adults.

The Crossing Speed of Elderly Pedestrians

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Ana Trpković

2017-04-01

Full Text Available The population of elderly people is rapidly growing and in terms of safety, senior pedestrians represent one of the most vulnerable group. The pedestrian crossing speed is a significant input parameter in traffic engineering, which can have effect on pedestrians’ safety, especially of older population. The objective of this study was to determine the value of the crossing speed of elderly pedestrians (65+ for different types of urban crossings. The research was conducted at ten intersections in the city of Belgrade, Serbia, using the method of direct observation and a questionnaire for collecting data. The data were analysed in the statistical software package IBM SPSS Statistics. The results showed that elderly pedestrians walk slower and the crossing type significantly influenced the speed of older population. The order of crossing types in relation to the measured speed is ranked as follows, from the lowest to the highest speed value: unsignalized, signalized, signalized with pedestrian countdown display, signalized with pedestrian island and pedestrian countdown display and finally signalized crossing with pedestrian island. According to the questionnaire results, the elderly recognize the importance of implementing pedestrian counters. This indicates the necessity to provide safe street crossing for the elderly using the corresponding engineering measures.

Swallowing frequency in elderly people during daily life.

Science.gov (United States)

Tanaka, N; Nohara, K; Kotani, Y; Matsumura, M; Sakai, T

2013-10-01

Disuse atrophy of swallowing-related organs due to an excessive decrease in swallowing frequency is suspected to occur in patients with poor oral intake, especially elderly people. However, swallowing frequency in daily life has not previously been examined in the elderly. This study examined swallowing frequency in elderly people and compared these findings to those in a younger population and differences in the degree of activity in daily life. (i) We compared swallowing frequency in 20 elderly people (82·0 ± 8·3 year) and 15 healthy young people (26·5 ± 3·5 year). (ii) 20 elderly people were divided into two groups according to the degree of activity in daily life: a semi-bedridden group and bedridden group; the swallowing frequency was compared between these groups. (i) The swallowing frequency in the elderly people was 2-19 times per hour and the mean was 9·4 ± 4·9, and that in the healthy young people was 16-76 times per hour and the mean was 40·7 ± 19·5. Swallowing frequency in elderly people was significantly lower than that in young healthy people (P bedridden group was 2-11 times per hour and the mean was 6·8 ± 3·3, and that in semi-bedridden group was 3-19 times per hour and the mean was 11·9 ± 5·1. Swallowing frequency in bedridden group was significantly lower than that in semi-bedridden group (P elderly people tend to swallow less frequently than young people. In addition, swallowing frequency was lower in elderly subjects with a low degree of activity in daily life. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Association Between Depression and Elder Abuse and the Mediation of Social Support: A Cross-Sectional Study of Elder Females in Mexico City.

Science.gov (United States)

Vilar-Compte, Mireya; Giraldo-Rodríguez, Liliana; Ochoa-Laginas, Adriana; Gaitan-Rossi, Pablo

2018-04-01

We assessed the association between depression and elder abuse, and the mediation effect of social support among elder women in Mexico City. A total of 526 noninstitutionalized elder women, residing in Mexico City and attending public community centers were selected. Logistic regressions and structural equation models (SEM) were estimated. One fifth of the elderly women were at risk of depression, one third suffered some type of abuse in the past 12 months, and 82% reported low social support. Logistic models confirmed that depression was statistically associated with elder abuse and vice versa (odds ratio [OR] = 1.97 and 1.96, respectively). In both models, social support significantly reduced the association between these variables leading to study these associations through SEM. This approach highlighted that social support buffers the association between depression and elder abuse. Findings underline the relevance of programs and strategies targeted at increasing social support among urban older adults.

Immunosuppression in the elderly renal allograft recipient

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Montero, Nuria; Pérez-Sáez, María José; Pascual, Julio

2016-01-01

BACKGROUND: The Elderly are the fastest growing part of kidney transplant recipients. The best immunosuppressive strategy is unknown. METHODS: We performed a systematic search of randomized controlled trials and observational studies focused on safety and efficacy of different immunosuppression...... strategies in elderly kidney recipients. Data extraction and risk of bias evaluation were systematically performed. RESULTS: Ten studies were included: 2 randomized clinical trials and 8 observational. A marginal benefit was found for early renal function with delayed tacrolimus or complete tacrolimus...... receptor antibody induction, calcineurin-inhibitor minimization with MMF and steroid minimization is advisable in the low immunologic risk elderly recipient, considering the increased risk of toxicities, infection and malignancies. In the high immunologic risk elderly recipient, taking into account...

[Lifestyle of elderly patients with diabetes mellitus].

Science.gov (United States)

Fukuoka, Yuki; Yamada, Yuichiro

2013-11-01

In elderly people, glucose tolerance is deteriorated and the incidence of diabetes mellitus is increased, due to decreased muscle mass and physical activity, declining pancreatic beta cell function, and other factors. Diabetes mellitus is an important risk factor for arteriosclerosis development in the elderly. Precise diagnosis and adequate treatment are necessary to prevent cerebrovascular and ischemic heart diseases. Elderly patients with diabetes mellitus are characteristically afflicted with more complications, impaired activities of daily living, cognitive function decline, and family environment problems, as compared with young and middle-aged diabetics. Therefore, tailor-made rather than uniform therapy becomes important. Lifestyle modification is the basis of diabetes treatment. Herein, we describe "prevention and management" of diabetes mellitus, focusing on the lifestyles of elderly diabetics.

Care and housing for vulnerable elderly

NARCIS (Netherlands)

M.M.Y. de Klerk

2004-01-01

Original title: Zorg en wonen voor kwetsbare ouderen. There is a general belief that old age automatically brings infirmities, though this is by no means always the case. This edition of the Report on the Elderly investigates which elderly people are vulnerable. They include older persons

Barriers in detecting elder abuse among emergency medical technicians.

Science.gov (United States)

Reingle Gonzalez, Jennifer M; Cannell, M Brad; Jetelina, Katelyn K; Radpour, Sepeadeh

2016-09-02

Elder abuse and neglect are highly under-reported in the United States. This may be partially attributed to low incidence of reporting among emergency medical technicians' (EMTs), despite state-mandated reporting of suspected elder abuse. Innovative solutions are needed to address under-reporting. The objective was to describe EMTs' experience detecting and reporting elder abuse. Qualitative data were collected from 11 EMTs and 12 Adult Protective Services (APS) caseworkers that participated in one of five semi-structured focus groups. Focus group data were iteratively coded by two coders. Findings suggest a number of barriers prevent EMTs from reporting elder abuse to APS. Participants suggested that limited training on elder abuse detection or reporting has been provided to them. EMTs suggested that training, creation of an automated reporting system or brief screening tool could be used to enhance EMT's ability to detect and communicate suspected cases of elder abuse to APS. Results from the present study suggest that EMTs may be uniquely situated to serve as elder abuse and neglect surveillance personnel. EMTs are eager to work with APS to address the under-reporting of elder abuse and neglect, but training is minimal and current reporting procedures are time-prohibitive given their primary role as emergency healthcare providers. Future studies should seek to translate these findings into practice by identifying specific indicators predictive of elder abuse and neglect for inclusion on an automated reporting instrument for EMTs.

[Prevalence of elder abuse in Spanish dwelling in community].

Science.gov (United States)

Pérez-Rojo, Gema; Izal, María; Montorio, Ignacio; Regato, Pilar; Espinosa, Juan Manuel

2013-12-21

Although elder abuse is not a new phenomenon, it remains hidden. There have been carried out various preliminary studies about the prevalence of elder abuse in different countries. The aim of this study is to estimate the prevalence of suspicion of elder abuse in old persons without cognitive impairment, dwelling in community, who were attended in Primary Health Care or Social Services Centres. We carried out a transverse study in which 340 elders participated. We found a 12.1% prevalence of suspicion of elder abuse. Psychological abuse suspicion was the most frequent type and it was very common the simultaneous presence of different types of abuse (psychological and physical and sexual). The suspicion of elder abuse was more frequent in women and spouses were responsible in a high great frequency. The information obtained allows advancing in the knowledge of elder abuse in Spain, where the research about this issue is poor. However, the prevalence found neither has to be considered as a social alarm nor as a social slackness. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier España, S.L. All rights reserved.

Clinical Manifestation of Acute Myocardial Infarction in the Elderly

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Miftah Suryadipradja

2003-12-01

Full Text Available A retrospective study were performed in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI that hospitalized in ICCU Cipto Mangunkusumo hospital, Jakarta during the period of January 1994 until Decmber 1999. There were 513 patients hospitalized with MCI, 227 patients (44.2% were classified as elderly, and 35.2% of them were female. Most of the elderly AMI patients reported typical chest pain just like their younger counterparts. Elderly AMI patients tend to come later to the hospital, and more Q-wave myocardial infarction were identified compared to non- Q-wave myocardial infarction. Risk factors of diabetes mellitus and hypertension were more common among the elderly. The prevalence of atrial fibrillation and the mortality rate were higher among elderly AMI patients. (Med J Indones 2003; 12: 229-35 Keywords: clinical manifestation, acute myocardial infarction, elderly

When elders choose: Which factors could influence the decision-making among elderly in the selection of health tourism services?

Science.gov (United States)

Tomasović Mrčela, N; Borovac, J A; Vrdoljak, D; Grazio, S; Tikvica Luetić, A; Tomek-Roksandić, S

2015-12-01

Elderly beneficiaries (age 65+) exhibit specific characteristics that influence the distribution of health tourism market. High incidence of multiple morbidities and functional disability are hallmarks in this age group. For these reasons, elderly population requires different elements and diverse spectrum of services within health tourism, in comparison to younger beneficiaries. Thus, differences would occur within heterogeneous elderly population itself. A preliminary study that we conducted showed that the level of functional independence was one of the significant factors that guided decision-making among elderly beneficiaries when it came to their health tourism-related choices. Results suggested that beneficiaries recognized and appreciated the effect of the natural remedies and attractions available at the given destination. Maritime and continental health tourism are two different entities commonly selected by elderly beneficiaries for therapeutic purposes. We propose that the climate conditions, geographical location and availability of regional natural remedies are the key factors to why different services were elected by different groups of elderly. The model of Croatia, an established country in the field of health tourism was utilized for this purpose. Differences in the diagnostic categories of beneficiaries are expected due to effects of marine (sea, Mediterranean climate) and continental (thermal water, healing mud) health tourism. In addition, multitudes of mutually intertwined factors affect decision-making process among elderly regarding their health tourism choices. Such factors include the scale of preferences (with special emphasis on well-being and health), leisure opportunities, marketing influences, cost (price) and the availability/diversity of health tourism services within the particular region. Moreover, individual psychosocial and physical characteristics, disabilities and other debilitating conditions, examined in our preliminary

Elder Abuse Reporting: Limitations of Statutes.

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Salend, Elyse; And Others

1984-01-01

Compares 16 state elder abuse reporting statutes and analyzes their implementation. Generally, the statutes have failed to ensure consistent information about elder abuse within or across states. Neglect is more often reported than abuse and little prosecutory activity was noted. Suggestions for improving reporting policies are made. (JAC)

Social innovation in public elder care

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bilfeldt, Annette; Andersen, John

2013-01-01

The chapter addresses the role of action research in social innovation related to elder care work at public nursing homes in Denmark. It is shown how critical utopian action research can contribute to the development of humanity in elder care to the benefit of the residents life quality...

The ED use and non-urgent visits of elderly patients.

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Gulacti, Umut; Lok, Ugur; Celik, Murat; Aktas, Nurettin; Polat, Haci

2016-12-01

To evaluate the use of the emergency department (ED) by elderly patients, their non-urgent visits and the prevalence of main disease for ED visits. This cross-sectional study was conducted on patients aged 65 years and over who visited the ED of a tertiary care university hospital in Turkey between January 2015 and January 2016 retrospectively. A total of 36,369 elderly patients who visited the ED were included in the study. The rate of ED visits by elderly patients was higher than their representation within the general population (p elderly patients visiting polyclinics was 15.8%, the rate of elderly patients visiting the ED was 24.3% (p elderly age groups (p elderly population (17.5%, CI: 17.1-17.9). The proportion of ED visits for non-urgent conditions was 23.4%. Most of the ED visits were during the non-business hours (51.1%), and they were highest in the winter season (25.9%) and in January (10.2%). The hospitalization rate was 9.4%, and 37.9% of hospitalized patients were admitted to intensive care units. The proportion of ED visits by elderly patients was higher than their representation within the general population. Elderly patients often visited the ED instead of a polyclinic. The rate of inappropriate ED use by elderly patients in this hospital was higher than in other countries.

Physical activity in elderly

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Jan Cvecka

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Aging is a multifactorial irreversible process associated with significant decline in muscle mass and neuromuscular functions. One of the most efficient methods to counteract age-related changes in muscle mass and function is physical exercise. An alternative effective intervention to improve muscle structure and performance is electrical stimulation. In the present work we present the positive effects of physical activity in elderly and a study where the effects of a 8-week period of functional electrical stimulation and strength training with proprioceptive stimulation in elderly are compared.

Tremor in the elderly

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Deuschl, Günther; Petersen, Inge; Lorenz, Delia

2015-01-01

Isolated tremor in the elderly is commonly diagnosed as essential tremor (ET). The prevalence of tremor increases steeply with increasing age, whereas hereditary tremor is becoming less common. Moreover, late-manifesting tremor seems to be associated with dementia and earlier mortality. We...... hypothesize that different entities underlie tremor in the elderly. Two thousand four hundred forty-eight subjects from the Longitudinal Study of Aging Danish Twins older than 70 y answered screening questions for ET in 2001. Two thousan fifty-six (84%) participants drew Archimedes spirals to measure...

Engaging Elderly People in Telemedicine Through Gamification.

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de Vette, Frederiek; Tabak, Monique; Dekker-van Weering, Marit; Vollenbroek-Hutten, Miriam

2015-12-18

Telemedicine can alleviate the increasing demand for elderly care caused by the rapidly aging population. However, user adherence to technology in telemedicine interventions is low and decreases over time. Therefore, there is a need for methods to increase adherence, specifically of the elderly user. A strategy that has recently emerged to address this problem is gamification. It is the application of game elements to nongame fields to motivate and increase user activity and retention. This research aims to (1) provide an overview of existing theoretical frameworks for gamification and explore methods that specifically target the elderly user and (2) explore user classification theories for tailoring game content to the elderly user. This knowledge will provide a foundation for creating a new framework for applying gamification in telemedicine applications to effectively engage the elderly user by increasing and maintaining adherence. We performed a broad Internet search using scientific and nonscientific search engines and included information that described either of the following subjects: the conceptualization of gamification, methods to engage elderly users through gamification, or user classification theories for tailored game content. Our search showed two main approaches concerning frameworks for gamification: from business practices, which mostly aim for more revenue, emerge an applied approach, while academia frameworks are developed incorporating theories on motivation while often aiming for lasting engagement. The search provided limited information regarding the application of gamification to engage elderly users, and a significant gap in knowledge on the effectiveness of a gamified application in practice. Several approaches for classifying users in general were found, based on archetypes and reasons to play, and we present them along with their corresponding taxonomies. The overview we created indicates great connectivity between these taxonomies

Vulnerability Risk Index Profile for Elder Abuse in Community-Dwelling Population

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Dong, XinQi; Simon, Melissa A.

2013-01-01

Objectives Elder abuse is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. This study aims to develop a vulnerability index for elder abuse in a community-dwelling population. Design Population-based study Setting Geographically defined community in Chicago. Participants A population-based study was conducted in Chicago of community-dwelling older adults who participated in the Chicago Health and Aging Project (CHAP). Of the 8,157 participants in the CHAP study, 213 participants were reported to social services agency for suspected elder abuse. Measurements A vulnerability index for elder abuse was constructed from sociodemographic, health-related, and psychosocial factors. The outcomes of interest were reported and confirmed elder abuse. Logistic regression models were used to determine the accuracy of the index with respect to elder abuse outcomes. Results Out of the selected risk index for elder abuse, every one point increase in the 9 item vulnerability index items, there was a two fold increase in the risk for reported elder abuse (OR, 2.19 (2.00–2.40) and confirmed elder abuse (OR, 2.19 (1.94–2.47). Compared to the reference group, older adults with 3–4 vulnerability index items had increased risk for reported elder abuse (OR, 2.98 (1.98–4.49) and confirmed elder abuse (OR, 3.90, (2.07–7.36); and older adults with 5 or more risk index items, there was an 18 fold increase in risk for reported elder abuse (OR, 18.46 (12.15–28.04) and confirmed elder abuse (OR, 26.79 (14.18–50.61). Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) statistically derived curves for identifying reported elder abuse ranged between 0.77–0.84 and for predicting confirmed elder abuse ranged between 0.79–0.86. Conclusion The vulnerability risk index demonstrates value for identifying individuals at risk for elder abuse. Additional studies are needed to validate this index in other community dwelling populations. PMID:25180376

Relational agency in elderly care work

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tuominen, Tiina; Fuglsang, Lars; Hasu, Mervi

In this paper, we aim to understand how elderly care work is changing alongside the introduction of new co-creative frameworks and practices. The ideas of value co-creation and service co-production are expanding rapidly to new service areas also in the public sector. The elderly care context may...

Erythrocyte seditnentation rate in elderly blacks

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Abstract This study inv~tigated the erythrocyte sedimen- tation rate (ESR) in an elderly population with the objective of establishing reference ranges and the diagnostic value of the ESR. Elderly blacks were randomly selected frOIn conununities in the. Orange Free State. ESR determinations were done according to the ...

Practical Management of Anaesthesia in the Elderly

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Strøm, Camilla; Rasmussen, Lars Simon; Steinmetz, Jacob

2016-01-01

The elderly population is rapidly growing and particularly diverse. Ageing leads to reduced organ function and a decline in physiologic reserve. Elderly patients are characterised by great inter-individual variability in physiological function with a high prevalence of chronic disease. In general......, older patients have a higher risk of postoperative adverse outcomes, and frailty is a very important risk factor. This review article aims to provide a practical guide to anaesthetic management of the elderly surgical patient. To optimise care, clinicians should be familiar with the typical physiologic...... changes related to ageing and the implications for anaesthetic management. All anaesthetic techniques, methods and agents can be applied, if tailored to the patient's physiologic and pathologic changes. The elderly are more sensitive to anaesthetics, meaning that desired sedative and analgesic effects...

Advancing the Field Elder Abuse: Future Directions and Policy Implications

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Dong, XinQi

2012-01-01

Elder abuse, sometime called elder mistreatment or elder maltreatment, includes psychological, physical, and sexual abuse, neglect (caregiver neglect and self-neglect), and financial exploitation. Evidence suggests that 1 out of 10 older adult experiences some form of elder abuse, and only 1 of out 25 cases are actually reported to social services agencies. At the same time, elder abuse is associated with significant morbidity and premature mortality. Despite these findings, there is a great paucity in research, practice, and policy dealing with the pervasive issues of elder abuse. Through my experiences as a American Political Sciences Association Congressional Policy Fellow/Health and Aging Policy Fellow working with Administration on Community Living (ACL) (Previously known at Administration on Aging (AoA)) for the last two years, I will describe the major functions of the ACL; and highlight on two major pieces of federal legislation: The Older Americans Act (OAA) and the Elder Justice Act (EJA). Moreover, I will highlight major research gaps and future policy relevant research directions for the field of elder abuse. PMID:23110488

Elderly people with chronic disease in the knowledge society

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dahl, Mads Ronald

2007-01-01

elderly people use it? The focus of this paper is to evaluate whether elderly Danes with chronic disease use the internet to seek knowledge on health information. The study was conducted among 2000 Danes over 60 years of age as a cross-sectional survey using a postal questionnaire. The theoretical...... foundation of the study was a constructivistic evaluation of the problem domain followed by a quantitative evaluation. The results showed that elderly people with a chronic disease do not use the internet as source for health information any different then elderly people without chronic disease. Thus chronic...... diseases were not found to be a motivation factor or determinant for using the internet as tool to increase personal knowledge on general health information. Furthermore it showed that elderly people who reported having a good general health were more often users than elderly having a suboptimal general...

Auditory Memory deficit in Elderly People with Hearing Loss

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Zahra Shahidipour

2013-06-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Hearing loss is one of the most common problems in elderly people. Functional side effects of hearing loss are various. Due to the fact that hearing loss is the common impairment in elderly people; the importance of its possible effects on auditory memory is undeniable. This study aims to focus on the hearing loss effects on auditory memory.   Materials and Methods: Dichotic Auditory Memory Test (DVMT was performed on 47 elderly people, aged 60 to 80; that were divided in two groups, the first group consisted of elderly people with hearing range of 24 normal and the second one consisted of 23 elderly people with bilateral symmetrical ranged from mild to moderate Sensorineural hearing loss in the high frequency due to aging in both genders.   Results: Significant difference was observed in DVMT between elderly people with normal hearing and those with hearing loss (P

Motorcycle-related hospitalizations of the elderly.

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Hsieh, Ching-Hua; Liu, Hang-Tsung; Hsu, Shiun-Yuan; Hsieh, Hsiao-Yun; Chen, Yi-Chun

2017-04-01

To investigate the injury pattern, mechanisms, severity, and mortality of the elderly hospitalized for treatment of trauma following motorcycle accidents. Motorcycle-related hospitalization of 994 elderly and 5078 adult patients from the 16,548 hospitalized patients registered in the Trauma Registry System between January 1, 2009 and December 31, 2013. The motorcycle-related elderly trauma patients had higher injury severity, less favorable outcomes, higher proportion of patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU), prolonged hospital and ICU stays and higher mortality than those adult motorcycle riders. It also revealed that a significant percentage of elderly motorcycle riders do not wear a helmet. Compared to patients who had worn a helmet, patients who had not worn a helmet had a lower first Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score, and a greater percentage presented with unconscious status (GCS score ≤8), had sustained subdural hematoma, subarachnoid hemorrhage, cerebral contusion, severe injury (injury severity score 16-24 and ≥25), had longer hospital stay and higher mortality, and had required admission to the ICU. Elderly motorcycle riders tend to present with a higher injury severity, worse outcome, and a bodily injury pattern differing from that of adult motorcycle riders, indicating the need to emphasize use of protective equipment, especially helmets, to reduce their rate and severity of injury. Copyright © 2017 Chang Gung University. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Urinary Incontinency in Elderly Women and the Potential Risk Factors: A Cohort Study among the Elderly Women of Amirkola

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E Moudi

2017-02-01

Full Text Available BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Urinary incontinence is a common health problem among elderly population, particularly elderly women, and it is necessary to identify the different risk factors that cause urinary incontinence. The present study was designed to assess this problem among elderly women in Babol and the risk factors associated with it. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, 590 elderly women over 60 years old in Amirkola were studied using census method. The required data were collected using standard checklists and questionnaires. Any form of involuntary withdrawal of urine, wetting the pad or underwear was considered urinary incontinence. FINDINGS: In this study, the mean age of subjects was 68.2 ± 6.8 years and 194 out of 590 women (32.9% had urinary incontinence. The marital status (OR: 0.64 (CI-95% =0.42-0.98, p=0.04, constipation history (OR: 1.63 (CI-95% =0.11-2.39, p=0.01 and use of corticosteroid drugs (OR: 1.7 (CI-95% =1.01-2.95, p=0.05 were directly related to urinary incontinence after matching with other risk factors. However, urinary incontinence in elderly women was not related to factors such as age, obesity, education, number of children, chronic diseases like diabetes, blood pressure and respiratory disorders. CONCLUSION: According to the results of this study, one third of elderly women in Babol suffer from urinary incontinence and unmarriedness, constipation history, and use of corticosteroid drugs increase the possibility of this condition, which necessitates the need for more attention to this problem and its risk factors that have significant emotional effects on elderly women.

Depression among elderly Chinese-Canadian immigrants from Mainland China

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Daniel W.L. Lai

2004-01-01

Background This study examined the prevalence of depressive symptoms among elderly immigrants from Mainland China to Canada and the impact of various psychosocial factors as predictors of the number of depressive symptoms reported by the elderly Chinese immigrants.Methods The participants were 444 elderly immigrants who migrated from Mainland China to Canada. They were a part of a random sample of 2272 elderly Chinese living in the communities and took part in a face-to-face interview to answer questions in an orally administrated questionnaire. The depressive symptoms of the participants were measured by a Chinese version of the Geriatric Depression Scale. Data obtained from the 444 elderly Chinese immigrants was analyzed to assess the impact of various psychosocial factors on the number of depressive symptoms that they reported.Results The findings indicated that 23.2% of the elderly immigrants were assessed to have some depressive symptoms. When other predicting variables were adjusted, elderly immigrants with more chronic illnesses, less positive attitude towards ageing, poorer physical health, less adequate financial situation, lower level of ethnic identification as Chinese, more service barriers, lower level of life satisfaction, shorter length of residency in Canada and those who lived alone tended to have more depressive symptoms.Conclusions The findings indicate that the prevalence rate of depressive symptoms among our elderly immigrant sample is higher than the one reported in a general elderly population. While further research is recommended to examine the reasons for such a difference, culturally appropriate health services, including health promotion programs, should be promoted to reduce mental health disparities.

The effect of Pilates method on elderly flexibility

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Adriana Coutinho de Azevedo Guimarães

Full Text Available Introduction Pilates as physical exercise practice brings countless benefits, such as improvement of motor aptitudes and skills.Objective To look into the effect of the Pilates method on the hip and shoulder girdle flexibility levels in the elderly.Methods Experimental study composed of 30 elderly subjects of the control group and 30 of the Pilates group within a 12 week training time. A form was used to characterize the sample and to assess hip flexibility and shoulder girdle. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used, under a significance level of p < 0.05.Results On hip flexibility, the 30 elderly individuals from the control group remained under normal and inferior classification, not presenting any differences between the variables (p = 0.180 from the pretest to the retest. In the intervention group, 60% of the elderly subjects were assessed as normal. In the retest, such percentage increased to 66.7%. In the pretest, 10% of the elderly subjects were given the superior classification, and in the retest, it increased to 33%, not presenting significance between the variables (p = 0.180. On shoulder flexibility in the intervention group, 63% of the elderly subjects were graded as normal, and 17% as superior. In the shoulder retest the number of elderly individuals decreased to 47% in the normal classification, and increased to 33% in the superior classification, presenting a significant difference (p = 0.001.Conclusion The elderly subjects who did not take part into the Pilates method presented a lower flexibility degree, considering that, the latter reduces in aging. As a preventive way of improving such limitation, the practice of the Pilates method is suggested.

Management of Anemia of Inflammation in the Elderly

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Antonio Macciò

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Anemia of any degree is recognized as a significant independent contributor to morbidity, mortality, and frailty in elderly patients. Among the broad types of anemia in the elderly a peculiar role seems to be played by the anemia associated with chronic inflammation, which remains the most complex form of anemia to treat. The origin of this nonspecific inflammation in the elderly has not yet been clarified. It seems more plausible that the oxidative stress that accompanies ageing is the real cause of chronic inflammation of the elderly and that the same oxidative stress is actually a major cause of this anemia. The erythropoietic agents have the potential to play a therapeutic role in this patient population. Despite some promising results, rHuEPO does not have a specific indication for the treatment of anemia in the elderly. Moreover, concerns about their side effects have spurred the search for alternatives. Considering the etiopathogenetic mechanisms of anemia of inflammation in the elderly population, an integrated nutritional/dietetic approach with nutraceuticals that can manipulate oxidative stress and related inflammation may prevent the onset of this anemia and its negative impact on patients’ performance and quality of life.

Management of Anemia of Inflammation in the Elderly

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Macciò, Antonio; Madeddu, Clelia

2012-01-01

Anemia of any degree is recognized as a significant independent contributor to morbidity, mortality, and frailty in elderly patients. Among the broad types of anemia in the elderly a peculiar role seems to be played by the anemia associated with chronic inflammation, which remains the most complex form of anemia to treat. The origin of this nonspecific inflammation in the elderly has not yet been clarified. It seems more plausible that the oxidative stress that accompanies ageing is the real cause of chronic inflammation of the elderly and that the same oxidative stress is actually a major cause of this anemia. The erythropoietic agents have the potential to play a therapeutic role in this patient population. Despite some promising results, rHuEPO does not have a specific indication for the treatment of anemia in the elderly. Moreover, concerns about their side effects have spurred the search for alternatives. Considering the etiopathogenetic mechanisms of anemia of inflammation in the elderly population, an integrated nutritional/dietetic approach with nutraceuticals that can manipulate oxidative stress and related inflammation may prevent the onset of this anemia and its negative impact on patients' performance and quality of life. PMID:23091709

Rosalie Wolf Memorial Lecture: Reconsidering assumptions regarding men as elder abuse perpetrators and as elder abuse victims.

Science.gov (United States)

Kosberg, Jordan I

2014-01-01

From research findings and practice experiences, it is concluded that abuse of older men is especially invisible and underreported, compared to abuse of older women. It is proposed that attention should be directed not to gender, but to those conditions in different countries and cultures leading to abuse of both older men and women, including (but not limited to) economic problems, few alternatives to family care of the elderly, violence, changing characteristics of the family, ageism, and sexism. Advocates for the prevention of elder abuse should work together in combating, reducing, and eliminating the problem of elder abuse of both older men and older women.

Self-care as a health resource of elders

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Høy, Bente; Wagner, Lis; Hall, Elisabeth O.C.

2007-01-01

into self-care as a significant health resource of elders with different health status. It suggests that an elder's self-care ability is determined by the interaction of various sub-resources and conditions and emphasizes the constantly evolving nature of self-care. The framework may be of use in clinical......AIM: To review the literature related to self-care and health promotion for elders and to develop an understanding of self-care as a health resource. BACKGROUND: Self-care may improve health and prevent illness and disabilities in elders. Although studies of self-care are numerous, the significance...... of the concept as a health resource for elders lacks clarity. Before 1989, research focused principally on medical self-care at the expense of health care, and self-care was seen more as supplementary to professional health care rather than as a health-promoting approach in health care. METHOD...

Cognitive Changes among Institutionalized Elderly People

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Navarro, Jose I.; Menacho, Inmaculada; Alcalde, Concepcion; Marchena, Esperanza; Ruiz, Gonzalo; Aguilar, Manuel

2009-01-01

The efficiency of different cognitive training procedures in elderly people was studied. Two types of methods to train cognitive and memory functions were compared. One method was based on new technologies and the other one on pencil-and-paper activities. Thirty-six elderly institutionalized people aged 68-94 were trained. Quantitative and memory…

A Community Response to Elder Abuse.

Science.gov (United States)

Foelker, George A., Jr.; And Others

1990-01-01

Discusses how Dallas, Texas, Area Agency on Aging met requirement of 1987 amendments to Older Americans Act of 1965 that State Offices on Aging identify agencies involved in identifying and treating abused, neglected, and exploited elders and determine their need for services. Describes impact of Elder Abuse Task Force on state law, adult…

Knowledge of the facts and mistaken beliefs with regard to the elderly: Implications for education and work with the elderly

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Maja Zupančič

2010-07-01

Full Text Available Knowledge of the characteristics of psychological functioning in the elderly is a precondition for preservation and improvement of their competences, welfare and inclusion in the society. This article presents the findings of the Slovene research study about the knowledge of the facts concerning aging and the characteristics of the elderly, based on an extensive sample of adults of different ages and of different educational backgrounds. Acquaintance with the facts concerning the elderly grows with the level of education; the young during the period of transition into adulthood on the one hand and older people on the other, however, tend to have a lower awareness of the relevant facts. In general, understanding of the psychological aspects of aging, the characteristics of the elderly and their ability to learn, change and work is relatively low. Most adults are familiar with the facts concerning the physical condition, health and some peculiarities of psychological functioning in the elderly. However, mistaken beliefs reflecting negative attitudes to aging and older people are relatively wide­spread, especially with regard to the cognitive, or rather, a wider range of psycho­social functioning of the elderly. Therefore, we believe that both formal and informal education require provision of appropriate information for adults.

Assessment of Depression in Elderly. Is Perceived Social Support Related? A Nursing Home Study : Depression and Social Support in Elderly.

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Patra, Paraskevi; Alikari, Victoria; Fradelos, Evangelos C; Sachlas, Athanasios; Kourakos, Michael; Rojas Gil, Andrea Paola; Babatsikou, Fotoula; Zyga, Sofia

2017-01-01

Geriatric depression is more common in nursing homes and social support is a mechanism that mitigates the stressors of life factors and simultaneously promotes wellness and health. The purpose of the study was to assess the levels of depression and social support among elderly in nursing homes. During the period February 2016-March 2016 170 elderly residents in nursing homes completed the Geriatric Depression Scale-15 (GDS-15) and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS). Statistical analysis was conducted with IBM SPSS Statistics 23. 37, 1% of the sample had depressive symptoms. Depression is statistically correlated with age and it is affected by the years of education (p = 0.003), the number of the children (p = 0.006), whether the elderly person is bedridden or not (p elderly performs activities outside the nursing home (0.001). Higher GDS score had those who were illiterate (6.41), those with one or no children (6.82 and 6.59 respectively), the bedridden (6.70), people without visits from relatives (7.69) and without activities outside (5.64). Also, social support is affected by the family status (p elderly performs activities outside the foundation (p elderly population leads to the need for more aid social support.

Elderly Turkish Migrants in Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Blaakilde, Anne Leonora; Petersen, Signe Sofia Gronwald; Yazici, Suzan

and a higher proportion of self-reported illness and are in higher risk of health problems and morbidity than their Danish counterparts. Furthermore, their health differences increase more by age. The research project aimed at finding possible explanations for these differences among Turkish and ethnic Danish......Elderly Turkish migrants in Denmark: Health in a life course perspective Objective According to Statistics Denmark, Turkish immigrants constitute the largest immigrant group in Denmark with 1.1% of the population (60,390 people) in 2012. They account for a higher rate of chronic ailments...... elderly people by studying the every day life of elderly Turkish migrants. Methods Qualitative interviews were carried out with 12 Turkish men and 18 women aged 54-80. The interviews had a focus on their health practices and health perceptions in a life history perspective. The interviews were...

Challenges in anaesthesia for elderly

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Strøm, Camilla; Rasmussen, L S

2014-01-01

The segment of elderly individuals comprises a growing proportion of the global population. Health care systems and health care providers worldwide need to understand the specific challenges related to treatment of this heterogeneous patient population. The process of ageing is complex and under...... constant influence by numerous factors, for which reason the way human age is extremely individual. It is important to understand and acknowledge how elderly differ from younger adults, and how management needs to be modified and tailored to the individual patient in order to improve outcomes. The goal...... of treatment of an elderly patient is not necessarily to increase human longevity regardless of the consequences, but to increase active longevity free from disability and functional dependence. For older people, deterioration in function can be devastating and is often precipitated by a stressful event...

The role of the dermatologist in detecting elder abuse and neglect.

Science.gov (United States)

Danesh, Melissa J; Chang, Anne Lynn S

2015-08-01

The National Research Council of the National Academies defines elder mistreatment as: (1) intentional actions that cause harm or create serious risk of harm (whether or not harm is intended) to a vulnerable elder by a caregiver or other person who stands in a trust relationship to the elder; or (2) failure by a caregiver to satisfy the elder's basic needs or to protect the elder from harm. Estimates of the prevalence of elder abuse have ranged from 2.2% to 18.4%. Dermatologists are uniquely positioned to identify and manage suspected cases of elder abuse given their expertise in distinguishing skin lesions of abuse from organic medical disease and their patient populations with strong elderly representation. This article discusses aspects of both the screening and management of elder abuse with particular relevance to dermatologists. Like physicians across medical specialties, dermatologists must be familiar with those aspects of elder abuse in screening, diagnosis, management, and reporting that are unique to their field and to those aspects that are applicable to all health care providers. Copyright © 2015 American Academy of Dermatology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Asthma in the elderly: a different disease?

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Salvatore Battaglia

2016-03-01

Asthma is a chronic airway disease that affects all ages, but does this definition also include the elderly? Traditionally, asthma has been considered a disease of younger age, but epidemiological studies and clinical experience support the concept that asthma is as prevalent in older age as it is in the young. With the ever-increasing elderly population worldwide, the detection and proper management of the disease in old age may have a great impact from the public health perspective. Whether asthma in the elderly maintains the same characteristics as in young populations is an interesting matter. The diagnostic process in older individuals with suspected asthma follows the same steps, namely a detailed history supported by clinical examination and laboratory investigations; however, it should be recognised that elderly patients may partially lose reversibility of airway obstruction. The correct interpretation of spirometric curves in the elderly should take into account the physiological changes in the respiratory system. Several factors contribute to delaying the diagnosis of asthma in the elderly, including the age-related impairment in perception of breathlessness. The management of asthma in advanced age is complicated by the comorbidities and polypharmacotherapy, which advocate for a comprehensive approach with a multidimensional assessment. It should be emphasised that older age frequently represents an exclusion criterion for eligibility in clinical trials, and current asthma medications have rarely been tested in elderly asthmatics. Ageing is associated with pharmacokinetic changes of the medications. As a consequence, absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion of antiasthmatic medications can be variably affected. Similarly, drug-to-drug interactions may reduce the effectiveness of inhaled medications and increase the risk of side-effects. For this reason, we propose the term “geriatric asthma” be preferred to the more generic “asthma in the

Prevalence of metabolic syndrome among elderly Mexicans.

Science.gov (United States)

Ortiz-Rodríguez, María Araceli; Yáñez-Velasco, Lucía; Carnevale, Alessandra; Romero-Hidalgo, Sandra; Bernal, Demetrio; Aguilar-Salinas, Carlos; Rojas, Rosalba; Villa, Antonio; Tur, Josep A

2017-11-01

One of the most prevalent chronic diseases among elderly population is the Metabolic Syndrome (MetS). The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of MetS and associated factors among Mexican elderly people. Cross-sectional survey carried out in Mexico (2007). A random sample (n=516) of the elderly population (≥65years; 277 female, 239 male) was interviewed. Anthropometric and analytical measurements, and a general questionnaire incorporating questions related to socio-demographic and life-style factors were used. MetS definition AHA/NHLBI/IDF was applied. The prevalence of MetS in the elderly (≥65years) was of 72.9% (75.7% men; 70.4% women). Participants with values above MetS cut-off points were 92.4% (hypertension), 77.8% (hypertriglyceridemia), 77.1% (low HDL-cholesterol), 71.1% (hyperglycaemia), and 65.4% (central obesity). People with MetS showed higher values of anthropometric and biochemical variables than those without MetS, except for the height, cholesterol and creatinine. Mid-high education level (9-12 years), no smokers and former smokers, and Central-Western inhabitants of Mexico were associated with MetS components. BMI status was the main determinant of MetS prevalence and MetS components. The reported prevalence of MetS among the elderly Mexican population was higher than those previously obtained in the geographical area, showing a major public health problem in Mexican elders. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Project Elderly. Interim and Final Reports.

Science.gov (United States)

Miami-Dade Community Coll., FL.

This report examines Project Elderly, a project developed to provide job possibilities for the older adult in the labor market in metropolitan Miami (FL). A survey questionnaire was developed to (1) assess the opportunities of the elderly for re-entry into volunteer and paid employment positions; (2) determine the extent of the senior population…

Preventing Elder Abuse: The Texas Plan for a Coordinated Service Delivery System. Collaborative Elder Abuse Prevention Project.

Science.gov (United States)

McDaniel, Garry L.

The Texas Department of Human Services, in collaboration with 13 other public and private organizations, co-sponsored a statewide Collaborative Elder Abuse Prevention project. The goal of this project is to develop a comprehensive, long-range plan for the prevention of elder abuse, a method for achieving a coordinated service delivery system for…

Elderly homicide in Chicago: a research note.

Science.gov (United States)

Fazel, Seena; Bond, Mieko; Gulati, Gautam; O'Donnell, Ian

2007-01-01

There is a body of knowledge about elderly crime victims, but we know little about the characteristics of elderly perpetrators, especially of homicide. The few studies that have been published are based on small samples and are somewhat dated. In an examination of homicides committed in Chicago over a 31-year period, we compared cases involving perpetrators aged over 60 years (n = 443) with those involving younger perpetrators (n = 24,066). There were a number of significant differences. Elderly killers were more likely to be White and to commit suicide afterwards. Their victims were more likely to be spouses, females, and aged over 60 years. Inter-racial homicide was more common for younger offenders. The low number of homicides involving the elderly is explained by reference to routine activity theory. Copyright 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Mood disorders in elderly population: neurostimulative treatment possibilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Rosenberg, Oded; Shoenfeld, Netta; Kotler, Moshe; Dannon, Pinhas N

2009-06-01

Treatment of mood disorders is one of the most challenging territories in elderly. Effectiveness of different treatment strategies could be related to age, sex and physical conditions. The side effect profile in this population also affects pharmacological interventions. Our review includes the neurostimulative treatment strategies in elderly. However, possible treatment strategies such as electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) and deep brain stimulation (DBS) were less studied in elderly. ECT was found to be an effective treatment procedure in mood disorders. Few double-blind sham controlled studies were conducted and demonstrated effectiveness of TMS. DBS has lack of double-blind studies. ECT seems to be the golden standard for the treatment resistant elderly patients, yet side effect profile of ECT in elderly will be discussed. Double -blind sham controlled studies with larger samples are necessary to confirm preliminary results with transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), magnetic seizure therapy (MST) and VNS, DBS.

Experience of elder abuse among older Korean immigrants.

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Miya

2016-01-01

Studies on the scope and nature of Asian American elder abuse conducted with older immigrants are extremely limited. The overall purpose of this study was to examine the extent and type of elder abuse among older Korean immigrants, and to investigate critical predictors of elder abuse in this population. The sample consisted of 200 older Korean immigrants aged 60 to 90 years who resided in Los Angeles County in 2008. One of the key findings indicated that 58.3% of respondents experienced one or more types of elder abuse. Logistic regression indicated that the victims' health status and educational level were statistically significant predictors of the likelihood of experiencing abuse. The present study, although limited in sample size, measures, sampling methods, and population representation, has contributed to this important area of knowledge. It is recommended that future studies conduct research on elder abuse with more representative national samples that can measure the extent of abuse and neglect more accurately.

Domestic elder abuse in Yazd, Iran: a cross-sectional study.

Science.gov (United States)

Morowatisharifabad, Mohammad Ali; Rezaeipandari, Hassan; Dehghani, Ali; Zeinali, Ahmad

2016-01-01

Social changes due to urbanism, acculturation, and fading of values have led to some challenges in family relationships, including domestic elder abuse. This study was conducted to determine elder abuse status in Yazd, Iran. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 250 elderly people over 60 years in Yazd in 2014-2015. Clustered random sampling was used to recruit the participants from 10 clusters in Yazd (25 individuals from each cluster). The data were gathered by the 49-item,Iranian Domestic Elder Abuse Questionnaire which was filled out through private interviews with the participants. Mean score of elder abuse was 11.84 (SD: 12.70) of total 100. Of the participants,79.6% (95% CI: 74.5-84.6) experienced at least one type of abuse. Emotional neglect was the most reported abuse and physical abuse was the least reported. Abuse score was associated with age, education level, living status, and insurance status of elders. Further, those who reported history of gastrointestinal problems, dyslipidemia, respiratory diseases, sleep disorders, audiovisual problems, joints pain, hypertension, dental/oral problems, cardiovascular disease,urinary incontinence and disability, reported a statistically significant higher abuse score. Despite overall low rate of domestic elder abuse, its high prevalence indicates that some interventions are necessary to decrease domestic elder abuse. Emotional neglect of elders should be addressed more than other abuse types.

IDENTIFYING DEMENTIA IN ELDERLY POPULATION : A CAMP APPROACH

OpenAIRE

Anand P; Chaukimath; Srikanth; Koli

2015-01-01

BACKGROUND: Dementia is an emerging medico social problem affecting elderly, and poses a challenge to clinician and caregivers. It is usually identified in late stage where management becomes difficult. AIM: The aim of camp was to identify dementia in elderly population participating in screening camp. MATERIAL AND METHODS : The geriatric clinic and department of psychiatry jointly organised screening camp to detect dementia in elderly for five days in Sept...

Elder Abuse in American Indian Communities

Science.gov (United States)

Anisko, Briana

2009-01-01

Although the many American Indian tribes of the United States are unique in their own customs, languages, and histories, a common thread throughout their traditions and cultural lifestyles is that they are of a culture that reveres the elder in their communities. Elders are the carriers of the culture/history; they are the storytellers, holders of…

Interventions for preventing abuse in the elderly.

Science.gov (United States)

Baker, Philip R A; Francis, Daniel P; Hairi, Noran N; Othman, Sajaratulnisah; Choo, Wan Yuen

2016-08-16

Maltreatment of older people (elder abuse) includes psychological, physical, sexual abuse, neglect and financial exploitation. Evidence suggests that 10% of older adults experience some form of abuse, and only a fraction of cases are actually reported or referred to social services agencies. Elder abuse is associated with significant morbidity and premature mortality. Numerous interventions have been implemented to address the issue of elder maltreatment. It is, however, unclear which interventions best serve to prevent or reduce elder abuse. The objective of this review was to assess the effectiveness of primary, secondary and tertiary intervention programmes used to reduce or prevent abuse of the elderly in their own home, in organisational or institutional and community settings. The secondary objective was to investigate whether intervention effects are modified by types of abuse, types of participants, setting of intervention, or the cognitive status of older people. We searched 19 databases (AgeLine, CINAHL, Psycinfo, MEDLINE, Embase, Proquest Central, Social Services Abstracts‎, ASSIA, Sociological Abstracts, ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global, Web of Science, LILACS, EPPI, InfoBase, CENTRAL, HMIC, Opengrey and Zetoc) on 12 platforms, including multidisciplinary disciplines covering medical, health, social sciences, social services, legal, finance and education. We also browsed related organisational websites, contacted authors of relevant articles and checked reference lists. Searches of databases were conducted between 30 August 2015 and 16 March 2016 and were not restricted by language. We included randomised controlled trials (RCTs), cluster-randomised trials, and quasi-RCTs, before-and-after studies, and interrupted time series. Only studies with at least 12 weeks of follow-up investigating the effect of interventions in preventing or reducing abuse of elderly people and those who interact with the elderly were included. Two review authors

The ED use and non-urgent visits of elderly patients

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Umut Gulacti

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Objective: To evaluate the use of the emergency department (ED by elderly patients, their non-urgent visits and the prevalence of main disease for ED visits. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on patients aged 65 years and over who visited the ED of a tertiary care university hospital in Turkey between January 2015 and January 2016 retrospectively. Results: A total of 36,369 elderly patients who visited the ED were included in the study. The rate of ED visits by elderly patients was higher than their representation within the general population (p < 0.001. While the rate of elderly patients visiting polyclinics was 15.8%, the rate of elderly patients visiting the ED was 24.3% (p < 0.001. For both genders, the rates of ED visits for patients between 65 and 74 years old was higher than for other elderly age groups (p < 0.001. The prevalence of upper respiratory tract infection (URTI was the highest within the elderly population (17.5%, CI: 17.1–17.9. The proportion of ED visits for non-urgent conditions was 23.4%. Most of the ED visits were during the non-business hours (51.1%, and they were highest in the winter season (25.9% and in January (10.2%. The hospitalization rate was 9.4%, and 37.9% of hospitalized patients were admitted to intensive care units. Conclusion: The proportion of ED visits by elderly patients was higher than their representation within the general population. Elderly patients often visited the ED instead of a polyclinic. The rate of inappropriate ED use by elderly patients in this hospital was higher than in other countries. Keywords: Non-urgent, Prevalence, Visit, Main disease, Elderly patient, Emergency department

Content Analysis of Measures for Identification of Elder Abuse.

Science.gov (United States)

Sengstock, Mary C.; And Others

Measures designed to detect elder abuse lack uniformity as a result of having been designed in isolation. To develop and test a uniform index for the identification of elder abuse victims, an analysis of existing abuse identification instruments was conducted. Initially, seven elder abuse identification measures were content analyzed, resulting in…

Assessment of elder mistreatment in two American Indian samples: psychometric characteristics of the HS-EAST and the Native Elder Life-Financial Exploitation and -Neglect measures.

Science.gov (United States)

Jervis, Lori L; Fickenscher, Alexandra; Beals, Janette

2014-04-01

Although elder mistreatment among ethnic minorities is increasingly gaining attention, our empirical knowledge of this phenomenon among American Indians remains quite limited, especially with respect to measurement. The Shielding American Indian Elders (SAIE) Project used a collaborative approach to explore culturally informed measurement of elder mistreatment in two American Indian elder samples (a Northern Plains reservation and a South Central metropolitan area). The project sought to investigate the performance characteristics of the commonly used Hwalek-Sengstock Elder Abuse Screening Test (HS-EAST), as well as to examine the psychometric properties of a new measure developed to capture culturally salient aspects of mistreatment in American Indian contexts--the Native Elder Life Scale (NELS). Using methods and samples comparable to those in the literature, the HS-EAST performed adequately in these Native samples. The NELS also shows promise for use with this population and assesses different aspects of elder mistreatment than does the HS-EAST.

Protecting victims of elder financial exploitation: the role of an Elder Abuse Forensic Center in referring victims for conservatorship.

Science.gov (United States)

Gassoumis, Zachary D; Navarro, Adria E; Wilber, Kathleen H

2015-01-01

The aim of this study was to examine the extent to which an Elder Abuse Forensic Center protects financial exploitation (FE) victims through referral to the Office of the Public Guardian (PG) for investigation and possible conservatorship (called 'guardianship' in many states). Los Angeles County Elder Abuse Forensic Center cases involving adults aged 65 and older (April 2007-December 2009) were matched using one-to-one propensity-score matching to 33,650 usual care Adult Protective Services (APS) cases. The final analysis sample consisted of 472 FE cases. Compared to usual care, Forensic Center cases were more likely to be referred to the PG for investigation (30.6%, n = 72 vs. 5.9%, n = 14, p Elder Abuse Forensic Center conceptual model and contribute to an emerging body of evidence on the role of the Forensic Center in addressing elder abuse.

Barium enema in frail elderly patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Segal, R; Khahil, A; Leibovitz, A; Gil, I; Annuar, M; Habot, B

2000-01-01

Barium enema (BE) examinations for the investigation of suspected colonic disease are often unsuccessful in elderly patients. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the success rate of BE in hospitalized frail elderly patients. Four hundred and seventy-two elderly patients hospitalized for different reasons underwent BE examinations. The medical charts and radiological reports were retrospectively reviewed. One hundred and ninety-two (41%) BE examinations were considered inadequate; mostly (32%) because of inappropriate preparation. Sixty-seven patients (14%) were not cooperative and could not retain the contrast material, and in 25 patients (5%), the examination failed due to both these reasons. The characteristics associated with unsuccessful BE examination were the mean number of medical problems (p < 0.001), the mean number of scheduled medications (p < 0.05) and in particular the long-term use of laxatives (p < 0.01) or antiparkinsonian drugs (p < 0.01). Of great significance in predicting an inadequate BE were the patient's functional status (p < 0.001) and the presence of dementia (p < 0.001). The high percentage of unsuccessful BEs in the frail elderly suggests that clinicians should carefully consider the need for that examination in these patients. We suggest that only in patients where there is a clear suspicion of a bleeding or obstructing tumor should a BE examination be performed, and even in these cases, colonoscopy or CT may be preferable as the initial examination in the frail elderly. Copyright 2000 S. Karger AG, Basel

Neuromuscular blockade in the elderly patient

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Lee LA

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Luis A Lee, Vassilis Athanassoglou, Jaideep J Pandit Nuffield Department of Anaesthetics, Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Oxford, UK Abstract: Neuromuscular blockade is a desirable or even essential component of general anesthesia for major surgical operations. As the population continues to age, and more operations are conducted in the elderly, due consideration must be given to neuromuscular blockade in these patients to avoid possible complications. This review considers the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of neuromuscular blockade that may be altered in the elderly. Compartment distribution, metabolism, and excretion of drugs may vary due to age-related changes in physiology, altering the duration of action with a need for reduced dosage (eg, aminosteroids. Other drugs (atracurium, cisatracurium have more reliable duration of action and should perhaps be considered for use in the elderly. The range of interpatient variability that neuromuscular blocking drugs may exhibit is then considered and drugs with a narrower range, such as cisatracurium, may produce more predictable, and inherently safer, outcomes. Ultimately, appropriate neuromuscular monitoring should be used to guide the administration of muscle relaxants so that the risk of residual neuromuscular blockade postoperatively can be minimized. The reliability of various monitoring is considered. This paper concludes with a review of the various reversal agents, namely, anticholinesterase drugs and sugammadex, and the alterations in dosing of these that should be considered for the elderly patient. Keywords: anesthesia, elderly, drugs, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics 

Elder self-neglect: research and practice

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Dong XQ

2017-06-01

Full Text Available XinQi Dong Rush Institute for Healthy Aging, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL, USA Abstract: Elder self-neglect is a global public health and human rights issue that threatens older people’s health and safety. It commonly refers to refusal or failure to provide oneself with care and protection in areas of food, water, clothing, hygiene, medication, living environments, and safety precautions. While prevalent, the status of self-neglecting individuals remains largely unclear, in particular within community-dwelling populations. By reviewing the epidemiology of elder self-neglect (definition, prevalence, risk factors, and consequences to date, the present paper identifies key research gaps such as methodological inconsistency in case identification and measurement, and study designs that are inadequate to determine risk factors of self-neglect. More importantly, in light of the rapidly growing older population, relevant stakeholders (researchers, healthcare providers, social service providers, legal professionals, community organizations, and policymakers must be prepared for an expected increasing number of self-neglect cases and enlarging scope of the problem. Hence, in this article, I present an overview regarding the management issues of elderly self-neglect related to the detection, assessment, reporting and referral, and decision-making capacity. Based on the current literature, the paper is aimed to explore the present knowledge and challenges, and how they can pave the way for solutions to self-neglect research, practice, and policy. Keywords: elderly self-neglect, elder abuse, self-neglect future directions 

Inappropriate prescribing in the elderly.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Gallagher, P

2012-02-03

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Drug therapy is necessary to treat acute illness, maintain current health and prevent further decline. However, optimizing drug therapy for older patients is challenging and sometimes, drug therapy can do more harm than good. Drug utilization review tools can highlight instances of potentially inappropriate prescribing to those involved in elderly pharmacotherapy, i.e. doctors, nurses and pharmacists. We aim to provide a review of the literature on potentially inappropriate prescribing in the elderly and also to review the explicit criteria that have been designed to detect potentially inappropriate prescribing in the elderly. METHODS: We performed an electronic search of the PUBMED database for articles published between 1991 and 2006 and a manual search through major journals for articles referenced in those located through PUBMED. Search terms were elderly, inappropriate prescribing, prescriptions, prevalence, Beers criteria, health outcomes and Europe. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Prescription of potentially inappropriate medications to older people is highly prevalent in the United States and Europe, ranging from 12% in community-dwelling elderly to 40% in nursing home residents. Inappropriate prescribing is associated with adverse drug events. Limited data exists on health outcomes from use of inappropriate medications. There are no prospective randomized controlled studies that test the tangible clinical benefit to patients of using drug utilization review tools. Existing drug utilization review tools have been designed on the basis of North American and Canadian drug formularies and may not be appropriate for use in European countries because of the differences in national drug formularies and prescribing attitudes. CONCLUSION: Given the high prevalence of inappropriate prescribing despite the widespread use of drug-utilization review tools, prospective randomized controlled trials are necessary to identify useful interventions. Drug

Special management needs of the elderly hypertensive patient

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Henry L Elliott

2002-03-01

Full Text Available Cardiovascular (CV disease will progressively assume greater importance as the number of elderly individuals in the population of the world increases with a parallel increase in the incidence of hypertension. Elderly patients with hypertension are often difficult to manage. Pathophysiological changes associated with ageing are also associated with long-standing, uncontrolled hypertension. Diagnosis may not be straightforward and the incidence of concomitant disease will be higher than in younger patients. The preventative benefits of antihypertensive therapy in the elderly is well established and treatment of hypertension is of greatest value in older patients who, because of additional risk factors or prevalent CV disease, are at a higher risk of developing a CV event. However, established benefits are based upon the evidence from randomised, controlled trials in selected patient groups, which may not be universally applicable to many elderly hypertensives. Thus, the treatment of hypertension in the elderly should be based upon an individualised approach which inevitably cannot be strictly evidence-based. However, there is a compelling case for an approach based upon a recognition that high blood pressure (BP in the elderly should be treated early and vigorously whilst at the same time exercising some caution to avoid the development of hypotensive BP levels.

Engaging Elderly People in Telemedicine Through Gamification

Science.gov (United States)

Tabak, Monique; Dekker - van Weering, Marit; Vollenbroek-Hutten, Miriam

2015-01-01

Background Telemedicine can alleviate the increasing demand for elderly care caused by the rapidly aging population. However, user adherence to technology in telemedicine interventions is low and decreases over time. Therefore, there is a need for methods to increase adherence, specifically of the elderly user. A strategy that has recently emerged to address this problem is gamification. It is the application of game elements to nongame fields to motivate and increase user activity and retention. Objective This research aims to (1) provide an overview of existing theoretical frameworks for gamification and explore methods that specifically target the elderly user and (2) explore user classification theories for tailoring game content to the elderly user. This knowledge will provide a foundation for creating a new framework for applying gamification in telemedicine applications to effectively engage the elderly user by increasing and maintaining adherence. Methods We performed a broad Internet search using scientific and nonscientific search engines and included information that described either of the following subjects: the conceptualization of gamification, methods to engage elderly users through gamification, or user classification theories for tailored game content. Results Our search showed two main approaches concerning frameworks for gamification: from business practices, which mostly aim for more revenue, emerge an applied approach, while academia frameworks are developed incorporating theories on motivation while often aiming for lasting engagement. The search provided limited information regarding the application of gamification to engage elderly users, and a significant gap in knowledge on the effectiveness of a gamified application in practice. Several approaches for classifying users in general were found, based on archetypes and reasons to play, and we present them along with their corresponding taxonomies. The overview we created indicates great

Domestic elder abuse in Yazd, Iran: a cross-sectional study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohammad Ali Morowatisharifabad

2016-06-01

Conclusion: Despite overall low rate of domestic elder abuse, its high prevalence indicates that some interventions are necessary to decrease domestic elder abuse. Emotional neglect of elders should be addressed more than other abuse types.

Relationships and Community Risk Factors for Elder Abuse and Neglect: Findings from the First National Prevalence Study on Elder Maltreatment

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Dimitrinka Jordanova Peshevska

2014-06-01

Full Text Available OBJECTIVES: The objective of the study was to mesaure the 12-months prevalence of elder abuse and neglect in private huousehold and to examine the relationship and community level risk factors for elder abuse and neglect. METHOD: Total of 960 respondents aged 65 years and above in private households, from all eight statistical regions participated in the study.  Nationally stratified quota sampling procedure was applied, through four stages. Information was collected in face-to face interview on socio-demographic, healthy life style, physical and mental health, and abuse and neglect types characteristics of elder population. Data were examined using descriptive statistics, binary logistic regression, and odd ratios (OR. Statistical significance was set up at p < 0.05. RESULTS: The respondents reported prevalence of psychological abuse 25.7%, followed by financial abuse 12 %, neglect 6.6%, physical abuse 5.7%, physical injury 3.1%, and sexual abuse 1.3% (reported only in female respondents in the previous 12-months. Living with close relatives, dissatisfaction with the household income, less equipped households, lacking property of house/flat are associated risk factors for elder maltreatment on relationship level. Living in the northeast, southeast, and Polog region are associated risk for elder maltreatment. CONCLUSION: Study findings emphasised the previous data obtained with regards to the community and relationships risk factors for elder maltreatment.

Validation of the Hwalek-Sengstock Elder Abuse Screening Test.

Science.gov (United States)

Neale, Anne Victoria; And Others

Elder abuse is recognized as an under-detected and under-reported social problem. Difficulties in detecting elder abuse are compounded by the lack of a standardized, psychometrically valid instrument for case finding. The development of the Hwalek-Sengstock Elder Abuse Screening Test (H-S/EAST) followed a larger effort to identify indicators and…

Diagnosis of Elder Abuse in U.S. Emergency Departments.

Science.gov (United States)

Evans, Christopher S; Hunold, Katherine M; Rosen, Tony; Platts-Mills, Timothy F

2017-01-01

To estimate the proportion of visits to U.S. emergency departments (EDs) in which a diagnosis of elder abuse is reached using two nationally representative datasets. Retrospective cross-sectional analysis. U.S. ED visits recorded in the 2012 Nationwide Emergency Department Sample (NEDS) or the 2011 National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NHAMCS). All ED visits of individuals aged 60 and older. The primary outcome was elder abuse defined according to International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification diagnosis codes. The proportion of visits with elder abuse was estimated using survey weights. Odds ratios (ORs) were calculated to identify demographic characteristics and common ED diagnoses associated with elder abuse. In 2012, NEDS contained information on 6,723,667 ED visits of older adults, representing an estimated 29,056,673 ED visits. Elder abuse was diagnosed in an estimated 3,846 visits, corresponding to a weighted diagnosis period prevalence of elder abuse in U.S. EDs of 0.013% (95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.012-0.015%). Neglect and physical abuse were the most common types diagnosed, accounting for 32.9% and 32.2% of cases, respectively. Multivariable analysis showed greater weighted odds of elder abuse diagnosis in women (odds ratio (OR) = 1.95, 95% CI = 1.68-2.26) and individuals with contusions (OR = 2.91, 95% CI = 2.36-3.57), urinary tract infection (OR = 2.21, 95% CI = 1.84-2.65), and septicemia (OR = 1.92, 95% CI = 1.44-2.55). In the 2011 NHAMCS dataset, no cases of elder abuse were recorded for the 5,965 older adult ED visits. The proportion of U.S. ED visits by older adults receiving a diagnosis of elder abuse is at least two orders of magnitude lower than the estimated prevalence in the population. Efforts to improve the identification of elder abuse in EDs may be warranted. © 2016, Copyright the Authors Journal compilation © 2016, The American Geriatrics Society.

Adverse effects of outdoor pollution in the elderly.

Science.gov (United States)

Simoni, Marzia; Baldacci, Sandra; Maio, Sara; Cerrai, Sonia; Sarno, Giuseppe; Viegi, Giovanni

2015-01-01

With fewer newborns and people living longer, older people are making up an increasing fraction of the total population. Epidemiological evidence shows that older-age-related health problems affect a wide and expanding proportion of the world population. One of the major epidemiological trends of this century is the rise of chronic diseases that affect more elderly than younger people. A total of 3.7 million premature deaths worldwide in 2012 are attributable to outdoor air pollution; the susceptibility to adverse effects of air pollution is expected to differ widely between people and within the same person, and also over time. Frailty history, a measure of multi-system decline, modifies cumulative associations between air pollution and lung function. Moreover, pre-existing diseases may determine susceptibility. In the elderly, due to comorbidity, exposure to air pollutants may even be fatal. Rapid and not-well-planned urbanization is associated with high level of ambient air pollution, mainly caused by vehicular exhausts. In general, there is sufficient evidence of the adverse effects related to short-term exposure, while fewer studies have addressed the longer-term health effects. Increased pollution exposures have been associated with increased mortality, hospital admissions/emergency-room visits, mainly due to exacerbations of chronic diseases or to respiratory tract infections (e.g., pneumonia). These effects may also be modulated by ambient temperature and many studies show that the elderly are mostly vulnerable to heat waves. The association between heat and mortality in the elderly is well-documented, while less is known regarding the associations with hospital admissions. Chronic exposure to elevated levels of air pollution has been related to the incidence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), chronic bronchitis (CB), asthma, and emphysema. There is also growing evidence suggesting adverse effects on lung function related to long-term exposure

Factors Affecting Hypertension among the Malaysian Elderly

Science.gov (United States)

Eshkoor, Sima Ataollahi; Hamid, Tengku Aizan; Shahar, Suzana; Ng, Chee Kyun; Mun, Chan Yoke

2016-01-01

Hypertension is a common chronic disease in the elderly. This study aimed to determine the effects of age, ethnicity, gender, education, marital status, nutritional parameters, and blood elements on the risk of high blood pressure in the Malaysian elderly. This research was conducted on a group of 2322 non-institutionalized Malaysian elderly. The hierarchy binary logistic regression analysis was applied to estimate the risk of hypertension in respondents. Approximately, 45.61% of subjects had hypertension. The findings indicated that the female gender (Odds ratio (OR) = 1.54), an increase in body weight (OR = 1.61), and an increase in the blood levels of albumin (OR = 1.51), glucose (OR = 1.92), and triglycerides (OR = 1.27) significantly increased the risk of hypertension in subjects (p Malaysian elderly. In addition, an increase in both dietary carbohydrates and blood cholesterol level decreased hypertension in subjects. PMID:29367559

Cardiovascular function in elderly patients with chronic chagasic cardiopathy

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Rocha Manoel Otávio Costa

2003-01-01

Full Text Available The objective of this work was to verify the degree and type of heart damage of elderly chagasic patients seen at an outpatient referral center and to compare them with the changes found in young chagasic patients with a similar degree of heart damage. Elderly and young patients without advanced cardiopathy presented good functional behavior. Elderly patients with advanced cardiopathy had more ventricular premature beats (VPB in 24 h and less functional capacity in the exercise test than young patients of the same subgroup. There was a higher occurrence of effort-induced VPB and a lower prevalence of severe forms in elderly men, suggesting that Chagas' disease may have a worse evolution in males. The association of cardiac damage characteristic of aging with the secondary damage due to Chagas' disease could explain the greater functional damage found in elderly chagasic patients. Thus, it appears that the physiopathological components of Chagas' disease do have an influence on the clinical course of cardiopathy in the elderly population.

The gut mycobiome of elderly danes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bin Ahmad, Hajar Fauzan; Castro Mejia, Josue Leonardo; Kot, Witold

mycobiome on health and disease in elderly remain sparsely investigated. Consequently, the aim of this study was to characterise the feacal mycobiota in relation to host health parameters.Feacal samples from 99 healthy individuals ranging from 65 to 81 years old were collected, and fungal composition...... categories associated with the clinical features among individuals.The elderly gut is home to three main phyla Ascomycota, Basidiomycota and Zygomycota, with genera Penicillium, Candida, and Aspergillus being particularly common. Based on HbA1c-levels, the individuals could be clustered into 3 groups, High...... glucose level.Collectively, these findings suggest that the presences of specific gut mycobiome member is associated with glycemic behaviours among the healthy individuals of the elderly Danes population....

Perspectives on elder abuse in the Netherlands

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mysyuk, Yuliya

2015-01-01

This thesis explores perceptions and views of different groups involved in elder abuse. First chapter provides a general introduction to the topic and current study. In the second chapter of this thesis, definitions of elder abuse and their developments are reviewed. Chapter three explores different

Study of Health and Social Indicators of Elderly Women in Iran

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Marzieh Shirazi Khah

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Objectives: by reducing the fertility rate and Improve health& social conditions in Iran, increases the statistics of population older women also follow the whole population of seniors. So that in two decades than has increased the population of elderly women to total female population of 3 percent to 4.1 percent in the recent census in 2006 to 7 percent and is expected that increasing continues this trend the next decades. Global statistics show that significantly more elderly woman than elderly men in most countries, developed and developing, But according to the Statistical Center of Iran shows that during 1976-2006 has increased in every decade the number of elderly women in Iran Due to improved health services, social and economic, but has reduced the population of elderly women than elderly men This happened while usually Is less life expectancy in men than women .therefore In this paper we study the population status, health, education, family status, employment, quality of life and isolation of elderly women in Iran and We review different reasons than elderly women than elderly men in gender. Methods & Materials: This study is a descriptive-analytical study and a library that was used in the Statistics Center of Iran as the country's census is the most documented. In addition, we search for related database in English and Persian, including pubmed, medline, ISI and Web site World Health Organization and Scientific Information Database To obtain demographic and social information about the Iranian elderly population. Also took advantage of the views of experts to analyze the findings gerontology, epidemiology and sociology on gender differences in the elderly population in Iran. Result: With a deep look at the situation of elderly women from different dimensions, including physical health, psychological-psychological, familial, social and... Understand that Despite the efforts and improvements in health status, social and economic in

Sarcopenia and frailty in elderly trauma patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Fairchild, Berry; Webb, Travis P; Xiang, Qun; Tarima, Sergey; Brasel, Karen J

2015-02-01

Sarcopenia describes a loss of muscle mass and resultant decrease in strength, mobility, and function that can be quantified by CT. We hypothesized that sarcopenia and related frailty characteristics are related to discharge disposition after blunt traumatic injury in the elderly. We reviewed charts of 252 elderly blunt trauma patients who underwent abdominal CT prior to hospital admission. Data for thirteen frailty characteristics were abstracted. Sarcopenia was measured by obtaining skeletal muscle cross-sectional area (CSA) from each patient's psoas major muscle using Slice-O-Matic(®) software. Dispositions were grouped as dependent and independent based on discharge location. χ (2), Fisher's exact, and logistic regression were used to determine factors associated with discharge dependence. Mean age 76 years, 49 % male, median ISS 9.0 (IQR = 8.0-17.0). Discharge destination was independent in 61.5 %, dependent in 29 %, and 9.5 % of patients died. Each 1 cm(2) increase in psoas muscle CSA was associated with a 20 % decrease in dependent living (p elderly trauma patients and can be obtained from the admission CT. Lower psoas muscle CSA is related to loss of independence upon discharge in the elderly. The early availability of this variable during the hospitalization of elderly trauma patients may aid in discharge planning and the transition to dependent living.

Should general anaesthesia be avoided in the elderly?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Strøm, C; Rasmussen, L S; Sieber, F E

2014-01-01

Surgery and anaesthesia exert comparatively greater adverse effects on the elderly than on the younger brain, manifest by the higher prevalence of postoperative delirium and cognitive dysfunction. Postoperative delirium and cognitive dysfunction delay rehabilitation, and are associated...... with increases in morbidity and mortality among elderly surgical patients. We review the aetiology of postoperative delirium and cognitive dysfunction in the elderly with a particular focus on anaesthesia and sedation, discuss methods of diagnosing and monitoring postoperative cognitive decline, and describe...

A COOPERATIVE ASSISTANCE SYSTEM BETWEEN VEHICLES FOR ELDERLY DRIVERS

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Naohisa HASHIMOTO

2009-01-01

Full Text Available This paper proposes a new concept of elderly driver assistance systems, which performs the assistance by cooperative driving between two vehicles, and describes some experiments with elderly drivers. The assistance consists of one vehicle driven by an elderly driver called a guest vehicle and the other driven by a assisting driver called a host vehicle, and the host vehicle assists or escorts the guest vehicle through the inter-vehicle communications. The functions of the systems installed on a single-seat electric vehicle are highly evaluated by subjects of elderly drivers in virtual streets on a test track.

Disability and handicap among elderly Singaporeans.

Science.gov (United States)

Yadav, S S

2001-08-01

Singapore's elderly population has been growing rapidly and is expected to constitute more than 25 percent of the total population by the year 2030. The ageing process brings with it a host of health problems. Here the question arises--Are the increasing years of life going to create a high proportion of sick and disabled elderly people, or a rich human resource of healthy senior citizens? Since more women are living longer than men, who would face a higher risk of disability and handicap? These questions are yet to be answered in Singapore. This paper seeks answers to these questions. The study is based on a sample survey of 1209 elderly Singaporeans living in Kampong Glam, Kreta Ayer and Bukit Merah parliamentary constituencies which have some of the highest proportions of the aged population. The results revealed that more than half of the aged had a disability and the rate of disability was significantly higher among the women as compared to the men. More than one-third of the elderly had a handicap and the rate of handicap among the women was twice as much as that among the men. Severity of handicap was directly correlated with age.

Colonic Diverticulitis in the Elderly

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Chien-Kuo Liu

2009-03-01

Full Text Available Diverticular disease of the colon is a disease that mainly affects the elderly and presents in 50–70% of those aged 80 years or older. The most common complication is colonic diverticulitis. Eighty percent of patients who present with colonic diverticulitis are aged 50 years and older. Diagnosis and treatment of colonic diverticulitis in the elderly is more difficult and complicated owing to more comorbid conditions. Computed tomography is recommended for diagnosis when colonic diverticulitis is suspected. Most patients admitted with acute colonic diverticulitis respond to conservative treatment, but 15–30% of patients require surgery. Because surgery for acute colonic diverticulitis carries significant rates of morbidity and mortality, conservative treatment is recommended in the elderly. Conservative treatment of colonic diverticulitis with antibiotics, bowel rest, possibly including parenteral alimentation, is usually applied for 1–2 weeks. In the absence of a response to conservative treatment, frequent recurrence or complications (abscesses, fistulas, bowel obstructions, and free perforations, surgery is indicated.

[Addictive behavior among the elderly].

Science.gov (United States)

Menecier, Pascal; Fernandez, Lydia

2012-12-01

Addictive behavior still persists among the elderly, mainly concerning substance abuse, such as alcohol, tobacco or psychotropic drugs and addictive practices such as gambling. Illegal substances or cyber-addictions appear much less often. The environment (place of residence or care) and/or economic factors may influence behavior and practices. The incidence of somatic illness or psychiatric disorders, such as cognitive impairment among the elderly patients, complicates even further the presentation of addictive disorders and their treatment. The age factor does not seem to lessen the suffering felt by the patient and care is required in an equal manner for all ages. Prevention (maintenance of personal autonomy and quality of life throughout the ageing process) plays an essential role along with the offer of care. The lack of scientific data such as the absence of validation for adult care among the elderly, leave wide scope for epidemiological, clinical and theoretical research. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Fatal neglect of the elderly.

Science.gov (United States)

Ortmann, C; Fechner, G; Bajanowski, T; Brinkmann, B

2001-01-01

Maltreatment of the elderly is a common problem that affects more than 3% of the elderly. We report on two cases of fatal neglect. Risk factors of victims and caregivers were analysed in the context of the social history. In both cases, the victims had a dominant personality and the abusers (the sons) had been strictly controlled and formed by the parent. The victims showed typical risk factors such as living together with the abuser, isolation, dependence on care, income and money administration. Initially, the victims declined help from outside and self-neglect occurred. The unemployed perpetrators lived in social isolation and depended financially and mentally on the victims. In both cases no mental illness was present but there was a decrease of social competence. Legal medicine is predominantly involved in fatal cases in connection with external post-mortem examinations and autopsies. Also in the living, the medico-legal expert can assist in the identification of findings in elderly persons in cases of suspected abuse.

Participation of the elderly after vision loss

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Alma, M.A.; Mei, van der S.F.; Melis-Dankers, B.J.M.; Tilburg, van T.G.; Groothoff, J.W.; Suurmeijer, T.P.B.M.

2011-01-01

Purpose. To assess the degree of participation of the visually impaired elderly and to make a comparison with population-based reference data. Method. This cross-sectional study included visually impaired elderly persons (≥55 years; n=173) who were referred to a low-vision rehabilitation centre.

Correlation between hypertension and cognitive function in elderly

Science.gov (United States)

Fitri, F. I.; Rambe, A. S.

2018-03-01

Hypertension and cognitive impairment are common disorders among elderly adults, and their prevalences tend to rise as the population ages. This study aimed to determine the correlation between hypertension and cognitive function in elderly. It was a cross-sectional study involving 62 elderly subjects. All subjects underwent physical and neurologic examination and Montreal Cognitive Assessment-Indonesian Version (MoCA-INA) to assess cognitive function. This study included 62 subjects consisted of 26 males (41.9%) and 36 females (58.1%). There were 24 subjects (38.2%) with hypertension and 38 (61.3%) normal elderly subjects. The mean age was 65.71±4.49 years old. There were no significant differences in demographic characteristics, total MoCA-INA scores, and scores based on cognitive domains between two groups, except for visuospatial and executive function (p=0.026). There was a significant correlation between hypertension and visuospatial and executive function (r=0.301, p=0.017). Hypertension is correlated with cognitive impairment mainly on visuospatial and executive function in elderly.

Religiousness Attitude During Adulthood Elderly (Psychology Of Religion Perspectives

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Muhamad Rifa'i Subhi

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Islam teaches the difference in someone's level of religiosity. The level of human religiosity can change from one moment to another. Humans have evolved a religious life. Including human experience in adulthood elderly in life and face the problems of life. This study focused on the real description of the attitude of religiosity which is owned by the elderly. The study was taken from the students at the boarding school Elderly Islamic boarding school (Pesantren of Roudlotul Muta'allimin Dracik Kramat Batang. The research method used descriptive qualitative approach to straight dialogue (interview of the respondents, namely the students of Elderly Islamic Boarding School (Pesantren. The study results showed that each of the students have the different religious involvement in filling elderly period (retirement. The involvement includes Ritual Involvement, Ideological Involvement, Intellectual involvement, experimental involvement, and consequential involvement.

Elderly women and stress. Does marriage make a difference?

Science.gov (United States)

Preston, D B; Dellasega, C

1990-04-01

Although studies of gender differences in the stress/health relationship of elderly persons have been done, few have examined the combined affect of marital status and gender on health. The experience of stress may affect elderly married women differently than elderly unmarried women. The purpose of this study was to explore the differential effects of stress on elderly married women and to identify interventions that could be used in gerontological nursing practice to promote effective coping. Roy's theory is used to explain the effects of stress on elderly women and to suggest nursing interventions. According to Roy, individuals respond to stressors in four behavioral modes: physiological, self-concept, role performance, and interdependency. The results of this study indicate that, of the four groups studied in this sample, the married women were in poorest health and the most vulnerable to stress.

Functional and cognitive decline in hospitalized elderly

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EUGÉNIA MENDES

2016-12-01

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Aim – Understand if functional and cognitive decline is accentuated during hospitalization in elderly patients. Method – It was design a descriptive and correlational study. The Functional Independence Measure (FIM and the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE were used. Results – Were evaluated at admission and discharge 51 elderly (75.53 ± 7.16 years, 53% women, admitted in an internal medicine unit with a length of stay of 14.27±6.45 days. For FIM and MMSE were found statistically significant differences with lower scores from admission to discharge. Negative correlations between age and length of stay and the scores of all measures were found. Except for the Cognitive FIM at admission, all elderly residents at home fared better than the institutionalized in all measures. Conclusions – The hospitalization contributes to a greater weakness/frailty of the elderly and is considered high risk for decline in physical fitness and cognitive function.

Advancing the field of elder abuse: future directions and policy implications.

Science.gov (United States)

Dong, XinQi

2012-11-01

Elder abuse, sometimes called elder mistreatment or elder maltreatment, includes psychological, physical, and sexual abuse; neglect (caregiver neglect and self-neglect); and financial exploitation. Evidence suggests that one in 10 older adults experiences some form of elder abuse, but only one in 25 cases is reported to social services agencies. At the same time, elder abuse is associated with significant morbidity and premature mortality. Despite these findings, there is a great paucity in research, practice, and policy addressing the pervasive issues of elder abuse. Through my experiences as a American Political Sciences Association Congressional Policy Fellow and Health and Aging Policy Fellow working with the Administration on Community Living (ACL) (previously known as the Administration on Aging) for the last 2 years, I will describe the major functions of the ACL and highlight two major pieces of federal legislation: The Older Americans Act and the Elder Justice Act. I will also highlight major research gaps and future policy relevant research directions for the field of elder abuse. © 2012, Copyright the Authors Journal compilation © 2012, The American Geriatrics Society.

Preventing Elder Abuse and Neglect in Older Adults

Science.gov (United States)

... Documents PDF Preventing Elder Abuse and Neglect in Older Adults Download Join our e-newsletter! Resources Preventing Elder Abuse and Neglect in Older Adults Tools and Tips Printer-friendly PDF Click here ...

Safety Evaluation of Elderly Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy

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Bijan Khorasani

2008-10-01

Full Text Available Objectives: The most common indication for abdominal surgery in elderly (65 & older is gallstone disease.The elderly are more prone to complication of such surgery due to their other co-morbidity and thus they may benefit mostly from a safer method of surgical procedure. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the safety and outcome of laparoscopic cholecystectomy in elderly compare to the conventional method. Methods & Materials: Via prospective study from June 2005 to March 2008 included all patient older than 60 years of age who underwent cholecystectomy by open (Group A and laparoscopic (Group B method in Milad Hospital.The demographic data (sex age, American Society of Anesthesiologists’ (ASA score, postoperative mortality morbidity, length of stay and operative time were recorded for each patient and were compared between two methods. Data of patient’s analysis by SPSS with chi-square and t test. Results: The study included 311 elderlies (34% men and 66% women. Hundred fifty-seven patients underwent open cholecystectomy; 154 patients underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy. The mean age was 7141 years. The outcome in group B (laparoscopic included: morality 0%, morbidity 2%, postoperative hospital stay 1 days, mean operation time was 40 minutes. In group A(open: mortality and morbidity rate were 21% and 12% respectively with postoperative hospital stay 331 days and similar operation time as group A. Conclusion: Laparoscopic cholecystectomy is the gold standard treatment and safe procedure in elderly patient and aging is not considered to be a contraindication laparoscopic surgery in such patients.

Mining Spatiotemporal Patterns of the Elder's Daily Movement

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, C. R.; Chen, C. F.; Liu, M. E.; Tsai, S. J.; Son, N. T.; Kinh, L. V.

2016-06-01

With rapid developments in wearable device technology, a vast amount of spatiotemporal data, such as people's movement and physical activities, are generated. Information derived from the data reveals important knowledge that can contribute a long-term care and psychological assessment of the elders' living condition especially in long-term care institutions. This study aims to develop a method to investigate the spatial-temporal movement patterns of the elders with their outdoor trajectory information. To achieve the goal, GPS based location data of the elderly subjects from long-term care institutions are collected and analysed with geographic information system (GIS). A GIS statistical model is developed to mine the elderly subjects' spatiotemporal patterns with the location data and represent their daily movement pattern at particular time. The proposed method first finds the meaningful trajectory and extracts the frequent patterns from the time-stamp location data. Then, a density-based clustering method is used to identify the major moving range and the gather/stay hotspot in both spatial and temporal dimensions. The preliminary results indicate that the major moving area of the elderly people encompasses their dorm and has a short moving distance who often stay in the same site. Subjects' outdoor appearance are corresponded to their life routine. The results can be useful for understanding elders' social network construction, risky area identification and medical care monitoring.

Depression in elderly: A review of Indian research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sandeep Grover

2015-01-01

Full Text Available To review the existing literature on depression among elderly arising from India. Search was carried out using PubMed, Google Scholar, Google, and Medknow search engines to identify the relevant studies. Most of the literatures that are available are in terms of prevalence of depression. Community-based studies involving 70 to 7,150 elderly subjects report prevalence rate varying from 8.9% to 62.16%. Clinic-based studies involving 50 to 5,260 participants report prevalence rates ranging from 42.4% to 72%. Studies have reported depression to be more common among females. Other demographic factors that have been associated with depression among elderly include being unmarried, divorced or widowed elderly, residing in rural locality, being illiterate, increasing age, lower socioeconomic status, and unemployment. Depression has also been shown to be associated with various psychosocial factors, lifestyle and dietary factors, and presence of chronic physical illness. There are limited data on various therapeutic interventions. Available data suggest usefulness of pranayam, cognitive behavior therapy, and electroconvulsive therapy. The review of data suggests that prevalence of depression among elderly in India is high. However, there is lack of data on symptom profile and limited data is available on various therapeutic interventions for the management of depression in elderly from India. There is urgent need to conduct large multicentric studies to fill this void in research.

Quality of life of elderly live kidney donors.

Science.gov (United States)

Klop, Karel W J; Dols, Leonienke F C; Weimar, Willem; Dooper, Ine M; IJzermans, Jan N M; Kok, Niels F M

2013-10-15

Expanding the use of elderly live donors may help meet the demand for kidney transplants. The aim of this study was to quantify the effect of the surgical procedure on the quality of life (QOL) of elderly donors compared with younger donors. Alongside three prospective studies (two randomized) running between May 2001 and October 2010, we asked 501 live donors to fill out the Short Form-36 questionnaire preoperatively and at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months postoperatively. We defined live donors 60 years or older as elderly. Between-group analyses regarding QOL were adjusted for baseline values and gender. One hundred thirty-five donors were older and 366 donors were younger than 60 years. The response rate was high, with 87% at 12 months postoperatively. Elderly donors less often scored as American Society of Anaesthesiology classification 1 (60% vs. 81%; Pvitality" (5 points; P=0.008). At 3 months, "bodily pain" (3 points, P=0.04) and "role physical" (8 points, P=0.02) were still in favor of the older group. At 6 and 12 months, "physical function" was in favor of the younger group (3 and 5 points, respectively; P=0.04 and P<0.001). This study demonstrates that elderly donors recover relatively fast. The perspective of excellent postoperative QOL may help convince elderly individuals to donate.

Crimes against the elderly in Italy, 2007-2014.

Science.gov (United States)

Terranova, Claudio; Bevilacqua, Greta; Zen, Margherita; Montisci, Massimo

2017-08-01

Crimes against the elderly have physical, psychological, and economic consequences. Approaches for mitigating them must be based on comprehensive knowledge of the phenomenon. This study analyses crimes against the elderly in Italy during the period 2007-2014 from an epidemiological viewpoint. Data on violent and non-violent crimes derived from the Italian Institute of Statistics were analysed in relation to trends, gender and age by linear regression, T-test, and calculation of the odds ratio with a 95% confidence interval. Results show that the elderly are at higher risk of being victimized in two types of crime, violent (residential robbery) and non-violent (pick-pocketing and purse-snatching) compared with other age groups during the period considered. A statistically significant increase in residential robbery and pick-pocketing was also observed. The rate of homicide against the elderly was stable during the study period, in contrast with reduced rates in other age groups. These results may be explained by risk factors increasing the profiles of elderly individuals as potential victims, such as frailty, cognitive impairment, and social isolation. Further studies analysing the characteristics of victims are required. Based on the results presented here, appropriate preventive strategies should be planned to reduce crimes against the elderly. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd and Faculty of Forensic and Legal Medicine. All rights reserved.

Elderly Labor Supply: Work or Play

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Haider, Steven

2001-01-01

.... Despite this, we find that the wages of the elderly are low both relative to younger populations and relative to the wages they earned when they themselves were young. Among individuals over the age of 70, we find that changes in health status dominate labor market transitions. Overall. our findings suggest that non- pecuniary considerations play an important role in determining elderly labor supply decisions.

Attitudes of Students Studying In Health Related Departments towards the Elderly

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Sercan Özbek YAZICI

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Negative attitudes towards the elderly may cause decreases in quality health service provided to the elderly. In the study, the aim was to determine attitudes of students studying in health related departments towards the elderly and relationships between the attitudes and various variables were analyzed. In a descriptive study, the sample included nursing, physiotherapy, and elderly care students. Kogan’s attitude towards old people scale (KAOP was used to measure attitudes towards the elderly and Stanley Coopersmith Self Esteem Inventory (SEI was used to assess the level of students’ self-esteem. The KOAP mean attitude score of the students was 125.6 ± 14.38 and the students had slightly positive attitudes towards the elderly. Students who were at the age of 20 or over and who were living in the city showed more positive attitudes. The students of the Elderly Care Department had the lowest mean score and there was a significant difference between mean KAOP scores of students at Nursing and Elderly Care Department. Also, weak positive correlation was found between the KAOP and SEI mean scores of students. The results implies that the students are required to enhance their positive attitudes towards the elderly. Therefore, students should be provided a training program that improves the positive attitudes

Community-Acquired Pneumonia: a Comparison between elderly and nonelderly patients

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S. Jafari

2006-08-01

Full Text Available Background: Community-acquired pneumonia could be a life-threatening condition especially in elderly patients. The factors influencing the outcome in elderly patients are thought to be different from those in young adults. We compared the clinical and paraclinical profiles in elderly and nonelderly patients with community-acquired pneumonias. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, seventy nine patients who were hospitalized with community acquired pneumonia over a period of one year were included. Patients' medical records were reviewed; and data related to comorbid conditions, signs and symptoms, laboratory and radiographic findings were gathered using a checklist. Results: The clinical features, laboratory parameters and complications from pneumonia were almost similar in 41 elderly (group I, age ≥65years and 38 young (group II, age<65years subjects. Delirium was seen more in elderly group (p=0.05. The average body temperature and pulse rate were significantly higher in nonelderly group. Sixty one percent of elderly patients and 21% of young patients have Po2 less than 60 (p=0.02. Smoking (29.1%, neurological disturbances (19%, congestive heart failure (15.2%, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and diabetes mellitus (13.9% were associated comorbidities in both groups. In non elderly group, immune compromise and IV drug use were more common as underlying comorbid conditions. Two of three mortalities were due to elder patients. Conclusion: Community acquired pneumonia could have more serious clinical and abnormal laboratory features in the elderly than younger patients. Mortality rate may be higher in older patients. Comorbid conditions are frequently seen in both elderly and nonelderly patients with community acquired pneumonia, but IV drug use and immune compromise are more frequent in nonelderly patients.

Dengue severity in the elderly in Puerto Rico

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Enid J. García-Rivera

2003-06-01

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: Severe dengue affects all age groups in the Americas, but little detailed information is available about this disease in the elderly. The objective of this article is to describe the disease in this age group. METHODS: We reviewed suspected dengue-case investigation forms submitted with diagnostic samples as well as clinical reports from infection control nurses in Puerto Rico, for the period of 1994 through 1999. RESULTS: We assigned the laboratory-positive case-patients to four age groups: infants (1 year: 554, youth (2 to 18 years: 6 857, adults (19 to 64 years: 9 433, and elderly (> 65 years: 822. Regardless of infecting serotype, the elderly were more likely to have been hospitalized (48% vs. 33% (P <0.01 and were less likely to show hemorrhage (26% vs. 33% (P <0.01. On multivariate analysis, controlling for gender and the presence of hemorrhage, the elderly had a higher risk for hospitalization and death than did the youths and the adults. CONCLUSIONS: The elderly appear to be more likely than youth and younger adults to develop severe illness when infected with the dengue virus, in a pattern similar to that of infants. The clinical evaluation of elderly patients with dengue must include a careful assessment of increased capillary permeability and occult hemorrhage in order to avoid complications from delayed identification and treatment of severe dengue infection. These findings are of increasing importance for dengue epidemiology and medical care in view of the expanding nature of dengue and dengue hemorrhagic fever in a world that also has a growing number and proportion of elderly persons.

Green tea moisturizer improves skin hydration in elderly

OpenAIRE

Oentarini Tjandra; Linda J Wijayadi; Marcella E Rumawas

2018-01-01

BACKGROUND Dry skin is a major skin health problem in elderly. Green tea, which has an antioxidant effect, has recently been used as an active ingredient in moisturizing creams; yet the effect has not been well studied. This study compares the skin hydration effect of green tea and vitamin E moisturizer among elderly. METHODS This quasi-experimental study involved 60 elderly living in Tresna Werda Budi Mulia 4 Social Institution, Jakarta. Using the Runve HL 611 skin analyzer, skin c...

Empowering the elderly ‘whole person’

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Clotworthy, Amy

2017-01-01

A positive discourse about ‘healthy aging’ and ‘active aging’ shapes many health policies targeting the elderly. Rather than portraying old age as a life stage of passivity and decline, this discourse transforms late life into a period of physical activity and fulfilling social involvement...... – especially in terms of engagement with one’s family, friends, and ‘community’. Based on ethnographic fieldwork conducted in a Danish municipality, the chapter examines how health-promotion activities targeted at the elderly function in practice, and discusses the various forms of ‘community...... that may constitute different collectives within the politically delineated geographic borders of the municipality, the chapter describes some of the social, cultural, and political practices that connect various forms of ‘community’, and how these practices may affect (and be affected by) elderly citizens...

Adverse effects of outdoor pollution in the elderly

Science.gov (United States)

Baldacci, Sandra; Maio, Sara; Cerrai, Sonia; Sarno, Giuseppe; Viegi, Giovanni

2015-01-01

With fewer newborns and people living longer, older people are making up an increasing fraction of the total population. Epidemiological evidence shows that older-age-related health problems affect a wide and expanding proportion of the world population. One of the major epidemiological trends of this century is the rise of chronic diseases that affect more elderly than younger people. A total of 3.7 million premature deaths worldwide in 2012 are attributable to outdoor air pollution; the susceptibility to adverse effects of air pollution is expected to differ widely between people and within the same person, and also over time. Frailty history, a measure of multi-system decline, modifies cumulative associations between air pollution and lung function. Moreover, pre-existing diseases may determine susceptibility. In the elderly, due to comorbidity, exposure to air pollutants may even be fatal. Rapid and not-well-planned urbanization is associated with high level of ambient air pollution, mainly caused by vehicular exhausts. In general, there is sufficient evidence of the adverse effects related to short-term exposure, while fewer studies have addressed the longer-term health effects. Increased pollution exposures have been associated with increased mortality, hospital admissions/emergency-room visits, mainly due to exacerbations of chronic diseases or to respiratory tract infections (e.g., pneumonia). These effects may also be modulated by ambient temperature and many studies show that the elderly are mostly vulnerable to heat waves. The association between heat and mortality in the elderly is well-documented, while less is known regarding the associations with hospital admissions. Chronic exposure to elevated levels of air pollution has been related to the incidence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), chronic bronchitis (CB), asthma, and emphysema. There is also growing evidence suggesting adverse effects on lung function related to long-term exposure

Travel Patterns and Characteristics of Elderly Subpopulation in New York State

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hwang, Ho-Ling [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Wilson, Daniel W. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Reuscher, Tim [Macrosys, Arlington, VA (United States); Yang, Jianjiang [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Taylor, Rob D. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Chin, Shih-Miao [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

2015-03-01

With the increasing demographic shift towards a larger population of elderly (individuals 65 years and older), it is essential for policy makers and planners to have an understanding of transportation issues that affect the elderly. These issues include livability of the community, factors impacting travel behavior and mobility, transportation safety, etc. In this study, Oak Ridge National Laboratory was tasked by the New York State (NYS) Department of Transportation to conduct a detailed examination of travel behaviors, and identify patterns and trends of the elderly within NYS. The National Household Travel Survey (NHTS) was used as the primary data source to analyze subjects and address questions such as: Are there differences in traveler demographics between the elderly population and those of younger age groups who live in various NYS regions; e.g., New York City, other urban areas of NYS, or other parts of the country? How do they compare with the population at large? Are there any regional differences (e.g., urban versus rural)? Gender differences? Do any unique travel characteristics or patterns exist within the elderly group? In addition to analysis of NHTS data, roadway travel safety concerns associated with elderly travelers were also investigated in this study. Specifically, data on accidents involving the elderly (including drivers, passengers, and others) as captured in the Fatal Analysis Reporting System (FARS) database was analyzed to examine elderly driver and elderly pedestrian travel safety issues in NYS. The analyses of these data sets provide a greater understanding of the elderly within NYS and their associated transportation issues. Through this study, various key findings on elderly population size, household characteristics, and travel patterns were produced and are report herein this report.

Fulfillment of Safety Needs and Efforts to Prevent Fall in Elderly

OpenAIRE

Maryam, R. Siti; Rosidawati, Rosidawati; Hartini, Tien

2013-01-01

This study aims to describe safety needs for the elderly in nursing home Region of DKI Jakarta. The method used survey with the nursing staff by 43 respondents and the elderly by 53 respondents. The results found that the safety needs for the elderly in nursing home are good by 79.1 %; elderly aged around 60-95 years; 62.3 % female, have a history of falling 58.5 %, the biggest fall location of 45.2 % at the street and 22.6 % in the bedroom, most of the elderly suffering from 98.1 % (like h...

Regional cerebral blood flow patterns in extremely elderly patients with Alzheimer's disease

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hirao, Kentaro; Hanyu, Haruo; Kanetaka, Hidekazu; Shimizu, Soichiro; Sato, Tomohiko; Iwamoto, Toshihiko

2008-01-01

Clinical and pathologic features in Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients differ depending on the age of onset. The aim of our study was to compare the regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) patterns of younger, elderly, and extremely elderly patients with AD with that of controls to characterize the rCBF patterns in extremely elderly patients with AD. Single photon emission CT (SPECT) was performed in 113 patients with probable AD, including 34 younger (<70 years), 41 elderly (70-84 years), and 38 extremely elderly (≥85 years) patients divided according to age at examination. The SPECT data were analyzed using three-dimensional stereotactic surface projection (3D-SSP). No significant differences regarding gender, duration of disease, education, and Mini-Mental State Examination score were found among the groups. As compared with controls, younger and elderly AD demonstrated significant reduction of rCBF in the temporo-parietal areas, posterior cingulate cortices and precunei, which is considered to be a characteristic rCBF pattern in AD. On the other hand, the extremely elderly AD group demonstrated significant reduction of rCBF in the frontal and medial temporal areas, in addition to the temporo-parietal areas, posterior cingulate cortices and precunei, but the reductions were milder than in those in younger and elderly AD groups. The extremely elderly patients with AD showed atypical rCBF patterns in AD compared to younger and elderly patients with AD. Our data suggest that pathological features in extremely elderly AD may be different from those in younger and elderly AD and that diseases different from AD, such as senile dementia of the neurofibrillary tangle type may be clinically diagnosed as extremely elderly AD. (author)

Study of suicidal ideations, hopelessness and impulsivity in elderly

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Surbhi C Trivedi

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Aims and Objectives: This study aimed to assess the suicidal ideations, hopelessness and impulsivity in depressed and non-depressed elderly and to study the relationship of suicidal ideations with hopelessness and impulsivity in them. Materials and Methods: This cross sectional study was done on 60 elderly patients (30 cases and 30 controls above the age of 60 years. The scales used were Geriatric Suicide Ideation Scale, Beck Hopelessness Scale, Barrat′s Impulsiveness Scale, Geriatric Depression Scale. Results: Mean Geriatric Suicide Ideations Scale scores, mean Beck Hopelessness Scale scores and mean Barrat′s Impulsiveness Scale and scores of depressed elderly were higher than that of elderly who were not depressed and these differences were statistically significant. Hopelessness was a significant predictor of suicidal ideation in the entire sample as well as in the depressed and non-depressed elderly when the two groups were considered separately. Impulsivity when considered alone was a significant predictor of suicidal ideations in the entire sample. Conclusion: Hopelessness and impulsivity both by themselves are significant predictors for suicidal ideations in the elderly and when both are considered together hopelessness is a better predictor of suicidal ideations than impulsivity.

Sociodemographic predictors of elderly's psychological well-being in Malaysia.

Science.gov (United States)

Momtaz, Yadollah A; Ibrahim, Rahimah; Hamid, Tengku A; Yahaya, Nurizan

2011-05-01

Psychological well-being as one of the most important indicators of successful aging has received substantial attention in the gerontological literature. Prior studies show that sociodemographic factors influencing elderly's psychological well-being are multiple and differ across cultures. The aim of this study was to identify significant sociodemographic predictors of psychological well-being among Malay elders. The study included 1415 older Malays (60-100 years, 722 women), randomly selected through a multistage stratified random method from Peninsular Malaysia. WHO-Five well-being index was used to measure psychological well-being. Data analysis was conducted using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 13.0. Using multiple regression analysis a significant model emerged (F(7, 1407) = 20.14, p ≤ 0.001), where age, sex, marital status, and household income were significant predictor variables of psychological well-being among Malay elders. However, level of education, employment status, and place of residence failed to predict psychological well-being. This study showed that the oldest old, elderly women, unmarried, and the poor elderly people are at risk for experiencing low psychological well-being. Therefore, they need special attention from family, policy makers, and those who work with elderly people.

Mitochondrial biogenesis and angiogenesis in skeletal muscle of the elderly

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Iversen, Ninna; Krustrup, Peter; Rasmussen, Hans N

2011-01-01

The aim of this study was to test the hypotheses that 1) skeletal muscles of elderly subjects can adapt to a single endurance exercise bout and 2) endurance trained elderly subjects have higher expression/activity of oxidative and angiogenic proteins in skeletal muscle than untrained elderly peop...

Assessment of private homes as spaces for the dying elderly

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Tulika Bhattacharyya

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Aim: This study makes an assessment of end-of-life care of the elderly in private homes in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Participants and Methods: Primary data were collected from private homes which supported elder care through observation and semi-structured interviews with primary family caregivers of the elderly. Results: The study finds that the major factors preventing private homes from providing adequate care to the elderly were architecturally inadequate housing conditions, paucity of financial support, and scarcity of skilled caregivers. Besides, considerable neglect and domestic abuse of the elderly was also found in some private homes. In addition, the peripheral location of private homes within public health framework and inadequate state palliative policy, including stringent narcotic regulations, accentuated the problems of home care. Conclusion: The study concludes by questioning the rhetoric of private homes as spaces for the dying elderly in Kolkata and suggests remedial measures to improve their capacity to deliver care.

[The development of public policies for elderly care in Brazil].

Science.gov (United States)

Fernandes, Maria Teresinha de Oliveira; Soares, Sônia Maria

2012-12-01

The objective of this documental analysis is to discuss the legal aspects involved in the development of elderly care policies in Brazil, considering the socio-historical-political context, and in view of the aspects that outline the wellbeing of an aged individual. Data collection was performed between June and September of 2010 via governmental websites. Documents were included if they complied with the proposed objective; were connected with elderly care policies, and lay within the legal accomplishments regarding elderly care policies in 2006 and the Elói Chaves Law of 1923. This analysis indicated that elderly wellbeing depends significantly on resource allocation in sectors other than the healthcare area, with emphasis on the elderly in the labor market and the feminization of old age. It is expected that the community and administrators will discuss the needs of the elderly population and the integration of care networks that remain necessary for the heterogeneity of this population.

National Committee for the Prevention of Elder Abuse

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... for events. National Committee for the Prevention of Elder Abuse c/o Business of Your Business, LLC 333 ... NCPEA The National Committee for the Prevention of Elder Abuse (NCPEA ) is the national association for professionals, practitioners, ...

Design and analysis of wudu’ (ablution) workstation for elderly in Malaysia

Science.gov (United States)

Aman, A.; Dawal, S. Z. M.; Rahman, N. I. A.

2017-06-01

Wudu’ (Ablution) workstation is one of the facilities used by most Muslims in all categories. At present, there are numbers of design guidelines for praying facilities but still lacking on wudu’ (ablution) area specification especially or elderly. Thus, It is timely to develop an ergonomic wudu’ workstation for elderly to perform ablution independently and confidently. This study was conducted to design an ergonomic ablution unit for the Muslim’s elderly in Malaysia. An ablution workstation was designed based on elderly anthropometric dimensions and was then analyse using CATIA V5R21 for posture investigation using RULAs. The results of the study has identified significant anthropometric dimensions in designing wudu’ (ablution) workstation for elderly people. This study can be considered as preliminary study for the development of an ergonomic ablution design for elderly. This effort will become one of the significant social contributions to our elderly population in developing our nation holistically.

Acute Kidney Injury in the Elderly

Science.gov (United States)

Abdel-Kader, Khaled; Palevsky, Paul

2009-01-01

Synopsis The aging kidney undergoes a number of important anatomic and physiologic changes that increase the risk of acute kidney injury (formerly acute renal failure) in the elderly. This article reviews these changes and discusses the diagnoses frequently encountered in the elderly patient with acute kidney injury. The incidence, staging, evaluation, management, and prognosis of acute kidney injury are also examined with special focus given to older adults. PMID:19765485

Profile and prevalence of hearing complaints in the elderly

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Magda Aline Bauer

Full Text Available Abstract Introduction: Hearing is essential for the processing of acoustic information and the understanding of speech signals. Hearing loss may be associated with cognitive decline, depression and reduced functionality. Objective: To analyze the prevalence of hearing complaints in elderly individuals from Rio Grande do Sul and describe the profile of the study participants with and without hearing complaints. Methods: 7315 elderly individuals interviewed in their homes, in 59 cities in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, participated in the study. Inclusion criteria were age 60 years or older and answering the question on auditory self-perception. For statistical purposes, the chi-square test and logistic regression were performed to assess the correlations between variables. Results: 139 elderly individuals who did not answer the question on auditory self-perception and 9 who self-reported hearing loss were excluded, totaling 7167 elderly participants. Hearing loss complaint rate was 28% (2011 among the elderly, showing differences between genders, ethnicity, income, and social participation. The mean age of the elderly without hearing complaints was 69.44 (±6.91 and among those with complaint, 72.8 (±7.75 years. Elderly individuals without hearing complaints had 5.10 (±3.78 years of formal education compared to 4.48 (±3.49 years among those who had complaints. Multiple logistic regression observed that protective factors for hearing complaints were: higher level of schooling, contributing to the family income and having received health care in the last six months. Risk factors for hearing complaints were: older age, male gender, experiencing difficulty in leaving home and carrying out social activities. Conclusions: Among the elderly population of the state of Rio Grande do Sul, the prevalence of hearing complaints reached 28%. The complaint is more often present in elderly men who did not participate in the generation of family

Dispositional characteristics, relational well-being and perceived life satisfaction and empowerment of elders.

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Francescato, Donata; Pezzuti, Lina; Mebane, Minou; Tomai, Manuela; Benedetti, Maura; Moro, Annalisa

2017-10-01

The broad purpose of this research is to identify the key modifiable variables most related to elders' life satisfaction and empowerment in order to improve the efficacy of interventions projects. Our study aims to integrate the theoretical perspectives of personality and community psychology focusing both on dispositional characteristics and relational well-being of elders, investigating triads, composed by an elder, a paid caregiver and the most involved relative. This study explores the impact of (1) some socio-demographic characteristics of elders, (2) some modifiable dispositional variables of elders and (3) elders' relational well-being on elders' empowerment and life satisfaction. The study involved 429 people in 143 triads. Semi-structured interviews with elders, paid caregiver and close relatives were used to construct a new pilot measure of elders' relational well-being. Life Satisfaction, Empowerment, Loneliness, Positivity, Humor and Emotions self-efficacy scales were also administered. Hierarchical multiple regressions were performed. Elders' positivity, relational well-being of elders and living alone were significantly related to empowerment. Elders' relational well-being and positivity significantly contributed to life satisfaction. Interventions to increase empowerment and life satisfaction should focus primarily on augmenting positivity and relational well-being integrating the theoretical premises of both personality and community psychology.

Oral health status and diet habit of institutionalized elder group ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Objectives: The objective of the study was to determine the oral health status and diet habits of institutionalized elders in Lagos, Nigeria Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among institutionalized elders in Lagos State, Nigeria. Age and sex matched non-institutionalized elderly were also ...

Elder Specialists: Psychosocial Aspects of Medical Education in Geriatric Care

Science.gov (United States)

McCann-Stone, Nancy; Robinson, Sherry B.; Rull, Gary; Rosher, Richard B.

2009-01-01

This paper describes an Elder Specialist Program developed by one school of medicine to sensitize medical students to geriatric psychosocial issues. Elder Specialists participate in panel discussions as part of each geriatric session. As an alternative to traditional senior mentoring programs, the Elder Specialist Program provides all students a…

Profile of Ear Diseases among Elderly Patients in Sagamu, South ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The importance of screening for hearing impairment in the elderly patients was also stressed. KEYWORDS: Cerumen, Ear disease, Elderly, Otitis, Presbycusis. Erratum Note: Olusola AS on the article “Profile of Ear Diseases among Elderly Patients in Sagamu, South-Western Nigeria” on Page Nig. J. Med 2013. 143-147.

Knowledge, perceptions and preferences of elderly regarding protein-enriched functional food.

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van der Zanden, Lotte D T; van Kleef, Ellen; de Wijk, René A; van Trijp, Hans C M

2014-09-01

Promoting protein consumption in the elderly population may contribute to improving the quality of their later years in life. Our study aimed to explore knowledge, perceptions and preferences of elderly consumers regarding protein-enriched food. We conducted three focus groups with independently living (ID) elderly (N = 24, Mage = 67 years) and three with elderly living in a residential home (RH) (N = 18, Mage = 83 years). Both the ID and RH elderly were predominantly sceptical about functional food in general. Confusion, distrust and a perceived lack of personal relevance were main perceived barriers to purchasing and consuming these products, although a majority of the participants did report occasionally consuming at least one type of functional food. For the ID elderly, medical advice was an important facilitator that could overcome barriers to purchasing and consuming protein-enriched food, indicating the importance of personal relevance for this group. For the RH elderly, in contrast, sensory appeal of protein-enriched foods was a facilitator. Carrier preferences were similar for the two groups; the elderly preferred protein-enriched foods based on healthy products that they consumed frequently. Future studies should explore ways to deal with the confusion and distrust regarding functional food within the heterogeneous population of elderly. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Designing an Elderly Assistance Program Based-on Home Care

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Umusya'adah, L.; Juwaedah, A.; Jubaedah, Y.; Ratnasusanti, H.; Puspita, R. H.

2018-02-01

PKH (Program Keluarga Harapan) is a program of Indonesia’s Government through the ministry of social directorate to accelerate the poverty reduction and the achievement of Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) target as well as the policies development in social protection and social welfare domain or commonly referred to as Indonesian Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) Program. This research is motivated that existing participants of the family expectation program (PKH) that already exist in Sumedang, Indoensia, especially in the South Sumedang on the social welfare components is only limited to the health checking, while for assisting the elderly based Home Care program there has been no structured and systematic, where as the elderly still need assistance, especially from the family and community environment. This study uses a method of Research and Development with Model Addie which include analysis, design, development, implementation and evaluation. Participants in this study using purposive sampling, where selected families of PKH who provide active assistance to the elderly with 82 participants. The program is designed consists of program components: objectives, goals, forms of assistance, organizing institutions and implementing the program, besides, program modules include assisting the elderly. Form of assistance the elderly cover physical, social, mental and spiritual. Recommended for families and companions PKH, the program can be implemented to meet the various needs of the elderly. For the elderly should introspect, especially in the health and follow the advice recommended by related parties

Influence of strength training intensity on subsequent recovery in elderly

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

da Rosa Orssatto, Lucas Bet; de Moura, Bruno Monteiro; de Souza Bezerra, Ewertton

2018-01-01

Understanding the influence of strength training intensity on subsequent recovery in elderly is important to avoid reductions in physical function during the days following training. Twenty-two elderly were randomized in two groups: G70 (65.9 ± 4.8 years, n = 11) and G95 (66.9 ± 5.1, n = 11...... in elderly depending on the type of physical function and intensity of training. Higher intensity resulted in greater impairment. Exercise prescription in elderly should take this into account, e.g., by gradually increasing intensity during the first months of strength training. These results have relevance...... for elderly who have to be fit for work or other activities in the days following strength training....

[Suicide in the Elderly].

Science.gov (United States)

Velásquez Suarez, Juliana María

2013-01-01

Suicide is a public health problem worldwide, with multiple features and risk factors. It has some common and unique trends in each phase across the lifespan. To review the medical literature related to suicide in the elderly, in order to determine the current status of this problem in the world, and especially in Colombia. Literature review. There is a high volume of articles about suicide in general, even in Colombia, with many papers describing the problem in a comprehensive manner, but there is a need for more studies and publications on the scope of this problem in the elderly. Copyright © 2013 Asociación Colombiana de Psiquiatría. Publicado por Elsevier España. All rights reserved.

Radiation therapy for elderly patients with limited non-small cell lung cancer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hayakawa, Kazushige; Mitsuhashi, Norio; Katano, Susumu

1998-01-01

The treatment results for 93 patients aged 75 years or older (elderly group) with limited non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) were retrospectively analyzed and compared with those for 193 patients younger than 75-years old (younger group). The elderly patients were classified into two groups: 64 patients aged 75-79 years (the elderly A) and 29 patients aged 80 years or older (the elderly B). All patients were treated with 10 MV X-rays using 2 Gy daily standard fractionation between 1976 and 1994. The total dose ranged from 60 Gy to 80 Gy. The overall two and five year survival rates were 31% and 12% for the elderly A group, and 28% and 6% for the elderly B group, respectively, compared with 34% and 12% for the younger group. In stage I-II NSCLC patients, the 2-year and 5-year disease-specific survival rates were 61% and 43% for the elderly A group, and 55% and 17% for the elderly B group, respectively, while the corresponding rates for younger group were 56% and 22%, respectively. In patients with stage III disease, however, the survival curves of the elderly B were inferior to those of the younger group and the elderly A group, although the difference was not statistically significant. Only two elderly patients died of late pulmonary insufficiency associated with high-dose irradiation of 80 Gy to the proximal bronchus. No other treatment-related event was observed except for mild acceptable acute complications in the elderly groups. The condition of two patients aged more than 80 years, however, deteriorated in mentality during hospitalization. Definitive radiation therapy is recommended to the elderly aged 75 years or older with limited NSCLC, especially early stage disease, as an acceptable choice or treatment. (K.H.)

PHARMACOTHERAPY IN ELDERLY NEUROPATHIC PAIN

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Thomas Eko P

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Normal 0 false false false IN X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 The incidence of pain increases with age. Neuropathic pain are common in elderly patients and pose challenges in both their diagnosis and treatment. The most common neuropathic pain in elderly are radiculopathy due to foraminal or spinal stenosis, diabetic neuropathy, and postherpetic neuralgia. Pain in the elderly is often unrecognized and undertreated. The main problem with pain in older adults relates to impaired quality of life secondary to pain which may be expressed by depression (including increased suicide risk, anxiety, sleep disruption, appetite disturbance, and weight loss, cognitive impairment, and limitations in the performance of daily activities. Pain management in elderly patients requires a different perspective from that of younger patients. Causes, comorbidities, and responses to both pain and its treatment differ between young healthy and older patients. Effective pain management in elderly patients should include both pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic strategies. Pharmacological approaches are the first line of pain management in older person for neuropathic pain. Pharmacologic strategies call for administration of nonopioid analgesics, opioid analgesics, and adjuvant medication. Polypharmacy, drug-drug and drug-disease interactions, age-associated changes in drug metabolism, and the high frequency of adverse drug reactions need to be carefully considered in using medications in this population /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso

Elder Abuse in a Developing Area in Bolivia.

Science.gov (United States)

Carmona-Torres, Juan Manuel; López-Soto, Pablo Jesús; Coimbra-Roca, Ana Isabel; Gálvez-Rioja, Ruth Mary; Goergen, Thomas; Rodríguez-Borrego, M Aurora

2015-10-06

In many parts of the world, elder abuse happens almost unnoticed. Until recently, this serious social problem was hidden from public view and was regarded as an essentially private matter. However, there is growing evidence that elder abuse is an important problem of public health and in the society. The objective of this study is to determine the degree of abuse of elder and vulnerable people in the families and communities of Eastern Bolivia. With this end in mind, we conducted a cross-sectional descriptive study with a sample size of 210 60-year-old people coming from different health care areas. Elder Abuse Suspicion Index (EASI) and Yaffe's Evaluation Form of Social Work were used. An abuse rate of 39% of the older adults was identified. The most common type of abuse observed was psychological abuse (32.4% of cases), followed by neglect (21.9%). Children were identified as triggers of the abuse in 66.7% of cases of abuse. The prevalence of elder abuse was similar to the prevalence of other types of abuse that exist in Bolivia, such as the gender-based abuse. Also, this prevalence is comparable to other developing countries and European countries. The profile of abused older adult is as follows: woman, widow, 70 years old, incomplete primary education, without an occupation, and an average of 4.59 children. The information obtained shows that dysfunctional families have a higher percentage of elder abuse. © The Author(s) 2015.

Utilization of Teeth Replacement Service Among the Elderly ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

. However, its utilization by the elderly has not been extensively studied. Aim: To determine the utilization of tooth replacement services among the elderly. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective study of 440 patients aged 60 years ...

Cultural challenges to oral healthcare implementation in elders.

Science.gov (United States)

Lo, Edward C M; Tan, Hai P

2014-02-01

For successful implementation of oral healthcare services for elders, there is a need to understand and respond to their oral health beliefs, perceived needs and preferred type of care services, all of which are shaped by their cultural beliefs and values. This poses challenges to oral healthcare providers, especially when serving a diverse elderly population with people coming from different cultural backgrounds. The general principles of oral healthcare provision and their adaptation to serve culturally diverse elderly populations are discussed. The oral health beliefs and behaviours of Chinese, an ethnic group that can be found in many countries across the world, are highlighted and used as examples. Chinese elders generally attach a higher value to the physical functions than to the appearance of their dentition and prefer to use traditional self-care methods to deal with their oral health problems rather than to seek professional services. There is need to incorporate into the training of oral healthcare providers the competence to adapt their services to the beliefs and practices of culturally diverse elderly population groups in different settings. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons A/S and The Gerodontology Society. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

[Emotional distress in elderly people with heart disease].

Science.gov (United States)

Martínez Santamaría, Emilia; Lameiras Fernández, María; González Lorenzo, Manuel; Rodríguez Castro, Yolanda

2006-06-30

To analyse the emotional distress associated with ageing, and its prevalence among elderly people who suffer from heart disease. Personal interviews with elderly people with and without heart problems. Interviews were conducted in public hospitals and old people's homes in the south of Galicia, Spain. The sample was made up of 130 elderly people (65 with heart problems and 65 without). The Inventory of Coping Strategies, of Halroyd and Reynolk (1984); Scheir, Caver, and Bridges Test (1984); the Life Satisfaction Scale of Diener, Emmuns, Larsen, and Griffen (1985); Rosenberg's Self-Esteem Scale (1965); and an instrument to measure Associated Symptoms (SCL-90; Derogatis, 1975). Elderly people with heart problems experienced greater anxiety and had lower self-esteem than those without such problems. Heart patients also tended to suffer more phobic anxiety and to retreat from social interaction more. With the passing of time, heart patients over 60 showed more anxiety, irritability and psychosomatic disorders. This study clearly shows the existence of emotional distress in elderly heart patients. This makes it particularly important to conduct risk-prevention programmes, since a lot of heart disease is brought on by unhealthy conduct.

Analysis of elder abuse statutes across the United States, 2011-2012.

Science.gov (United States)

Jirik, Stacey; Sanders, Sara

2014-01-01

The purpose of this article is to describe the state elder abuse statutes in the United States and Washington DC during 2011-2012. The last review of elder abuse statutes occurred in 2001; thus, a reexamination is warranted given the increased awareness of elder abuse at the state and national level and the growing number of older adults in the United States. This descriptive study analyzed the following components of elder or dependent abuse statutes: definitions, reporting requirements, training, and consequences for failure to report. It was determined that differences remain in how states respond to elder abuse at the community-based level.

State tax incentives for persons giving informal care to the elderly

Science.gov (United States)

Hendrickson, Michael C.

1988-01-01

Programs for informal caregivers of frail elderly can be adopted by States to address some of the problems associated with an expanding and costly long-term care system. In this article, highlights are given from a 3-year study of Idaho and Arizona tax incentive programs. Characteristics of informal caregivers and elderly participants are described, and elderly participants are compared with elderly nonparticipants and with the general elderly population. Tax incentives were positively related to the level of service and financial support provided by informal caregivers. Data were inadequate to determine whether the induced informal help substituted for public expenditures. PMID:10312965

State tax incentives for person giving informal care of the elderly.

Science.gov (United States)

Hendrickson, M C

1988-12-01

Programs for informal caregivers of frail elderly can be adopted by States to address some of the problems associated with an expanding and costly long-term care system. In this article, highlights are given from a 3-year study of Idaho and Arizona tax incentive programs. Characteristics of informal caregivers and elderly participants are described, and elderly participants are compared with elderly nonparticipants and with the general elderly population. Tax incentives were positively related to the level of service and financial support provided by informal caregivers. Data were inadequate to determine whether the induced informal help substituted for public expenditures.

Management of epilepsy in the elderly

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Juan José Poza

2007-01-01

Full Text Available Juan José PozaDepartment of Neurology, Hospital Donostia, San Sebastián, SpainAbstract: Epilepsy among the elderly is a frequently occurring pathology, differing in etiology, clinical presentation and prognosis from those of young people. In addition, beyond a certain age, physiological modifications are produced in the metabolism which alter the pharmacokinetics of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs, increasing the risk of pharmacological interactions, already greater in these patients due to the frequency of poly-pharmacy. Furthermore, elderly patients are particularly sensitive to certain secondary effects of AEDs, as for example, cognitive disturbances, osteoporosis or weight increase. Given that the efficacy of the major AEDs is a priori quite similar, and that the epilepsies occurring in this age-group generally have a good prognosis, the selection of an AED will depend more upon its pharmacokinetics and ability to induce certain secondary effects than on its efficacy. In this respect, levetiracetam and pregabalin, followed by oxcarbazepine and lamotrigine have the most favorable pharmocokinetical profile. Moreover, on the whole these drugs have very few cognitive effects, do not induce osteoporosis and, with the exception of pregabalin, do not affect weight, making them the first selection for use in the treatment of epilepsy in the elderly.Keywords: epilepsy, the elderly, antiepileptic drugs

[The benefits of doing excercise in the elderly].

Science.gov (United States)

Avila-Funes, José Alberto; García-Mayo, Emilio José

2004-01-01

Advanced age is associated with changes in body composition such as muscular mass loss, which is defined as sarcopenia. The former term plays a key role in the frailty model, although its source is unknown. Myriad strategies have been used to improve and increase muscular mass and function in older persons. The muscle is a versatile system that owes its great capacity to adaption to regular exercise programs. Aerobic exercise and resistance training improve muscular function and can minimize and even reverse sarcopenia in the elderly (healthy, very elderly or frail). The main difference in prescribing exercise for healthy adults and elderly individuals is that intensity of training program is lower for the latter. This review is aimed toward the physiopathologic aspects and clinical implications regarding muscular mass loss and to programs directed toward increasing strength and/or endurance in the elderly.

Recent trends in elderly suicide rates in England and Wales.

Science.gov (United States)

Hoxey, K; Shah, A

2000-03-01

The proportion of elderly in the population is increasing due to increased life expectancy and falling birth rate, and suicide rates increase with age. This study examined the following in England and Wales: (i) recent trends in the elderly suicide rate; (ii) recent trends in method-specific elderly suicide rate; (iii) the relationship between elderly population size and elderly suicide rate in recent years; and (iv) the sex difference in overall and method-specific elderly suicide rate. Data on the various suicide variables were ascertained from the annually published mortality data for years 1985 to 1996. The main findings of this study were: (i) there is a trend towards decline in the overall pure and combined suicide rates for elderly men and women over the 12 year study period; (ii) the main contributors to this decline are suicides due to poisoning by solid and liquid substances (E950), hanging, strangulation and suffocation (E953), drowning (E954), firearms and explosives (E955), and jumping from high places (E957); (iii) the overall pure and combined suicide rates and that for most categories of suicide was higher in men compared to women; and (iv) suicide rates decreased with an increase in the elderly population size. Suicide rates can decline due to a number of reasons. The challenge now is to ensure further decline in suicide rates to meet the Our Healthier Nations target.

"Stay Tuned": The Role of ICTs in Elderly Life.

Science.gov (United States)

Colombo, Fausto; Aroldi, Piermarco; Carlo, Simone

2014-01-01

Ageing in western society has become a key issue in political and academic debate: politicians, sociologists, doctors, demographers, psychologists, economists are trying to understand how ageing will impact our future society. In this frame, media and communication technologies seem to be more and more relevant for the elderly, thanks to those services and devices helping people to grow old actively. Technologies, the Internet and ICTs could help the elderly to improve their quality of life, to be healthy and independent and to get better assistance. Our ongoing research investigates the relationship between the elderly and use of technologies, and explores the role played by media and ICTs in building a friendly and positive environment for the elderly, and in constructing and maintaining social relations and promoting healthy ageing. Specifically, the research will investigate the use of ICTs by the elderly by taking into account two different perspectives: a) Exchanges between generations: lengthening of life corresponds to a longer period of cohabitation between at least three generations (grandparents, children, grandchildren), and also of co-use of digital media. The research wants to investigate relations between two age groups (grandparents and grandchildren; young people and older people) to understand the dynamics of intergenerational mutuality in the use of technologies and ICTs. b) Media, ICTs, Health: the Western world is increasingly populated by elderly population. Technologies and ICTs can help elderly people to improve their quality of life, to be healthy and independent and to get better assistance. ICTs should encourage active ageing and, in the case of health technologies, new models of care. The project, lasting 1 year, is based on (1) a survey on young elderly (65-74 yrs) population in Italy, and (2) a field-work which consists of family interviews and ethnographical sections in natural contexts.

Assessing the nutritional status of hospitalized elderly

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Abd Aziz NAS

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Nur Adilah Shuhada Abd Aziz, Nur Islami Mohd Fahmi Teng, Mohd Ramadan Abdul Hamid, Nazrul Hadi Ismail Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Puncak Alam, Malaysia Purpose: The increasing number of elderly people worldwide throughout the years is concerning due to the health problems often faced by this population. This review aims to summarize the nutritional status among hospitalized elderly and the role of the nutritional assessment tools in this issue.Methods: A literature search was performed on six databases using the terms “malnutrition”, “hospitalised elderly”, “nutritional assessment”, “Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA”, “Geriatric Nutrition Risk Index (GNRI”, and “Subjective Global Assessment (SGA”.Results: According to the previous studies, the prevalence of malnutrition among hospitalized elderly shows an increasing trend not only locally but also across the world. Under-recognition of malnutrition causes the number of malnourished hospitalized elderly to remain high throughout the years. Thus, the development of nutritional screening and assessment tools has been widely studied, and these tools are readily available nowadays. SGA, MNA, and GNRI are the nutritional assessment tools developed specifically for the elderly and are well validated in most countries. However, to date, there is no single tool that can be considered as the universal gold standard for the diagnosis of nutritional status in hospitalized patients.Conclusion: It is important to identify which nutritional assessment tool is suitable to be used in this group to ensure that a structured assessment and documentation of nutritional status can be established. An early and accurate identification of the appropriate treatment of malnutrition can be done as soon as possible, and thus, the malnutrition rate among this group can be minimized in the future. Keywords: malnutrition in elderly

Insomnia in the elderly: cause, approach, and treatment.

Science.gov (United States)

Kamel, Nabil S; Gammack, Julie K

2006-06-01

Insomnia is a prevalent problem in late life. Sleep problems in the elderly are often mistakenly considered a normal part of aging. Insomnia, the most common sleep disorder, is a subjective report of insufficient or nonrestorative sleep despite adequate opportunity to sleep. Despite the fact that more than 50% of elderly people have insomnia, it is typically undertreated, and nonpharmacologic interventions are underused by health care practitioners. This article will review the causes of insomnia in the elderly, the approach to patient evaluation, and the nonpharmacologic and pharmacologic treatment of insomnia.

Protocols for the Assessment of Elder Abuse.

Science.gov (United States)

Fulmer, Terry; Wetle, Terrie

The fact that many states have passed elder abuse reporting laws has left care providers with a dilemma. If suspected abuse is reported, the relationship between caregiver and patient may change and the family's difficulties may increase. Indicators of abuse are not easy to differentiate from health problems, especially in the frail elderly. An…

Anorectal Physiology/Pathophysiology in the Elderly

OpenAIRE

Yu, Siegfried W.B.; Rao, SSC

2014-01-01

The U.S. elderly population (≥85 years old) is estimated to increase from 5 to 20 million people between the years 2000 to 2050. Among the medical disorders facing the elderly, anorectal problems are not only highly prevalent, but cause significant morbidity and mortality, and have deleterious effects on health care burden and quality of life. These include disorders such as fecal incontinence, fecal impaction with overflow fecal incontinence, chronic constipation, dyssynergic defecation, hem...

A Framework for a Context-Aware Elderly Entertainment Support System

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M. Anwar Hossain

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Elderly people constitute a major portion of world’s population. Many of them are physically and mentally vulnerable and need continuous support for their health and well-being. There is a growing trend that these elderly people are placed in an ambient assisted living environment (AAL with an aim to receive better care and support. In such settings, a lot of attention has been given to continuous health monitoring for maintaining physical health status. However, much less attention has been given toward understanding the entertainment needs of the elderly people, which is an important factor relevant to their mental health and joyful living. This paper thus addresses the entertainment needs of the elderly and proposes a framework of an elderly entertainment support system. The proposed framework enables different categories of residents (e.g., elderly people and caregivers to access various media services in both implicit and explicit manner in order to enhance the quality of their living experience in different contexts. Our experimental results demonstrate the viability of the proposed framework. We believe that the proposed approach will establish the need to develop entertainment systems and services for the elderly people and allow us to sensibly address the problems associated with their independent, happy and active living.

A Framework for a Context-Aware Elderly Entertainment Support System

Science.gov (United States)

Hossain, M. Anwar; Alamri, Atif; Almogren, Ahmad S.; Hossain, SK Alamgir; Parra, Jorge

2014-01-01

Elderly people constitute a major portion of world's population. Many of them are physically and mentally vulnerable and need continuous support for their health and well-being. There is a growing trend that these elderly people are placed in an ambient assisted living environment (AAL) with an aim to receive better care and support. In such settings, a lot of attention has been given to continuous health monitoring for maintaining physical health status. However, much less attention has been given toward understanding the entertainment needs of the elderly people, which is an important factor relevant to their mental health and joyful living. This paper thus addresses the entertainment needs of the elderly and proposes a framework of an elderly entertainment support system. The proposed framework enables different categories of residents (e.g., elderly people and caregivers) to access various media services in both implicit and explicit manner in order to enhance the quality of their living experience in different contexts. Our experimental results demonstrate the viability of the proposed framework. We believe that the proposed approach will establish the need to develop entertainment systems and services for the elderly people and allow us to sensibly address the problems associated with their independent, happy and active living. PMID:24936946

Chemotherapy and radiotherapy for elderly head and neck cancer patients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fujii, Masato

2012-01-01

Among head and neck cancers, cases affecting elderly people are increasing. Radical treatment is sometimes difficult in advanced cases of elderly patients. With progressive cancer, because radical surgery is often difficult, radiotherapy is chosen and may be used together with chemotherapy when overall status is good. However, according to the meta-analysis of Pignon et al., the chemoradiotherapy for elderly patients 71 years old or older, the hazard ratio becomes approximately 0.95, and there is little chemotherapy combined effect. In terms of 5-year survival rate, chemotherapy combined effect is -0.7%. Chemotherapy effect in elderly patients is not clear in past clinical trials. We examined 50 cases 75 years or older treated mainly by radiotherapy at Tokyo Medical Center between February, 2003 and August, 2011. In all, 21 of the 50 patients died, including four who died due to other cancers, while pneumonia accounted for five other deaths. These results suggested that various complications are often present and multiple primary cancers often occur in elderly people. With chemotherapy for elderly people, the effect of radiotherapy treatment and quality of life of the patients should be considered fully based on characteristics of elderly people, and a treatment plan devised accordingly. It is also necessary to undertake care after treatment. (author)

Forecasting the wellness of elderly through SNMS

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Yuan; Li, Lingling; Ma, Chao; Li, Lian; Huang, Bingqing; Liu, Li

2017-03-01

Accurate and timely information collection is important for physicians to provide prompt and appropriate treatment for patients. In this paper, a smart nursing home monitoring system which can predict the health conditions of the elderly people who live in the nursing home is presented. A framework integrating temporal and spatial contextual information for evaluating the wellness of an elderly has been modeled. A novel activity detection process based on the location information collects by the RFID technology in performing essential daily activities has been designed and developed. A BP neural network is trained using the activity information of the elderly live in the nursing home, wellness models are tested and the results are encouraging.

Research considerations: guardianship and the vulnerable elderly.

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas, B L

1994-05-01

1. The use of legal guardianship for the elderly is increasing due to the increase in numbers of vulnerable elders and the subsequent dynamic effect on their families and communities. 2. Although the guardianship system provides a necessary service, the effects on "wards of the court" can lead to further physical and psychological deterioration due to their loss of all major decision making powers. 3. There is an assumption that the closest living relative would be the best guardian. There also is an assumption that elders who are confused or disoriented in dealing with money or business affairs require full guardianship. The validity of these assumptions, without assessment and intervention of geriatric specialists, is questionable.

Prevalence and Predictors of Geriatric Depression in Community-Dwelling Elderly

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Jeung-Im Kim, RN, PhD

2009-09-01

Conclusion: In this research, perceived health status was the most powerful predictor of elderly depression. TMIG-IC, hand-grip strength and social activities also predicted Korean elderly depression. These factors should be considered when the program is developed for elderly people with depression. [Asian Nursing Research 2009;3(3:121–129

A systematic review of elderly suicide prevention programs

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lapierre, Sylvie; Erlangsen, Annette; Waern, Margda

2011-01-01

Suicide rates are highest among the elderly, yet research on suicide prevention in old age remains a much-neglected area.......Suicide rates are highest among the elderly, yet research on suicide prevention in old age remains a much-neglected area....

[Salivary flow and psychoactive drug consumption in elderly people].

Science.gov (United States)

Cabrera, Marcos Aparecido Sarria; Mesas, Arthur Eumann; Rossato, Luiz Angelo; Andrade, Selma Maffei de

2007-01-01

To analyze the association between low saliva flow rates and the use of psychoactive drugs among the elderly. A cross-sectional study was carried out with 267 elderly people from 60 to 74 years of age who lived in a borough of the city of Londrina, Paraná State, Brazil. Individuals with high functional dependence or restricted to bed were excluded. Saliva flow rate was the dependent variable with values under the first tercile being considered as low flow rates (less than 0.44 ml/min). The continuous use of psychoactive drugs (antidepressant, antiepileptic, sedative, antipsychotic, hypnotic or sedative-hypnotic drugs) was the independent variable. Multivariate analysis was performed taking into account gender, age and smoking status. The majority of the elderly were women (80.5%), with a mean age of 66.5 years. Use of psychoactive drugs was observed among 31 elderly (11.6%). Mean saliva flow rate was 0.76 ml/min, lower among users of psychoactive drugs (0.67 ml/min). In the multivariate analysis, use of psychoactive drugs was associated with low saliva flow rates (psychoactive drugs and low saliva flow rates in this group of independent and non-institutionalized elderly. These conclusions stress the need of a rational use of these drugs, particularly among the elderly.

Deweyan integration: moving beyond place attachment in elderly migration theory.

Science.gov (United States)

Cutchin, M P

2001-01-01

The fact that aging-in-place and elderly migration are intricately linked has been overlooked by behavioral approaches to elderly migration. "Humanistic" inquiry has provided important insights into aging-in-place and elderly migration as well as the connection between the two. Humanistic approaches, however, do not encapsulate the full range of experience involved in elders' lives. To move beyond humanistic research and key concepts such as place attachment, the philosophy of John Dewey is introduced. Dewey's viewpoint is merged with the geographical concept of place into what is termed "place integration." This perspective is subsequently compared with humanistic perspectives on aging-in-place and elderly migration decision-making. Fundamental differences such as temporal orientation and substantive focus are illustrated and discussed. Conclusions address the utility of such a perspective.

Elderly health and implementation of the Brazilian National Health Policy for Elderly Persons on the performed actions in basic healthcare

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SCHMINSKI VIEIRA, Roseli

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The Brazilian National Health Policy for Elderly Persons (PNSPI – in Portuguese was formulated by the Ministry of Health through Ordinance No. 2.528/2006 in line with the 1988 Brazilian Constitution. The study investigated whether municipalities from the South region of the State of Santa Catarina had knowledge and applied the PNSPI, on the performed actions in basic healthcare, especially on the Units of Family Healthcare Services based on what the Constitution and the Statute of the Elderly comprise. A deductive method with a qualitative approach and a descriptive research were used. As a result, some difficulties experienced by the research subjects related to two important points of policies and strategies of PNSPI were identified: the lack of a planned policy and of a continuous health education for the elderly; and the lack of a stimulating exercise of social control, whether in the health sector, or in the Municipal Council of Elderly People.

Intelligent Furniture Design in the Elderly Based on the Cognitive Situation

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Lu Xinhui

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This paper analyzes the present situation of Chinese elderly furniture and the elderly has cognitive characteristics that consciousness experiences and recognitions recede, cognitive fuzzy from Information processing. Expounds the elderly intelligent furniture design elements: functional elements required the elderly furniture is easy and simple to handle; Size and shape elements should be biased towards low, light type, reduce multifunction or fold function; colour collocation should use low lightness and low purity natural materials; Emotional elements design should meet the demand of the elderly social emotion. Introduction of intelligent furniture make up the cognitive decline in the elderly, Furniture judge the elderly demand by the inductor, Supplement by hardware control module to solve the special needs of the elderly life. Build design thinking based on the cognitive process and explore the elderly intelligent furniture design. This paper discusses the design process, for example and concludes the design rules: 1.The Operating Experience Pleasure. It is the height matching of user expectation and furniture function. Pleasure in the design of the operating parts mainly embodies in two aspects. Firstly, the Fitts Law; Secondly, it’s The Movement Optimization. 2.”Unconscious” Design. Intelligent furniture need to delete unnecessary operation module, make it easy to understand, furniture function and cognitive scene match with each other. 3. Modularity Design. Modularization can indirectly regulate the scale and specification of the design. Under the premise of individual character, customization, the compression of the cost, Designer should make the elderly intelligent furniture consistent with the user action.4.Design Consistency. The consistency principle reflected in the appearance, color and operation way consistency.

Depression in elderly women resident in a long-stay nursing home.

Science.gov (United States)

Lampert, Melissa Agostini; Rosso, Ana Luiza Pereira

2015-01-01

Depression is the most common psychiatric disorder among the elderly: it is present in 23-40% of community-dwelling elderly and in 25-80% of institutionalized elderly. Depressive symptoms are most prevalent in elderly women because they more readily seek healthcare services, are more vulnerable to stress and live longer than men. To investigate the prevalence of depression and its comorbidities in a long-stay nursing home (NH). This retrospective, descriptive, epidemiological study was performed at a NH in southern Brazil and comprised the first part of a larger project to determine depression and its relationship with psychosocial factors in NH residents. Sociodemographic and medical data were obtained through the examination of medical files from November 2012 to January 2013. Depression was defined as the diagnosis reported by physicians in medical files and scores on the Geriatric Depression Scale (15-item version) above 5. Other clinical and psychiatric diagnoses were obtained from medical files. Out of a total of 142 elderly women, 51.4% had at least one psychiatric disorder, the most common being depression, affective bipolar disorder and mental retardation. Almost one third (32.3%) of the elderly women were depressed. The ward containing the highest number of cognitively and physically independent women contained 41.3% of the total depressed elderly. A total of 52.1% of all depressed elderly had other associated clinical or psychiatric disorders, with mental retardation and hypothyroidism being the most frequent. The prevalence of dementia was high in this NH. Further studies evaluating the psychosocial factors involved in depressed elders should be conducted in an effort to prevent depression and promote mental health in institutionalized elders.

Depression in elderly women resident in a long-stay nursing home

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Melissa Agostini Lampert

Full Text Available Depression is the most common psychiatric disorder among the elderly: it is present in 23-40% of community-dwelling elderly and in 25-80% of institutionalized elderly. Depressive symptoms are most prevalent in elderly women because they more readily seek healthcare services, are more vulnerable to stress and live longer than men. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the prevalence of depression and its comorbidities in a long-stay nursing home (NH. METHODS: This retrospective, descriptive, epidemiological study was performed at a NH in southern Brazil and comprised the first part of a larger project to determine depression and its relationship with psychosocial factors in NH residents. Sociodemographic and medical data were obtained through the examination of medical files from November 2012 to January 2013. Depression was defined as the diagnosis reported by physicians in medical files and scores on the Geriatric Depression Scale (15-item version above 5. Other clinical and psychiatric diagnoses were obtained from medical files. RESULTS: Out of a total of 142 elderly women, 51.4% had at least one psychiatric disorder, the most common being depression, affective bipolar disorder and mental retardation. Almost one third (32.3% of the elderly women were depressed. The ward containing the highest number of cognitively and physically independent women contained 41.3% of the total depressed elderly. A total of 52.1% of all depressed elderly had other associated clinical or psychiatric disorders, with mental retardation and hypothyroidism being the most frequent. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of dementia was high in this NH. Further studies evaluating the psychosocial factors involved in depressed elders should be conducted in an effort to prevent depression and promote mental health in institutionalized elders.

Elderly Learners and Massive Open Online Courses: A Review.

Science.gov (United States)

Liyanagunawardena, Tharindu Rekha; Williams, Shirley Ann

2016-01-07

Massive open online courses (MOOCs) have become commonplace in the e-learning landscape. Thousands of elderly learners are participating in courses offered by various institutions on a multitude of platforms in many different languages. However, there is very little research into understanding elderly learners in MOOCs. We aim to show that a considerable proportion of elderly learners are participating in MOOCs and that there is a lack of research in this area. We hope this assertion of the wide gap in research on elderly learners in MOOCs will pave the way for more research in this area. Pre-course survey data for 10 University of Reading courses on the FutureLearn platform were analyzed to show the level of participation of elderly learners in MOOCs. Two MOOC aggregator sites (Class Central and MOOC List) were consulted to gather data on MOOC offerings that include topics relating to aging. In parallel, a selected set of MOOC platform catalogues, along with a recently published review on health and medicine-related MOOCs, were searched to find courses relating to aging. A systematic literature search was then employed to identify research articles on elderly learners in MOOCs. The 10 courses reviewed had a considerable proportion of elderly learners participating in them. For the over-66 age group, this varied from 0.5% (on the course "Managing people") to 16.3% (on the course "Our changing climate"), while for the over-56 age group it ranged from 3.0% (on "A beginners guide to writing in English") to 39.5% (on "Heart health"). Only six MOOCs were found to include topics related to aging: three were on the Coursera platform, two on the FutureLearn platform, and one on the Open2Study platform. Just three scholarly articles relating to MOOCs and elderly learners were retrieved from the literature search. This review presents evidence to suggest that elderly learners are already participating in MOOCs. Despite this, there has been very little research into their

Sexual Harassment of Newcomers in Elder Care. An Institutional Practice?

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Jo Krøjer

2014-03-01

Full Text Available Sexual harassment is illegal and may have very damaging effects on the people exposed to it. One would expect organizations, employers, and institutions to take very good care to prevent employees from exposure to sexual harassment from anyone in their workplace. And yet, many people, mostly women, are exposed to sexual harassment at work. In care work, such behaviour is often directed toward their female caregiver by elderly citizens in need of care. Contemporary Nordic studies of working life and work environment have primarily investigated the interpersonal dimensions of sexual harassment, thus focusing on the relation between elderly citizens in need of care and their professional caregivers. In this article, we argue that sexual harassment from the elderly toward newcomers in elder care should also be seen as an effect of institutional practices. Based upon a Foucauldianinspired notion of practice-making, the article carries out a secondary analysis of three different empirical studies in order to explore how sexual harassment is produced and maintained through institutional practices in elder care. The term institution in this perspective includes three dimensions; a political, an educational (educational institutions in health and elder care, and a work organizational dimension. By examining elder care in these different dimensions, we identify how sexual harassment of professional caregivers is produced and maintained through institutional practice-making in elder care. The article thus contributes to our knowledge on working life by expanding and qualifying the understanding of the problematic working environment in care work, and by offering an alternative theoretical and analytical approach to the study of sexual harassment. Together, these insights suggest how elder care institutions might act to prevent sexual harassment toward caregivers.

Palliative Care To The Elderly Patient With Cancer: Speech Of Nurses

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Irany Carvalho da Silva

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Palliative care is aimed at people with diseases without perspective of cure or terminally, aiming to provide a better quality of life. This study aims to investigating the discourse of nurses about their understanding of palliative care to elderly patient with cancer and identify strategies used by nurses to promote palliative care to the elderly cancer patient. It is an exploratory research of a qualitative nature, carried out with thirteen nurses from a philanthropic institution in the city of João Pessoa, through a questionnaire. The empirical material was subjected to thematic content analysis, resulting in three categories: design of nurses to assist the elderly in Palliative Care: promoting comfort and minimizing the suffering, the importance of palliative care in humanized care to the elderly with cancer and strategies for the Promotion of Care of the Elderly with Cancer. Participants highlighted the palliative care as essential in the humanization of care, ensuring the dignity and quality of life among the elderly with cancer without possibilities of cure, adding such assistance, the family. Keywords: Palliative Care; Nurse; Elderly; Cancer.

Elder abuse

OpenAIRE

1999-01-01

Elder abuse takes many forms and occurs in a variety of settings; it is both under-recognised and under-reported. Despite a lack of statutory guidelines or legislation, effective management is possible. More could be done to recognise abuse, and healthcare workers need to be vigilant, paying attention to both the circumstances in which abuse occurs and its warning signs.

Managing myelodysplastic symptoms in elderly patients

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R Ria

2009-10-01

Full Text Available R Ria, M Moschetta, A Reale, G Mangialardi, A Castrovilli, A Vacca, F DammaccoDepartment of Biomedical Sciences and Human Oncology, Section of Internal Medicine and Clinical Oncology, University of Bari Medical School, Bari, ItalyAbstract: Most patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS are elderly (median age range 65 to 70 years; as a consequence, the incidence and prevalence of these diseases are rising as the population ages. Physicians are often uncertain about how to identify patients who may benefit from specific treatment strategies. The International Prognostic Scoring System is a widely used tool to assess the risk of transformation to leukemia and to guide treatment decisions, but it fails to take into account many aspects of treating elderly patients, including comorbid illnesses, secondary causes of MDS, prior therapy for MDS, and other age-related health, functional, cognitive, and social problems that affect the outcome and managing of myelodysplastic symptoms. Patients with low-risk disease traditionally have been given only best supportive care, but evidence is increasing that treatment with novel non-conventional drugs such as lenalidomide or methyltransferase inhibitors may influence the natural history of the disease and should be used in conjunction with supportive-care measures. Supportive care of these patients could also be improved in order to enhance their quality of life and functional performance. Elderly patients commonly have multiple medical problems and use medications to deal with these. In addition, they are more likely to have more than one health care provider. These factors all increase the risk of drug interactions and the consequent treatment of toxicities. Manifestations of common toxicities or illnesses may be more subtle in the elderly, owing to age-associated functional deficits in multiple organ systems. Particularly important to the elderly MDS patient is the age-related decline in normal bone

Out-of-hospital Cardiac Arrest in the Elderly

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Yu-Jang Su

2008-06-01

Conclusion: The elderly OHCA cases had an anemic status. The elderly had a higher ROSC rate in cases with relative hyperglycemia and ACS-related OHCA. This finding provides us with the theory of trialing administration of glucose water during resuscitation in OHCA cases.

Elderly outpatient profile and predictors of falls

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Grace Angélica de Oliveira Gomes

Full Text Available CONTEXT AND OBJECTIVESFalls are a serious public health problem and are one of the biggest reasons for hospitalization, morbidity and mortality among elderly people. Moreover, few studies on predictors of falls have been conducted in low and middle income countries. The aim here was to identify elderly outpatient profiles according to sociodemographic, clinical, physical and functional variables and correlate them with occurrences of falls among these subjects.DESIGN AND SETTINGCross-sectional descriptive study forming part of the project “Quality of Life of Frail Elderly People”, carried out in Campinas, Brazil.METHODSThe subjects were 145 elderly individuals (76.3 ± 7.8 years old, of whom 65% were women, who were living in the city of Campinas or nearby and were attended at the geriatric outpatient clinic of a University Hospital. Sociodemographic, clinical, physical and functional data, as well as fall occurrence data, were gathered. Cluster analyses and comparisons between groups were carried out.RESULTSCluster analysis identified two distinct groups related to the study variables, and the determinants for this distinction were: gender, marital status, physical performance, handgrip strength and functional independence. These groups were compared according to occurrences of falls over the last year, and significant differences between them were found.CONCLUSIONSThe results showed that greater occurrences of falls were associated with a profile of elderly people comprising female gender, single status, lower muscle strength and physical performance regarding balance and gait, and lower independence in motor tasks for activities of daily living.

Eating Habits of the Elderly in Asaba, Delta State, Nigeria ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Objectives: The study was undertaken to describe the eating habits of literate elderly in Asaba, urban city in Delta State of Nigeria. Methods: A total of 176 elderly male (62.5%) and female (37.5%) aged 50years and above who attended Medical Lectures of the Ebreme foundation for the elderly were enrolled in this study.

Future research: a prospective longitudinal study of elder self-neglect.

Science.gov (United States)

Dyer, Carmel Bitondo; Franzini, Luisa; Watson, Mary; Sanchez, Luis; Prati, Laura; Mitchell, Stacy; Wallace, Robert; Pickens, Sabrina

2008-11-01

In almost every U.S. jurisdiction, elder self-neglect is the most common allegation addressed by Adult Protective Service (APS) agencies. Not only is self-neglect common, but this form of mistreatment is an independent risk factor for death. A lack of understanding of the precipitating factors and root causes and of the effect on social and medical systems persists in this field. Research in this area has been limited, because the needs of these vulnerable elderly people are complex and diverse. Moreover, these factors encompass interrelated medical, psychiatric, economic, social, and functional problems. In 2004, the National Institutes of Health Interdisciplinary Roadmap Initiative provided the means for preliminary exploration of elder self-neglect through the formation of the Consortium for Research in Elder Self-neglect of Texas (CREST). The goals of CREST include to conduct pilot studies, form interdisciplinary working groups, convene a national research conference, and appoint a national external advisory board. CREST orchestrated the work of 35 interdisciplinary investigators to achieve these goals. CREST researchers have begun to characterize the population of vulnerable elderly people who were reported to APS for neglecting themselves. The pilot studies provided a snapshot of 100 elderly people who had neglected themselves. A proposed next phase could involve a prospective longitudinal study of elderly people with severe self-neglect. This study of the clinical course, the death rate, the causes of death, the occurrence of acute and chronic medical or mental illness, and the costs to the healthcare and social systems would greatly inform the field of elder mistreatment.

Colonization of the Tongue Surface in Japanese Independent Elders: A Preliminary Study

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Tomohisa Ohno

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Oral care is important to decrease oral bacteria, especially in the dependent elders. There have been some reports on oral microflora in the dependent elders. However, investigations involving healthy independent elders are limited. The purpose of this study was to obtain more information on the microflora in Japanese independent elders. One hundred Japanese independent elders aged 65 years or older participated in this study. Eighty-one independent elders (male: 44, female: 37, mean age: 72.7 ± 5.8 participated in this study. Their mean Barthel Index was 99.1 ± 3.1, and mean score of MMSE was 28.0 ± 2.3. The tongue bacterial flora was examinved to identify microorganisms by the culture method. The predominant aerobic organisms were Streptococcus spp. (detection rate: 100%, Neisseria spp. (96%, and Corynebacterium spp. (56%. Candida spp. was also isolated (32%. In this study, the oral microflora of the tongue in Japanese independent elders was clarified. The results of this investigation may contribute to research on oral bacteria in elder persons in the future.

Cognitive impairment in elderly women

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Henrik Berg; Bagger, Yu Z; Tankó, László B

2006-01-01

BACKGROUND: A variety of factors contribute to the development of cognitive impairment in elderly people. Previous studies have focused upon a single or a few risk factors. In this study we assessed and compared the significance of a wide variety of potential risk factors for cognitive impairment...... in postmenopausal women. METHODS: A total of 208 pairs of elderly women (mean age = 73.2 years) were examined in a cross-sectional case-control study. Each pair consisted of a case (with impaired cognition) and a control subject matched by age and educational status. Cognitive functions were determined using...

[Hypochondriasis and somatisation in elderly].

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas, Philippe; Hazif-Thomas, Cyril; Pareaud, Maurice

2008-11-30

Anxiety or masked depression are often associated with somatisation in elderly. Hypochondriasis is an excessive preoccupation or worry about having a serious illness. The DSM-IV defines it as a somatoform disorder. It affects about 3% of the population but has a heavy health care cost. Depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder generalized anxiety and somatization disorder are common in elderly and are the most common accompanying conditions in people with hypochondriasis. Old persons' unexplained medical symptoms in generalized anxiety and their relationship to the somatoform disorders are presented. Supportive care and psychotherapy are as necessary as antidepressant to help patients.

Sexuality of the elder individual presented on paintings

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Josiane Aparecida Duarte

2013-12-01

Full Text Available The sexuality of the elder has a history of negligence, seen as a taboo, both by society and by the individual himself, contributing to maintain the oppressive cultural standards related to the theme of sexuality related to aging. In the great majority of paintings, the elder individual is presented as an asexual character. The representation of the elder in paintings is usually shown in the following contexts: domestic (“St Joseph, The carpenter” – George de La Tour, 1642; “The Paralytic” – Jean Baptiste Greuze, 1763 and in the decadence of health (“Old man in sorrow” – Van Gogh, 1890; “The old guitarist” – Picasso, 1903. On the few paintings that retract the sexuality of the elder, we can see a clear prominence of the male gender (“Susana and the elders” – Artemisia Gentileschi, 1610; “Elderly nude in the sun” – Mariano Fortuny, 1871. Sexuality of the elder woman is little referred to, being predominantly portrayed in her domestic role. When sexuality is shown it is in the context of prostitution, as in the work “The Salon I”, of Otto Dix, 1921. Between painters of the 20th century, there are self portraits in which artists of both genders paint themselves naked in advanced age, showing a tendency in changing the current paradigm: “Painter working, Reflection” – Lucian Freud, 1993 that portrayed himself at the age of 70; and “Self Portrait” – Alice Neel, 1980, at the age of 80.

Drug and Solvent Abuse Among Ahwaz\\'s Elderlies

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Abdolrahim Asadollahi

2007-10-01

Full Text Available Objectives: There are researches to point epidemiology of addiction to drugs, chemical and solvent abuse in elderlies. Drug and Solvent abuse is considered as one of these addictions. This study was point to chemical abuse among elderly population of Ahwaz an Iranian city during year of 2007. Methods & Materials: Research method is description-exploration with use to questionnaire, clinical interview and survey of medical and clinical reports among volunteer clients. Statistical community is all elderly population at one of citizen region in Ahwaz city (Iran. Seventy four dossiers were considered via random sampling; with 30 Elder volunteer clients been interviewed and replied to Elderly Drug Abuse Questionnaire (EDAQ. Results: Signification of hypothesis with X2 test was considered significant relation between age and addiction record variables to solvent abuse; this relation is very significant to second value of drug's derivations such as Morphine, Codeine, Tebaine and Heroine. Interview showed psychological dependent due to appeal them to solvent abuse. Kind of abuse among elderly was snuffing and abuse of medicine drugs which were been recommended to them by their physician. Conclusion: Although study of solvent and chemical abuse's epidemiology pointed less average of this addiction in samples, should be considered important and notice in studies. Finally, researchers were suggested to avoid of this new drug abuse and so to control behavior and interaction of these addicted and their behavior development; it's better to control on distribution of solvent and glue materials and recommending of medicine drug via physicians visiting exderlies.

Study of polypharmacy and associated problems among elderly ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Polypharmacy is very common among elderly and interventions to improve the optimal use of medication in elderly could lead to reduction in the problems associated with polypharmacy. KEYWORDS: Non-adherence; Polypharmacy; Self medications. Internet Journal of Medical Update 2012 January;7(1):35-39 ...

Robots for the psychological wellbeing of the elderly

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gallego Pérez, J.; Lohse, M.; Evers, Vanessa

2014-01-01

The present paper examines the potential robots may have to motivate and support elderly people psychologically. Two short- and long-term research scenarios are proposed where a robot interacts with an elderly person offering psychological support. We describe one experiment that was carried out

Patterns and Trends in Elder Homicide Across Race and Ethnicity, 1985-2009

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Feldmeyer, Ben; Steffensmeier, Darrell

2014-01-01

In this report, we assess total and race/ethnicity-disaggregated patterns and temporal trends in elderly homicide (age 55-74) compared with younger age groups for the 1985-to-2009 period. To do this, we use California arrest statistics that provide annual homicide figures by race and ethnicity (including a Hispanic identifier) and by age. Major aims of our analysis are to establish whether (a) elderly homicide rates are different/similar across race/ethnic comparisons; (b) the elderly share of homicide and age-homicide distributions more generally differ across race/ethnicity; and (c) elderly rates of homicide and the share of elderly homicide relative to younger age groups is similar or different now as compared with 20 to 30 years ago. Our analysis is important and timely because some commentators have suggested that elderly homicide levels have been rising over the past one to two decades and because there is a virtual absence of research of any sort on elderly homicide trends that involve comparisons by race and ethnicity. Key findings are that elderly shares of homicide offending relative to younger ages have not increased (or decreased), that elder homicides continue to account for a small fraction of all homicides, and that these patterns persist across race/ethnicity comparisons. PMID:25598653

Electroconvulsive Therapy in the Elderly: New Findings in Geriatric Depression.

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Geduldig, Emma T; Kellner, Charles H

2016-04-01

This paper reviews recent research on the use of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in elderly depressed patients. The PubMed database was searched for literature published within the past 4 years, using the search terms: "electroconvulsive elderly," "electroconvulsive geriatric," "ECT and elderly," and "ECT elderly cognition." The studies in this review indicate excellent efficacy for ECT in geriatric patients. Adverse cognitive effects of ECT in this population are usually transient and not typically severe. In addition, continuation/maintenance ECT (C/M-ECT) may be a favorable strategy for relapse prevention in the elderly after a successful acute course of ECT. ECT is an important treatment option for depressed geriatric patients with severe and/or treatment-resistant illness. New data add to the evidence demonstrating that ECT is a highly effective, safe, and well-tolerated antidepressant treatment option for geriatric patients.

Design of Eco-Smart Homes For Elderly Independent Living

OpenAIRE

Zhang, Yiran; Liu, Xiaohui

2015-01-01

The aging of the world population has increased dramatically during the past century. The rapid increase of elderly population is putting a heavy strain on healthcare and social welfare. Living conditions and service provision for elderly people have thus become an increasingly hot topic worldwide. In this paper, we address this problem by presenting a conceptual model of an integrated and personalized system for an eco-smart home for elderly independent living. This approach was inspired by ...

Mechanisms of tactile sensory deterioration amongst the elderly.

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Skedung, Lisa; El Rawadi, Charles; Arvidsson, Martin; Farcet, Céline; Luengo, Gustavo S; Breton, Lionel; Rutland, Mark W

2018-04-19

It is known that roughness-smoothness, hardness-softness, stickiness-slipperiness and warm-cold are predominant perceptual dimensions in macro-, micro- and nano- texture perception. However, it is not clear to what extent active tactile texture discrimination remains intact with age. The general decrease in tactile ability induces physical and emotional dysfunction in elderly, and has increasing significance for an aging population. We report a method to quantify tactile acuity based on blinded active exploration of systematically varying micro-textured surfaces and a same-different paradigm. It reveals that elderly participants show significantly reduced fine texture discrimination ability. The elderly group also displays statistically lower finger friction coefficient, moisture and elasticity, suggesting a link. However, a subpopulation of the elderly retains discrimination ability irrespective of cutaneous condition and this can be related to a higher density of somatosensory receptors on the finger pads. Skin tribology is thus not the primary reason for decline of tactile discrimination with age. The remediation of cutaneous properties through rehydration, however leads to a significantly improved tactile acuity. This indicates unambiguously that neurological tactile loss can be temporarily compensated by restoring the cutaneous contact mechanics. Such mechanical restoration of tactile ability has the potential to increase the quality of life in elderly.

Factors Associated with Anemia in the Institutionalized Elderly.

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Emanuelle Cruz da Silva

Full Text Available As a common problem in long-term care facilities (LTCFs, anemia affects 25-63% of the elderly. The aim of the present study was to describe the prevalence and characteristics of anemia and its associated factors in the institutionalized elderly. The cross-sectional study was carried out with three hundred thirteen individuals aged ≥ 60 years, of both genders, living in long-term care facilities for the elderly in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. Poisson regression (PR with robust variance estimates was used to assess the factors related to anemia. The prevalence of anemia was 38%. Mild anemia was predominant in both genders (male: 26.8%; female: 21.1%, as normocytic and normochromic anemia, with no anisocytosis (69.75%. Anemia was associated with thinness (PR: 1.68; 95% CI: 1.04-2.72 and with moderate (PR: 1.98; 95% CI: 1.07-3.63 and total (PR: 2.61; 95% CI: 1.34-5.07 dependence in the final model. Severe dependence exhibited borderline significance (PR: 1.94; 95% CI: 1.00-3.77. The prevalence of anemia was high in the institutionalized elderly in both genders, with characteristics suggesting chronic diseases as the causal factor, and the frequency of occurrence was higher in thinness elderly with moderate to total dependence.

Housing for the elderly in Denmark, life conditions today and future scenarios

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Welling, Helen

2004-01-01

in the population profile will increase the need for housing and facilities for the elderly. At the same time the number of working taxprayers will be relatively less. The life conditions of the elderly have changed through time. The elderly in Denmark are not any longer belonging to the weakest social population......Living and housing conditions for the elderly have become one of society's major problems - socially, culturally and economically. Today there are approximately one million people in Denmark at the age over 60 years. Too many of the older citizens live in out-of-date housing. The changes occurring...... group. The first part of this paper focus on an outline of 20th Century major trends with special reference to building for the elderly. The second part describes new developments in elderly housing and the third part introduces to studies of future housing needs for the elderly. Paper presented...

Differences in perceived communication barriers among nurses and elderly patients in China.

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Ruan, Jing; Lambert, Vickie A

2008-06-01

In China, limited information exists about nurses' and elderly patients' perceptions of barriers to the communication process. Therefore, the purposes of this study were to identify the major communication barriers (nurse-related, patient-related, and environment-related) perceived both by nurses and elderly patients and to determine the perceived differences in the level of importance of the communication barriers between nurses and elderly patients. The sample consisted of 84 nurses and 75 elderly patients who completed a demographic questionnaire and a communication barriers questionnaire. The findings suggested that the nurses and elderly patients often selected similar barriers related to the communication process. The nurses tended to assign higher values to the communication barriers that were found to be significantly different from those of the elderly patients. The study findings provide information about which type of barriers nurses need to address so as to facilitate effective communication with elderly patients.

[The relationship between depressive symptoms and family functioning in institutionalized elderly].

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de Oliveira, Simone Camargo; dos Santos, Ariene Angelini; Pavarini, Sofia Cristina Iost

2014-02-01

The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between family functioning and depressive symptoms among institutionalized elderly. This is a descriptive, cross-sectional study of quantitative character. A total of 107 institutionalized elderly were assessed using a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Geriatric Depression Scale (to track depressive symptoms) and the Family APGAR (to assess family functioning). The correlation coefficient of Pearson's, the chi-square test and the crude and adjusted logistic regression were used in the data analysis with a significance level of 5 %. The institutionalized elderly with depressive symptoms were predominantly women and in the age group of 80 years and older. Regarding family functioning, most elderly had high family dysfunctioning (57 %). Family dysfunctioning was higher among the elderly with depressive symptoms. There was a significant correlation between family functioning and depressive symptoms. The conclusion is that institutionalized elderly with dysfunctional families are more likely to have depressive symptoms.

Polypharmacy and the risk of drug-drug interactions among Danish elderly

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rosholm, J U; Bjerrum, L; Hallas, J

1998-01-01

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the use of all subsidized prescription drugs with special attention to the elderly (> or = 70 years of age), including their use of drug combination generally accepted as carrying a risk of severe interactions. DESIGN: Descriptive prevalence study. SETTING: Odense...... accepted as carrying a risk of severe interactions. RESULTS: Among persons less than 70 years, 67.9% used none, 16.5% used one drug and 15.6% used two or more prescription drugs. The corresponding prevalences for the elderly were 35.7%, 15.9% and 48.4%. The 26,337 elderly patients with at least two drugs...... used 21,293 different combinations. Of the elderly patients who had purchased > or = two drugs, 4.4% had combinations of drugs carrying a risk of severe interactions. CONCLUSIONS: Most elderly use drugs and usually several drugs concomitantly. The elderly form a heterogeneous group of drug users. Drug...

Study on the foot shape characteristics of the elderly in China.

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Luo, Xiang Dong; Xue, Chao-Hua; Li, Yan

2017-12-01

With aging, the feet of the elderly above 60 years old in China present degenerative changes, deformities, and diseases, which significantly affect their daily activities. The authors aimed to study the morphological characteristics of the feet and identify the foot type according to size (length and width) and defect characteristics of elderly feet in China. A convenient sample of 1000 subjects above 60 years old was recruited mainly in the regions of Shanghai, Shaanxi, Henan, Hebei, and Sichuan in China. Foot images were collected, and 800 (male 398, female 402) valid questionnaires were recovered. A total of 800 elderly subjects as the test group were invited to measure their foot sizes by means of a Footprint Collector (Tong Yuan Tang Health Management Limited, Qingdao in Shandong province). The foot type of the elderly was compared with that of the general adult Chinese population as the control group using the t-test for independent samples. Hallux valgus (46.9%) and flat foot (50.0%) were the most common foot shape deformities. The most frequent foot diseases were foot scaling (91.2%) and calluses (96.3%). The medial width of the first metatarsal-toe joint of the elderly was significantly higher (elderly female, 44.95±4.86mm; elderly male, 48.55±4.94mm) than that of the general adult population (adult female, 40.18±3.43mm; adult male, 43.22±3.20mm) (p<0.01). The foot length of the elderly was not significantly different from that of the general adult Chinese population. The width of the first metatarsal-toe joint in the forefoot of the elderly was significantly higher than that of the general adult Chinese population, which was consistent with the result that a high proportion of elderly subjects presented hallux valgus. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Outcome of elderly patients undergoing awake-craniotomy for tumor resection.

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Grossman, Rachel; Nossek, Erez; Sitt, Razi; Hayat, Daniel; Shahar, Tal; Barzilai, Ori; Gonen, Tal; Korn, Akiva; Sela, Gal; Ram, Zvi

2013-05-01

Awake-craniotomy allows maximal tumor resection, which has been associated with extended survival. The feasibility and safety of awake-craniotomy and the effect of extent of resection on survival in the elderly population has not been established. The aim of this study was to compare surgical outcome of elderly patients undergoing awake-craniotomy to that of younger patients. Outcomes of consecutive patients younger and older than 65 years who underwent awake-craniotomy at a single institution between 2003 and 2010 were retrospectively reviewed. The groups were compared for clinical variables and surgical outcome parameters, as well as overall survival. A total of 334 young (45.4 ± 13.2 years, mean ± SD) and 90 elderly (71.7 ± 5.1 years) patients were studied. Distribution of gender, mannitol treatment, hemodynamic stability, and extent of tumor resection were similar. Significantly more younger patients had a better preoperative Karnofsky Performance Scale score (>70) than elderly patients (P = 0.0012). Older patients harbored significantly more high-grade gliomas (HGG) and brain metastases, and fewer low-grade gliomas (P Awake-craniotomy is a well-tolerated and safe procedure, even in elderly patients. Gross total tumor resection in elderly patients with HGG was associated with prolonged survival. The data suggest that favorable prognostic factors for patients with malignant brain tumors are also valid in elderly patients.

BARRIERS TO PHYSICAL ACTIVITY IN THE ELDERLY

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Paulo Matias

2015-04-01

Full Text Available The population awareness of the physical exercise’s benefits is widely diffused. These benefits are particularly important in the elderly because, with increasing age, there is a decline of the musculoskeletal system and the maximum oxygen consumption which reduces the functional fitness of the elderly and can often lead to a significant decline in the quality of life. Despite this awareness, a large part of the population remains sedentary. It is important to know what the barriers are, so they can be circumvented in order to increase the engagement of the elderly population in existing physical activity programs.Objectives: This study aims to identify some of the personal, behavioral and environmental barriers that prevent older adults to be physically active.

Using mobile phones in healthcare management for the elderly.

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Kim, Hun-Sung; Lee, Kye-Hwa; Kim, Hyunah; Kim, Ju Han

2014-12-01

The increasing average life expectancy is simultaneously increasing the incidence of chronic diseases and the number of healthy elderly people, consequently leading to an increased demand for healthcare management methods that do not involve hospital visits. The development of health management services involving mobile phones will change the focus of medical services from hospital visits and treatments to managing the health decisions made by individuals in their daily lives. However, the elderly may experience specific difficulties in adapting to constantly evolving services. This study reviews various health-related devices such as mobile phones that are available for providing healthcare to the elderly, and the different ways of using them. As the use of mobile phone increases, it is expected that elderly mobile phone users will also be able to regularly check their health status at any time and place. The issues of an ageing population pertain to the entire society rather than only to the elderly, which make mobile-phone-based medical informatics as a health management service a worthy goal. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Elder Abuse: Global Situation, Risk Factors, and Prevention Strategies.

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Pillemer, Karl; Burnes, David; Riffin, Catherine; Lachs, Mark S

2016-04-01

Elder mistreatment is now recognized internationally as a pervasive and growing problem, urgently requiring the attention of health care systems, social welfare agencies, policymakers, and the general public. In this article, we provide an overview of global issues in the field of elder abuse, with a focus on prevention. This article provides a scoping review of key issues in the field from an international perspective. By drawing primarily on population-based studies, this scoping review provided a more valid and reliable synthesis of current knowledge about prevalence and risk factors than has been available. Despite the lack of scientifically rigorous intervention research on elder abuse, the review also identified 5 promising strategies for prevention. The findings highlight a growing consensus across studies regarding the extent and causes of elder mistreatment, as well as the urgent need for efforts to make elder mistreatment prevention programs more effective and evidence based. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Homicide in the Canadian Prairies: elderly and nonelderly killings.

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Ahmed, A G; Menzies, Robin P D

2002-11-01

To examine the psychosocial and clinical characteristics of male perpetrators of elderly and nonelderly homicides in the Canadian Prairies. We examined data drawn from a study of 901 adult homicide offenders who were incarcerated or on parole between 1988 and 1992 in Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. Of those studied, 67 men were convicted of homicide involving 79 elderly victims, and 671 were convicted of homicide involving 675 nonelderly victims. Most perpetrators were single and engaged in irregular patterns of employment at the time of their index offence. Fourteen (20.8%) offenders with elderly victims had a history of psychiatric treatment, compared with 98 (14.6%) offenders with nonelderly victims; however, this difference was not statistically significant. Approximately 30% of both groups were diagnosed with personality disorders. A comparison of the index- offence characteristics showed no significant differences between the 2 groups. Our findings suggest that elderly individuals are more likely to be killed in their own homes by strangers. Social isolation appears to be a significant risk factor in cases of elderly homicide.

Consideration of therapeutic approach to advanced colorectal cancer in elderly patients

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Yasuhiro Inoue

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Colorectal cancer (CRC is predominantly a disease of elderly and is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in the elderly population. The increased availability of treatment options for CRC has made it more difficult for clinicians to decide on the optimal therapeutic approach in elderly patients, because of the potential for poorer outcomes due to an increased burden of comorbidities, functional dependency, and limited life expectancy. It is necessary to determine which elderly patients are likely to benefit from active cancer therapy, and the establishment of treatment markers for multimodality approaches is eagerly awaited. Elderly cancer patients are at risk of exposure to various intrinsic inflammatory mediators, such as tumor-generating cytokines and surgery-induced pro-inflammatory cytokines. It is therefore important to understand the immunological changes occurring in the elderly and to adjust treatment strategies accordingly to reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with multimodality therapy for CRC that induce systemic inflammation. Several inflammation-based factors such as the Glasgow Prognostic Score (GPS may reflect the balance between tumor progression and host-related immunity, especially in elderly CRC patients. Appropriate selection criteria for multimodality therapy in elderly CRC patients may include not only tumor characteristics, but also host- and/or treatment-related factors such as comorbidities or surrogate markers using inflammation-based factors.----------------------------------------------Cite this article as: Inoue Y, Toiyama Y, Tanaka K, Mohri Y, Kusunoki M. Consideration of therapeutic approach to advanced colorectal cancer in elderly patients. Int J Cancer Ther Oncol 2014; 2(1:02014.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.14319/ijcto.0201.4

Functional disability in elderly with dementia

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Tainã Alves Fagundes

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Dementia represents one of the major causes of disability and dependence in old age and can affect functional capacity in all areas of occupational performance, including basic and instrumental activities of daily living (BADL and IADL, respectively, leisure, social participation and others. Objectives: To characterize the functional disability level in elderly people with dementia and verify the existence of correlation between functionality and the stage or type of dementia. Method: Quantitative, exploratory, cross-sectional study, with a sample of 25 caregivers of elderly with dementia. For the characterization of the participants were used structured questionnaires and to assess functional disability, the Disability Assessment Scale for Dementia - DAD was applied. Results: Greater incapacity was observed in the IADL sub item. This finding is compatible with the literature on the hierarchy in functional decline in the elderly: decline begins in IADL, while BADL remain unaffected for a longer period. There was no significant correlation between the type of dementia, age or gender and disability. It was verified through the Spearman coefficient (rho = 0.87, a significant correlation of high magnitude between functional disability and stage of dementia (p = 0.0001. Conclusion: Such findings reiterate the importance of giving priority to early detection and prevention of the functional decline, which is the manifestation of vulnerability among the elderly.

Minimal hardware Bluetooth tracking for long-term at-home elder supervision.

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Kelly, Damian; McLoone, Sean; Farrell, Ronan

2010-01-01

The ability to automatically detect the location of an elder within their own home is a significant enabler of remote elder supervision and interaction applications. This location information is typically generated via a myriad of sensors throughout the home environment. Even with high sensor redundancy, there are still situations where traditional elder monitoring systems are unable to resolve the location of the elder. This work develops a minimal infrastructure radio-frequency localisation system for long-term elder location tracking. An RFID room-labelling technique is employed and with it, the localisation system developed in this work is shown to exhibit superior performance to more traditional localisation systems in realistic long-term deployments.

Indications, complications and outcomes of elderly patients undergoing retrievable inferior vena cava filter placement.

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Rottenstreich, Amihai; Kleinstern, Geffen; Bloom, Allan I; Klimov, Alexander; Kalish, Yosef

2017-10-01

The utilization of inferior vena cava filter placement for pulmonary embolism prevention in elderly patients has not been well characterized. The present study aimed to review indications, complications and follow-up data of elderly patients undergoing inferior vena cava filter placement. A retrospective review was carried out of consecutive admitted patients who underwent inferior vena cava filter insertion at a large university hospital with a level I trauma center. Overall, 455 retrievable filters were inserted between 2009 and 2014. A total of 133 patients (29.2%) were aged ≥70 years. Elderly patients were less likely to have their filter retrieved compared with non-elderly patients (5.3% vs 21.4%, P Filter-related complications occurred in 13% of non-elderly patients and 14.3% of elderly patients (P = 0.72), most of them occurring in the first 3 months after filter placement. Survival among elderly patients with no evidence of active malignancy was similar to the non-elderly patients with a 1-year survival rate of 76.3% versus 82% in non-elderly patients (P = 0.22), and a 2-year survival rate of 73.1% versus 78.6% in non-elderly patients (P = 0.27). Although decreased, survival rates among elderly patients with active cancer were still substantial, with a 1-year survival rate of 45% and 2-year survival rate of 40%. Elderly patients had significantly lower rates of filter retrieval with similar complication rate. Survival rates among elderly patients were substantial, and in elderly patients with no active cancer were even comparable with non-elderly patients. When feasible, filter retrieval should be attempted in all elderly patients in order to prevent filter-related complications. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2017; 17: 1508-1514. © 2016 Japan Geriatrics Society.

Surgical treatment of secondary hyperparathyroidism in elderly patients: an institutional experience.

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Polistena, Andrea; Sanguinetti, Alessandro; Lucchini, Roberta; Galasse, Segio; Avenia, Stefano; Monacelli, Massimo; Johnson, Louis Banka; Jeppsson, Bengt; Avenia, Nicola

2017-02-01

Secondary hyperparathyroidism in elderly fragile patients presents clinical difficulties due to severity of symptoms and related comorbidity. The optimal surgical approach for this group of patients is still debated. The aim of the study was to define the optimal technique of parathyroidectomy in elderly patients with secondary hyperparathyroidism. Retrospective analysis in a series of 253 patients including 35 elderly individuals at a single institution was carried out. Postoperative parathyroid hormone decrease, surgical complications and symptoms control were analyzed for all patients in relation to the types of parathyroidectomy performed. In elderly patients, total parathyroidectomy was the most used approach. Subtotal parathyroidectomy was mostly reserved for younger patients suitable for kidney transplantation. No elderly patients treated with total parathyroidectomy were autotransplanted. No significant difference in surgical complications was observed between younger and elderly patients and considering the different procedures. Adequate symptom control after surgery was achieved in almost 90% of patients. A limited rate of recurrence requiring repeat surgery was observed only after subtotal parathyroidectomy. Considering the features of all types of parathyroidectomy, very low recurrence rate, contained postoperative hypocalcemia and limited complications following total parathyroidectomy, might represent specific advantages for elderly patients. Total parathyroidectomy without parathyroid transplantation is safe for elderly patients with secondary hyperparathyroidism and a good alternative to the well-established total parathyroidectomy with autografting.

Laparoscopic Hiatal Hernia Repair in the Elderly Patient

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Oor, J. E.; Koetje, J. H.; Roks, D. J.; Nieuwenhuijs, V. B.; Hazebroek, E. J.

Background Hiatal hernias (HH) are more common among elderly patients, with an increase in incidence with advancing age. Elderly patients frequently suffer from comorbidity, causing them to have an increased risk of perioperative mortality and morbidity. The aim of this study is to assess the safety

Non-verbal behaviour in nurse-elderly patient communication.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Caris-Verhallen, W.M.C.M.; Kerkstra, A.; Bensing, J.M.

1999-01-01

This study explores the occurence of non-verbal communication in nurse-elderly patient interaction in two different care settings: home nursing and a home for the elderly. In a sample of 181 nursing encounters involving 47 nurses a study was made of videotaped nurse-patient communication. Six

Aripiprazole for acute mania in an elderly person

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Balaji Bharadwaj

2011-01-01

Full Text Available New-onset bipolar disorder is rare in the elderly. Symptom profile is similar to that in young adults but the elderly are more likely to have neurological co-morbidities. There are no case reports of elderly mania being treated with aripiprazole, an atypical antipsychotic. A 78-year-old gentleman presented to us with symptoms suggestive of mania of 1 month′s duration. He had similar history 3 years ago and a family history of postpartum psychosis in his mother. There were no neurological signs on examination and work-up for an organic etiology was negative except for age-related cerebral atrophy. He improved with aripiprazole and tolerated the medications well. The use of psychotropic medications in the elderly is associated with side-effects of sedation, increased cardiovascular risk, and greater risk of extra-pyramidal side-effects. The use of partial dopaminergic antagonists like aripiprazole may be useful in the balancing of effects and side-effects.

The Influence of Skill Development Training Program for Spiritual Care of Elderly Individual on Elderly Care Technician Students' Perception of Spiritual Support.

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Bulduk, Serap; Usta, Esra; Dinçer, Yeliz

2017-06-01

Spiritual care means helping an individual protect, maintain and gain all the dimensions of his/her existence. Elderly care technicians face numerous cases or crisis situations in which elderly individuals from different backgrounds question the meaning and value of life. Elderly care technicians must acknowledge that the spirituality is an important element in the way an elderly individual receives healthcare and they must be equipped for this matter. This study was conducted in order to examine the influence of "Skill Development Training Program for Spiritual Care of Elderly Individual," which was carried out with students from elderly care program, on the perception of spirituality support in a pretest-posttest quasi-experimental study design with control group. As the data collection form, "Spiritual Support Perception" (SSP) scale was used. The mean scores of the intervention group after the training and after one month are 50.39 ± 5.34 and 51.13 ± 4.98, respectively, and those of the control group are 43.16 ± 4.83 and 42.72 ± 4.48. A statistically significant difference was found between the mean scores of the intervention group from the pretest and the posttests immediately after the training and one month after the training (f = 94.247, p = 0.001). In the control group, however, there was no significant change in the SSP mean scores (f = 0.269, p = 0.77). As a result, this study pointed out the necessity of such training programs for healthcare professionals to make a distinction between their professional duties and their own personalities in order to offer spiritual care to the elderly individual.

Advances in treating psoriasis in the elderly with small molecule inhibitors.

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Cline, Abigail; Cardwell, Leah A; Feldman, Steven R

2017-12-01

Due to the chronic nature of psoriasis, the population of elderly psoriasis patients is increasing. However, many elderly psoriatic patients are not adequately treated because management is challenging as a result of comorbidities, polypharmacy, and progressive impairment of organ systems. Physicians may hesitate to use systemic or biologic agents in elderly psoriasis patients because of an increased risk of adverse events in this patient population. Small molecule medications are emerging as promising options for elderly patients with psoriasis and other inflammatory conditions. Areas covered: Here we review the efficacy, safety and tolerability of small molecule inhibitors apremilast, tofacitinib, ruxolitinib, baricitinib, and peficitinib in the treatment of psoriasis, with focus on their use in the elderly population. Expert opinion: Although small molecule inhibitors demonstrate efficacy in elderly patients with psoriasis, they will require larger head-to-head studies and post-marketing registries to evaluate their effectiveness and safety in specific patient populations. Apremilast, ruxolitinib, and peficitinib are effective agents with favorable side effect profiles; however, physicians should exercise caution when prescribing tofacitinib or baricitinib in elderly populations due to adverse events. The high cost of these drugs in the U.S. is likely to limit their use.

Assessment of the nutritional status of the elderly and its correlates.

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Agarwalla, Rashmi; Saikia, Anku Moni; Baruah, Rupali

2015-01-01

The percentage of elderly is growing rapidly and malnutrition is not uncommon in the elderly. The present study was carried out to assess the nutritional status of the elderly using the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) tool, and to study the various epidemiological factors influencing their nutritional status. This cross-sectional study was done from July 2012 to August 2013 in Boko-Bongaon Block, Kamrup District, Assam, India. The elderly, those over 60 years of age, who met the inclusion criteria participated in the study. A total of 30 clusters were selected and 12 elderly from each cluster were taken to achieve the desired sample size of 360. Nutritional status was assessed by the MNA tool and a 24-h dietary recall method. Out of the total of 360 elderly persons, 15% were found to be malnourished and 55% were at risk of malnutrition. The association between nutritional status and older age group, female gender, dependent functional status, dependent financial status and inadequate calorie intake was found to be significant. The present findings reveal that malnutrition is not an uncommon problem in the elderly, and further studies are needed in this regard.

Achalasia in the elderly patient: a comparative study

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Rosana B. Schechter

2011-03-01

Full Text Available CONTEXT: Achalasia is a primary esophageal motor disorder secondary to the degeneration of ganglion cells of the inhibitory intramural myenteric plexus. It affects both sexes similarly and has two peaks of incidence, one in the 3rd to 4th decades of life and the other after 60 years of age. The effect of age on esophageal motility of patients with achalasia is not well known. Studies have shown that healthy older people, when compared to the young, have: a a lower number of ganglion cells in the intramural myenteric plexus; b a reduced normal relaxation of the lower esophageal sphincter; and c a reduced esophageal peristalsis. Thus, as both age and achalasia can produce comparable degenerative changes in the intramural myenteric plexus, it is possible that advanced age could be an important factor in enhancing the clinical and manometric abnormalities commonly found in patients with achalasia. OBJECTIVES: To compare the clinical, radiological and manometric findings in young as compared to elderly (>60 years old achalasia patients. METHODS: A retrospective study of a group of patients with untreated achalasia separated into young and elderly patients. Demographic, clinical, serology for Chagas' disease, radiological and manometric data were compared between these groups. The level of significance was P<0.05. RESULTS: The study included 105 patients, 52 young (25 M/27 F, mean age 40 years old and 53 elderly (21 M/32 F, mean age 70 years old. The elderly group had a higher prevalence of Chagas' disease (P = 0.004 and a lower pressure of the lower esophageal sphincter [26.4 mm Hg vs 31.9 mm Hg] P = 0.001, a difference that persisted when analyzed only elderly and young patients with idiopathic achalasia. Younger patients had a higher prevalence of heartburn (P = 0.001 and chest pain (P = 0.012 than the elderly. CONCLUSION: Elderly patients with achalasia had a lower esophageal sphincter pressure than the young, even when we excluded patients with

Religious well-being in noninstitutionalized elderly women.

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Zorn, C R; Johnson, M T

1997-01-01

Spirituality is recognized as an important component of health care practice with elderly people. Yet, discussion of the role it plays in elderly women on a day-to-day basis is minimal, and it is frequently not addressed in quality-of-life studies in this population. The purposes of this study were to describe the level of religious well-being and selected characteristics of religiosity in a sample of 114 non-institutionalized, largely rural elderly women (Mdn age = 75), as well as to identify the relationship between selected factors and the level of religious well-being. Descriptive research revealed a high level of religious well-being among the participants and significant positive correlation between religious well-being and the variables of social support and hope (p hope emerged as the single significant predictor of religious well-being (p religious activities, highly rated the value or influence of religious beliefs in their lives, and identified that religious beliefs become increasingly important with age. Conducting a comprehensive assessment and implementing focused interventions associated with religious well-being will strengthen the scope of health care practice for elderly women.

Normal lymphocyte immunophenotype in an elderly population

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Sâmia Macedo Queiroz Mota Castellão Tavares

2014-06-01

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: The aim of this work was to evaluate the lymphocyte immunophenotype in an elderly population.METHODS: This study enrolled 35 over 60-year-old volunteers and a control group composed of 35 young adults. The study included elderly without diseases that might affect the functioning of the immune system. These individuals were consulted by doctors and after a physical examination, laboratory tests were performed using a Beckman Coulter (r flow cytometer. The GraphPad Prism computer program was employed for statistical analysis with the level of significance being set for p-values <0.05.RESULTS: There is a statistically significant reduction in the number of lymphocytes (CD8 +, CD2 + and CD3 + cells in the elderly compared to young adults. These low rates are explained by changes attributed to aging and may be partly responsible for the reduction in the cellular immune response, lower proliferative activity and the low cytotoxicity of lymphocytes.CONCLUSION: These parameters showed greater impairment of adaptive immunity in the elderly population and can therefore explain the greater fragility of the aged body to developing diseases.

Case studies of elderly patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma

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Stefano Luminari

2011-10-01

Full Text Available The treatment of patients with non- Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL is often the treatment of elderly patients, as most patients are older than 65 years at diagnosis. These elderly patients present particular therapeutic challenges, because they may be more frail and at greater risk of treatment-related toxicity, especially anthracycline-related cardiotoxicity, than younger patients. The following two case studies illustrate the challenges and therapeutic decision-making in managing elderly patients with an aggressive and an indolent form of lymphoma.

Increased walking variability in elderly persons with congestive heart failure

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Hausdorff, J. M.; Forman, D. E.; Ladin, Z.; Goldberger, A. L.; Rigney, D. R.; Wei, J. Y.

1994-01-01

OBJECTIVES: To determine the effects of congestive heart failure on a person's ability to walk at a steady pace while ambulating at a self-determined rate. SETTING: Beth Israel Hospital, Boston, a primary and tertiary teaching hospital, and a social activity center for elderly adults living in the community. PARTICIPANTS: Eleven elderly subjects (aged 70-93 years) with well compensated congestive heart failure (NY Heart Association class I or II), seven elderly subjects (aged 70-79 years) without congestive heart failure, and 10 healthy young adult subjects (aged 20-30 years). MEASUREMENTS: Subjects walked for 8 minutes on level ground at their own selected walking rate. Footswitches were used to measure the time between steps. Step rate (steps/minute) and step rate variability were calculated for the entire walking period, for 30 seconds during the first minute of the walk, for 30 seconds during the last minute of the walk, and for the 30-second period when each subject's step rate variability was minimal. Group means and 5% and 95% confidence intervals were computed. MAIN RESULTS: All measures of walking variability were significantly increased in the elderly subjects with congestive heart failure, intermediate in the elderly controls, and lowest in the young subjects. There was no overlap between the three groups using the minimal 30-second variability (elderly CHF vs elderly controls: P young: P < 0.001), and no overlap between elderly subjects with and without congestive heart failure when using the overall variability. For all four measures, there was no overlap in any of the confidence intervals, and all group means were significantly different (P < 0.05).

Designing and Determining Psychometric Properties of the Elder Neglect Checklist

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Majideh Heravi-Karimooi

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Objectives: The purpose of this study was to design and determine the psychometric properties of a checklist for assessing domestic elder neglect. Methods & Materials: This study was conducted in four phases. In the first phase, the meaning of domestic elder neglect explored using the qualitative method of phenomenology. In the second phase, a checklist was created, based on the results obtained in the first phase, in conjunction with the inductions from the expert panel. In the third and fourth phases, the psychometric properties including face validity, content validity, construct validity, convergent validity, internal consistency, and Inter- rater reliability were measured. 110 elderly people participated in the this study. Results: The initial 26 item checklist designed using the results of first and second phases of study, reduced to 11 items and 2 factors including the health and care needs neglect, and neglect in providing healthy environment in the process of determining the face and content validity. Acceptable convergent validity was identified in the elder neglect checklist and care neglect scale of the domestic elder abuse questionnaire (r=0.862. The results of known groups' comparisons showed that this checklist could successfully discriminate between subgroups of elderly people in the index of re-hospitalization. The internal consistency (Kuder-Richardson Formula 20 was 0.824. Inter- rater reliability of the checklist was 0.850. Conclusion: The elder neglect checklist with 11 items appears to be a promising tool, providing reliable and valid data helping to detect neglect among elders in different settings such as clinical settings, homes and research environments by health care providers and researchers.

Pharmacotherapy in frail elderly : pharmacy data as a tool for improvement

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dijk, Karen Nanette van

2002-01-01

This thesis focuses on drug use in the elderly, in particular those residing in Dutch nursing homes: the frail elderly. These elderly are especially prone to drug-related problems because of their age, frequently occurring co-morbidity and polypharmacy. Relatively little is known of drug use and

Study deviance-type scale in the development of Korean elder.

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Cho, Gun-Sang; Yi, Eun-Surk; Hwang, Hee-Jeong

2015-12-01

This research aims to develop a questionnaire of deviant behavior for the Korean elderly people which may make a big contribution to the examination of deviance behavior of the elderly people and may play an important role in providing a methodological basis. In order to accomplish the purpose of the this study, there were three different stages; (a) making preliminary question items, (b) refining the items of the scale through a plot study, and (c) finalizing question items by a main survey. In the first stage, 43 question items were developed using the open-ended questionnaire and structural inquiry of succession from 137 elderly people who are over 65 yr. In the second phase, based on data collected by the 200 elderly people pilot testing was performed through exploratory factor analysis and reliability test. The scale is a 27-item self-report questionnaire. In the main survey conducted by 184 elderly people, 21 items, which consisted of four subfactors, were finalized in order to measure deviance behaviors of the Korean elderly people: social deviance (n=8), economic deviance (n=5), psychological deviance (n=5), and physical deviance (n=3).

The relationship between depressive symptoms and family functioning in institutionalized elderly

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Simone Camargo de Oliveira

2014-02-01

Full Text Available The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between family functioning and depressive symptoms among institutionalized elderly. This is a descriptive, cross-sectional study of quantitative character. A total of 107 institutionalized elderly were assessed using a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Geriatric Depression Scale (to track depressive symptoms and the Family APGAR (to assess family functioning. The correlation coefficient of Pearson’s, the chi-square test and the crude and adjusted logistic regression were used in the data analysis with a significance level of 5 %. The institutionalized elderly with depressive symptoms were predominantly women and in the age group of 80 years and older. Regarding family functioning, most elderly had high family dysfunctioning (57 %. Family dysfunctioning was higher among the elderly with depressive symptoms. There was a significant correlation between family functioning and depressive symptoms. The conclusion is that institutionalized elderly with dysfunctional families are more likely to have depressive symptoms.

The golden opportunities for physiotherapists in frail elderly

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Hobbelen, Hans

2018-01-01

Frailty is a complex phenomenon which is a result of a decline in reserve capacity. Although it is generally known that movement has a positive influence on a diversity of health outcomes in relatively healthy elderly, the effect on frail elderly is less known. Key elements in the clinical

Designing for the Elderly User: Internet Safety Training

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Appelt, Lianne C.

2016-01-01

The following qualitative study examines the usability of a custom-designed Internet safety tutorial, targeted at elderly individuals who use the Internet regularly, for effectively conveying critical information regarding online fraud, scams, and other cyber security. The elderly population is especially at risk when it comes to fraudulent…

Michigan Physicians' Conference on Elder Abuse. Final Report.

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Sengstock, Mary C.; O'Brien, James G.

The final report describes the Michigan Physicians' Conference on Elder Abuse project. The project conference had four major content areas, including: a general introduction to the problem of elder abuse; clinical symptoms of abuse; legal issues; and referral and case management techniques. Training techniques included lectures, group discussion,…

[Psychodynamic hypothesis about suicidality in elderly men].

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Lindner, Reinhard

2010-08-01

Old men are overrepresented in the whole of all suicides. In contrast, only very few elderly men find their way to specialised treatment facilities. Elderly accept psychotherapy more rarely than younger persons. Therefore presentations on the psychodynamics of suicidality in old men are rare and mostly casuistical. By means of a stepwise reconstructable qualitative case comparison of five randomly chosen elderly suicidal men with ideal types of suicidal (younger) men concerning biography, suicidal symptoms and transference, psychodynamic hypothesis of suicidality in elderly men are developed. All patients came into psychotherapy in a specialised academic out-patient clinic for psychodynamic treatment of acute and chronic suicidality. The five elderly suicidal men predominantly were living in long-term, conflictuous sexual relationships and also had ambivalent relationships to their children. Suicidality in old age refers to lifelong existing intrapsychic conflicts, concerning (male) identity, self-esteem and a core conflict between fusion and separation wishes. The body gets a central role in suicidal experiences, being a defensive instance modified by age and/or physical illness, which brings up to consciousness aggressive and envious impulses, but also feelings of emptiness and insecurity, which have to be warded off again by projection into the body. In transference relationships there are on the one hand the regular transference, on the other hand an age specific turned around transference, with their counter transference reactions. The chosen methodological approach serves the systematic finding of hypotheses with a higher degree in evidence than hypotheses generated from single case studies. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart - New York.

Elderly outpatient profile and predictors of falls.

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Gomes, Grace Angélica de Oliveira; Cintra, Fernanda Aparecida; Batista, Fernanda Sotelo; Neri, Anita Liberalesso; Guariento, Maria Elena; Sousa, Maria da Luz Rosario de; D'Elboux, Maria José

2013-01-01

CONTEXT AND OBJECTIVES Falls are a serious public health problem and are one of the biggest reasons for hospitalization, morbidity and mortality among elderly people. Moreover, few studies on predictors of falls have been conducted in low and middle income countries. The aim here was to identify elderly outpatient profiles according to sociodemographic, clinical, physical and functional variables and correlate them with occurrences of falls among these subjects. DESIGN AND SETTING Cross-sectional descriptive study forming part of the project "Quality of Life of Frail Elderly People", carried out in Campinas, Brazil. METHODS The subjects were 145 elderly individuals (76.3 ± 7.8 years old), of whom 65% were women, who were living in the city of Campinas or nearby and were attended at the geriatric outpatient clinic of a University Hospital. Sociodemographic, clinical, physical and functional data, as well as fall occurrence data, were gathered. Cluster analyses and comparisons between groups were carried out. RESULTS Cluster analysis identified two distinct groups related to the study variables, and the determinants for this distinction were: gender, marital status, physical performance, handgrip strength and functional independence. These groups were compared according to occurrences of falls over the last year, and significant differences between them were found. CONCLUSIONS The results showed that greater occurrences of falls were associated with a profile of elderly people comprising female gender, single status, lower muscle strength and physical performance regarding balance and gait, and lower independence in motor tasks for activities of daily living.

Treatment Of Seizures In The Elderly

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Aleem MA

2005-01-01

Full Text Available The increasing life expectancy over the preceding decades and trend towards further increase means that the elderly is now a growing section of the population. Seizures are a particularly common disorder in the age group. Considering that above the age of 50 years, one is prone to suffer from atleast one chromic illness, the interplay between associated medical and neurologic diseases and seizures need to be understood. These comorbidities like hypertension, cerebrovascular accidents, diabetes, renal failure and others not only contribute to seizures, they may also interfere with their appropriate treatment. Seizures, on the other hand, may be the cause of added morbidity like fractures, head injury and poor self esteem which may lead to poor quality of life. In addition, the unique pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and side effect profile of the various antieplileptic drugs in the elderly and the multiple drug interactions, require judicious use along with regular monitoring. However, an ideal antiepileptic drug for the elderly is yet to be found.

Exoskeleton plantarflexion assistance for elderly.

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Galle, S; Derave, W; Bossuyt, F; Calders, P; Malcolm, P; De Clercq, D

2017-02-01

Elderly are confronted with reduced physical capabilities and increased metabolic energy cost of walking. Exoskeletons that assist walking have the potential to restore walking capacity by reducing the metabolic cost of walking. However, it is unclear if current exoskeletons can reduce energy cost in elderly. Our goal was to study the effect of an exoskeleton that assists plantarflexion during push-off on the metabolic energy cost of walking in physically active and healthy elderly. Seven elderly (age 69.3±3.5y) walked on treadmill (1.11ms 2 ) with normal shoes and with the exoskeleton both powered (with assistance) and powered-off (without assistance). After 20min of habituation on a prior day and 5min on the test day, subjects were able to walk with the exoskeleton and assistance of the exoskeleton resulted in a reduction in metabolic cost of 12% versus walking with the exoskeleton powered-off. Walking with the exoskeleton was perceived less fatiguing for the muscles compared to normal walking. Assistance resulted in a statistically nonsignificant reduction in metabolic cost of 4% versus walking with normal shoes, likely due to the penalty of wearing the exoskeleton powered-off. Also, exoskeleton mechanical power was relatively low compared to previously identified optimal assistance magnitude in young adults. Future exoskeleton research should focus on further optimizing exoskeleton assistance for specific populations and on considerate integration of exoskeletons in rehabilitation or in daily life. As such, exoskeletons should allow people to walk longer or faster than without assistance and could result in an increase in physical activity and resulting health benefits. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Nutritional risk of European elderly.

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de Morais, C; Oliveira, B; Afonso, C; Lumbers, M; Raats, M; de Almeida, M D V

2013-11-01

The elderly constitute a population group with a high prevalence of non-communicable chronic diseases and high risk of malnutrition. The aim of this study was to identify factors associated to nutritional risk in free-living European elderly. The sample included 644 European citizens, free living in the community, aged 65 years or more. The sample was quota controlled for age groups (65-74, ≥75 years), gender (male/female) and living circumstances (living alone/with others). Logistic regression was performed to identify factors associated with nutritional risk. Several variables regarding socio-demographic characteristics, food choice, health status and the satisfaction with food-related life were included in the analysis. According to the recoded score of the 'Determine your nutritional health' (NSI checklist), 53% of the elderly were at nutritional risk. Nutritional risk was more likely to occur in elderly who considered that it was more important to choose foods 'easy to chew'; with lower average number of fruit and vegetables (F&V) intake episodes and lower score for general health. It was also found in non-married participants; those that did not identify changes in their appetite; and those that felt changes in health status. In this sample, the lowest nutritional risk was found for body mass index (BMI) around 18.5 kg/m(2). Country of residence, gender and age were not found to have a significant effect on nutritional risk. Attention should be drawn to the living circumstances, changes in appetite or health, the general heath perception, F&V intake, choice of foods easy to chew and having a low or high BMI.

Individual Reminiscence Therapy can Decrease Depression Level on Elderly at Social Homes

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Laily Nur Hidayati

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Aging is a natural process in oldest old. The psychosocial development of the elderly to enhance self-integration. Reminiscence therapy is one of psychosocial treatment for elderly using memory recall of one’s life event in the past. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of individual reminiscence therapy on depression among elderly in the social homes. Method: The study design was used Quasy-Eksperiment Pre-Post Test with Control Group. A total of 60 elderly people were recruited in this study and assigned into two groups,  31 participants in the intervention group and 29 participants in the control group. Independent variable was reminiscence therapy five sessions, which given to the intervention group. While, dependent variable was the level of depression on elderly. Data were collected by using GDS, then analyzed by using Wilcoxon and Mann-Whitney statistical test with level of significance α≤0.05. Result: After providing individual reminiscence therapy, the intervention group showed a significant decrease in depression as compared to those in the control group was found (p=0.008. Discussion: The individual reminiscence therapy is useful to overcome depression among elderly. The nurse can know the personality of each elderly so as to improve the quality of nursing care for elderly Keywords: individual reminiscence therapy, depression, elderly

[Characteristics of elderly leaders volunteering to participate in a fall prevention programme].

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Shimanuki, Hideki; Ueki, Shouzoh; Ito, Tunehisa; Honda, Haruhiko; Takato, Jinro; Kasai, Toshiyuki; Sakamoto, Yuzuru; Niino, Naoakira; Haga, Hiroshi

2005-09-01

This study was conducted to assess characteristics of elderly leaders volunteering to participate in a fall prevention programme. We surveyed 1,503 individuals (75 elderly leaders volunteering to participate in a fall prevention programme and 1,428 non-leader elderly) among the elderly population living in a rural community, Miyagi Prefecture. Subjects were aged 70-84 years. The questionnaire covered socio-demographic factors, as well as physical, psychology and social variables. To analyze the characteristics of the elderly leaders volunteering to participate in this programme, the relationships of socio-demographic, physical, psychology and social factors to whether the elderly were leaders in the programme were analyzed using logistic regression. As a result of multiple logistic regression analysis, the characteristics of elderly leaders volunteering to participate in the fall prevention programme were as follows; 1) being male (OR = 0.25, 95%CI 0.14-0.44); 2) young age (OR=0.43, 95%CI 0.25-0.73); 3) having a high intellectual activity (OR = 2.72, 95%CI 1.65-4.48); 4) being well satisfied with their health (OR = 1.45, 95%CI 1.02-2.07), and 5) having a high IKIGAI (OR = 1.06, 95%CI 1.01-1.13). Only elderly individuals capable of high-level intellectual activities can fill the roles of elderly volunteer group leaders discussed in this study.

A secure mobile crowdsensing (MCS) location tracker for elderly in smart city

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Shien, Lau Khai; Singh, Manmeet Mahinderjit

2017-10-01

According to the UN's (United Nations) projection, Malaysia will achieve ageing population status by 2030. The challenge of the growing ageing population is health and social care services. As the population lives longer, the costs of institutional care rises and elderly who not able live independently in their own homes without caregivers. Moreover, it restricted their activity area, safety and freedom in their daily life. Hence, a tracking system is worthy for their caregivers to track their real-time location with efficient. Currently tracking and monitoring systems are unable to satisfy the needs of the community. Hence, Indoor-Outdoor Elderly Secure and Tracking care system (IOET) proposed to track and monitor elderly. This Mobile Crowdsensing type of system is using indoor and outdoor positioning system to locate elder which utilizes the RFID, NFC, biometric system and GPS aim to secure the safety of elderly within indoors and outdoors environment. A mobile application and web-based application to be designed for this system. This system able to real-time tracking by combining GPS and NFC for outdoor coverage where ideally in smart city. In indoor coverage, the system utilizes active RFID tracking elderly movement. The system will prompt caregiver wherever elderly movement or request by using the notification service which provided the real-time notify. Caregiver also can review the place that visited by elderly and trace back elderly movement.

Cardiac and renal damage in the elderly hypertensive

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Jean Ribstein

2002-03-01

Full Text Available In the elderly patient with essential hypertension of long duration or de novo systolic hypertension, the prevalence of co-morbid conditions, be they apparent or not, the burden of associated diseases and the alteration in nutritional status and lifestyle, result in specific problems with regards to hypertension-related target organ damage. Accumulating data suggest that left ventricular (LV remodelling is a common finding in the nor-motensive elderly, and that LV hypertrophy (LVH will herald the development of heart failure in a fraction of patients with either systolic/diastolic or isolated systolic hypertension. Increased arterial stiffness, as well as impaired myocardial relaxation, reduced early diastolic filling and decreased ?-adrenergic responsiveness, contribute to the large prevalence of abnormalities in LV function in the elderly hypertensive. The response to exercise is clearly attenuated, and coronary heart disease, although highly prevalent, may be misdiagnosed because symptoms are altered. The elderly hypertensive is exquisitely sensitive to both volume depletion and excessive sodium intake, due to a marked sodium sensitivity of blood pressure (BP. A decline in renal blood flow and glomerular filtration rate (GFR is a common finding in the elderly. Although structural alterations attributed to age and hypertension may differ, hypertension is often looked upon as an accelerated form of ageing with regards to the heart and the kidney. Lifestyle modifications and initial monotherapy with a low-dose diuretic are warranted in the elderly hypertensive with no co-morbidity; a variety of specific approaches are considered when associated clinical conditions are present. Blockers of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS may be the preferred first-line agents in many patients with cardiac or renal damage.

Insomnia among community dwelling elderly in Alexandria, Egypt.

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Ayoub, Abla I; Attia, Medhat; El Kady, Heba M; Ashour, Ayat

2014-12-01

Insomnia is a common problem in the elderly population. Poor sleep quality is associated with decreased memory and concentration, increased risk of falls, cognitive decline, and higher rate of mortality. Inadequate sleep hygiene such as irregular sleep schedules, use of stimulants, and daytime naps may predispose to insomnia. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of insomnia among community dwelling elderly in Alexandria and to assess some of the risk factors and comorbid conditions related to insomnia. This is a cross-sectional study conducted among 380 elderly people taken from different clubs in Alexandria using a predesigned structured interview questionnaire. Data on sociodemographic characteristics, medical history, and personal and sleeping habits were collected. The Insomnia Severity Index was used to assess insomnia and the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale was used to measure depression, anxiety, and stress. One-third (33.4%) of the elderly suffered from insomnia. On logistic regression, the most independent factors that were significantly associated with insomnia were number of chronic diseases [odds ratio (OR)=7.25 for having ≥5 diseases], being female (OR=2.37), anxiety (OR=1.91), watching television in bed before sleeping (OR=1.90), depression (OR=1.74), nocturia (OR=1.13), and daily sunlight exposure (OR=0.57). Insomnia is a common problem among the elderly in Alexandria. Female sex, chronic diseases, mental health problems, and bad sleep hygiene practice increase the risk for insomnia. Improving knowledge among the elderly about the prevalence and risk factors of insomnia could help the development of effective public health prevention and intervention programs for better sleep quality.

Elder mistreatment in a community dwelling population: the Malaysian Elder Mistreatment Project (MAESTRO) cohort study protocol.

Science.gov (United States)

Choo, Wan Yuen; Hairi, Noran Naqiah; Sooryanarayana, Rajini; Yunus, Raudah Mohd; Hairi, Farizah Mohd; Ismail, Norliana; Kandiben, Shathanapriya; Mohd Ali, Zainudin; Ahmad, Sharifah Nor; Abdul Razak, Inayah; Othman, Sajaratulnisah; Tan, Maw Pin; Mydin, Fadzilah Hanum Mohd; Peramalah, Devi; Brownell, Patricia; Bulgiba, Awang

2016-05-25

Despite being now recognised as a global health concern, there is still an inadequate amount of research into elder mistreatment, especially in low and middle-income regions. The purpose of this paper is to report on the design and methodology of a population-based cohort study on elder mistreatment among the older Malaysian population. The study aims at gathering data and evidence to estimate the prevalence and incidence of elder mistreatment, identify its individual, familial and social determinants, and quantify its health consequences. This is a community-based prospective cohort study using randomly selected households from the national census. A multistage sampling method was employed to obtain a total of 2496 older adults living in the rural Kuala Pilah district. The study is divided into two phases: cross-sectional study (baseline), and a longitudinal follow-up study at the third and fifth years. Elder mistreatment was measured using instrument derived from the previous literature and modified Conflict Tactic Scales. Outcomes of elder mistreatment include mortality, physical function, mental health, quality of life and health utilisation. Logistic regression models are used to examine the relationship between risk factors and abuse estimates. Cox proportional hazard regression will be used to estimate risk of mortality associated with abuse. Associated annual rate of hospitalisation and health visit frequency, and reporting of abuse, will be estimated using Poisson regression. The study has been approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of the University of Malaya Medical Center (MEC Ref 902.2) and the Malaysian National Medical Research Register (NMRR-12-1444-11726). Written consent was obtained from all respondents prior to baseline assessment and subsequent follow-up. Findings will be disseminated to local stakeholders via forums with community leaders, and health and social welfare departments, and published in appropriate scientific journals and

Morbidity Pattern Among Elderly Population In A Rural Area Of Dehradun In Uttaranchal

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K S Negi

2004-06-01

Full Text Available Research Question : What is the morbidity pattern among elderly people in rural area of Dehradun?Objectives :(1     To assess the morbidity pattern among elderly population.(2     To assess the psycho-social problems among elderly people.(3     To assess the relationship between addiction and hypertension among them.Study design : Cross-Sectional.Setting : Atturwala - a rural area of district Dehradun in Uttaranchal.Participants : 332 elderly people aged 60 years and above.Statistical Analysis : Proportions, Chi-Square test.Results ; It was observed that 78.3% elderly had ophthalmic problem, 69.3% elderly had psycho-social problems followed by hypertension (49.1%, Chronic bronchitis (22% and asthma (12%. A significant relation was found between hypertention and addiction i. e. smoking and / or alcohol (p<.001. Respiratory diseases were found in 47.3% elderly persons. Depression was highly dominating problem among elderly (59.6%.

The study on development of easily chewable and swallowable foods for elderly.

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Kim, Soojeong; Joo, Nami

2015-08-01

When the functions involved in the ingestion of food occurs failure, not only loss of enjoyment of eating, it will be faced with protein-energy malnutrition. Dysmasesis and difficulty of swallowing occurs in various diseases, but it may be a major cause of aging, and elderly people with authoring and dysmasesis and difficulty of swallowing in the aging society is expected to increase rapidly. In this study, we carried out a survey targeting nutritionists who work in elderly care facilities, and examined characteristics of offering of foods for elderly and the degree of demand of development of easily chewable and swallowable foods for the elderly who can crush foods and take that by their own tongues, and sometimes have difficulty in drinking water and tea. In elderly care facilities, it was found to provide a finely chopped food or ground food that was ground with water in a blender for elderly with dysmasesis. Elderly satisfaction of provided foods is appeared overall low. Results of investigating the applicability of foods for elderly and the reflection will of menus, were showed the highest response rate in a gelification method in molecular gastronomic science technics, and results of investigating the frequent food of the elderly; representative menu of beef, pork, white fish, anchovies and spinach, were showed Korean barbecue beef, hot pepper paste stir fried pork, pan fried white fish, stir fried anchovy, seasoned spinach were the highest offer frequency. This study will provide the fundamentals of the development of easily chewable and swallowable foods, gelification, for the elderly. The study will also illustrate that, in the elderly, food undergone gelification will reduce the risk of swallowing down to the wrong pipe and improve overall food preference.

FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO ELDER ABUSE AND NEGLECT IN THE INFORMAL CAREGIVING SETTING

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Ananias, Janetta

2014-11-01

Full Text Available This article provides an overview of factors contributing to elder abuse and neglect within the informal caregiving setting from the perspective of ecological theory. This theory offers a deeper understanding of the complexity of elder abuse by considering the interactions that take place across a number of interrelated systems as well as the multiple risk factors that contribute to elder abuse and neglect. Researchers, policy makers and practitioners need to develop awareness of the risk factors regarding elder abuse and neglect, and to develop appropriate interventions in response to elder abuse and neglect.

[Use of new antidiabetics in the elderly population].

Science.gov (United States)

Besse, Sarah; Besse, Arun; Jornayvaz, François R

2016-06-01

Over the last few years, we have noticed the arrival on the market of new antidiabetic treatments. These represent an potential advantage because of the increase in the prevalence of type 2 diabetes, particularly in the elderly population. Nevertheless, elderly patients have a number of frailties that should be considered in the treatment of this condition. There is a lack of literature in this population as elderly are frequently excluded from randomized controlled trials. Therefore, guidelines were developed based on the consensus of experts in geriatrics and diabetology for this specific population. We have to consider the potential benefits and adverse effects of the new antidiabetics in older patients.

Elderly Onset Celiac Disease: A Narrative Review

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Maria Cappello

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Celiac sprue is a chronic disease, which usually occurs in children and young adults. However, it can develop in any age group, and the prevalence is increasing even in the elderly population. The atypical patterns of clinical presentation in this age group sometimes can cause a delay in diagnosis. Given the lower sensitivity and specificity of serological tests in the aged population, clinical suspect often arises in the presence of complications (autoimmune disorders, fractures, and finally, malignancy and must be supported by endoscopic and imaging tools. In this review, we highlight the incidence and prevalence of celiac disease in the elderly, the patterns of clinical presentation, diagnosis, and the most frequent complications, with the aim of increasing awareness and reducing the diagnostic delay of celiac disease even in the elderly population.

Context-Aware Middleware for Pervasive Elderly Homecare

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pung, Hung Keng; Gu, Tao; Xue, Wenwei

2009-01-01

The growing aging population faces a number of challenges, including rising medical cost, inadequate number of medical doctors and healthcare professionals, as well as higher incidence of misdiagnosis. There is an increasing demand for a better healthcare support for the elderly and one promising......-aware service management. It can be used to support the development and deployment of various homecare services for the elderly such as patient monitoring, location-based emergency response, anomalous daily activity detection, pervasive access to medical data and social networking. We have developed a prototype...... of the middleware and demonstrated the concept of providing a continuing-care to an elderly with the collaborative interactions spanning multiple physical spaces: person, home, office and clinic. The results of the prototype show that our middleware approach achieves good efficiency of context query processing...

Suicide in elderly people: a literature review.

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Minayo, Maria Cecília de Souza; Cavalcante, Fátima Gonçalves

2010-08-01

A literature review was carried out focusing on the main factors associated with suicidal ideation, attempts and completed suicide in elders. The following databases were searched: MEDLINE, PsychINFO, SciELO and Biblioteca Virtual em Violência e Saúde da BIREME (BIREME's Violence and Health Virtual Library), referring to the period from 1980 to 2008. Fifty-two references were selected and analyzed. They showed a strong relationship among suicide ideation, attempt and completion in elderly individuals, which results from the interaction of complex physical, mental, neurobiological and social factors. Suicide associated with depression in the elderly can be prevented, provided the person is properly treated. In Brazil, it is necessary to invest in research, given the persistent increase in suicide rates among aged people, especially among males.

Profile of Hospitalized Elderly Patients Treated for Falling

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Yu-Ling Hsiao

2012-03-01

Conclusion: This study utilized actual nationwide data to provide a profile of elderly patients treated for falling in Taiwan. Based on the results of this study, fall prevention should especially target the female elderly, and should be given more emphasis during the winter season, in terms of clinical and policy applications.

Dietary Intake of Vitamin D in the Moroccan Elderly

OpenAIRE

El-Houcine Sebbar; Hicham Sam; Ennouamane Saalaoui; Mohammed Choukri

2018-01-01

Aim: Vitamin D deficiency is common in the elderly. The aim of our work is to evaluate the dietary intake of vitamin D in the Moroccan elderly. Methods: This study included 159 subjects aged over 60 years who performed a vitamin D questionnaire (VDQ), covering the consumption of four foods with high vitamin D content (fish, milk, margarine and yoghurt). Results: The average dietary vitamin D intake was 2.7 μg/day. This observational study in Moroccan elderly indicates a high prevalence of ins...

The prevalence and correlates of elder abuse and neglect in a rural community of Negeri Sembilan state: baseline findings from The Malaysian Elder Mistreatment Project (MAESTRO), a population-based survey.

Science.gov (United States)

Sooryanarayana, Rajini; Choo, Wan Yuen; Hairi, Noran N; Chinna, Karuthan; Hairi, Farizah; Ali, Zainudin Mohamad; Ahmad, Sharifah Nor; Razak, Inayah Abdul; Aziz, Suriyati Abdul; Ramli, Rohaya; Mohamad, Rosmala; Mohammad, Zaiton Lal; Peramalah, Devi; Ahmad, Noor Ani; Aris, Tahir; Bulgiba, Awang

2017-09-01

As Malaysia is fast becoming an ageing nation, the health, safety and welfare of elders are major societal concerns. Elder abuse is a phenomenon recognised abroad but less so locally. This paper presents the baseline findings from the Malaysian Elder Mistreatment Project (MAESTRO) study, the first community-based study on elder abuse in Malaysia. Cross-sectional study, analysing baseline findings of a cohort of older adults. Kuala Pilah district, Negeri Sembilan state, Malaysia. To determine the prevalence of elder abuse among community dwelling older adults and its associated factors. A total of 2112 community dwelling older adults aged 60 years and above were recruited employing a multistage sampling using the national census. Elder abuse, measured using a validated instrument derived from previous literature and the modified Conflict Tactic Scales, similar to the Irish national prevalence survey on elder abuse with modification to local context. Factors associated with abuse and profiles of respondents were also examined. The prevalence of overall abuse was reported to be 4.5% in the past 12 months. Psychological abuse was most common, followed by financial, physical, neglect and sexual abuse. Two or more occurrences of abusive acts were common, while clustering of various types of abuse was experienced by one-third of abused elders. Being male (adjusted OR (aOR) 2.15, 95% CI 1.23 to 3.78), being at risk of social isolation (aOR 1.96, 95% CI 1.07 to 3.58), a prior history of abuse (aOR 3.28, 95% CI 1.40 to 7.68) and depressive symptomatology (aOR 7.83, 95% CI 2.88 to 21.27) were independently associated with overall abuse. Elder abuse occurred among one in every 20 elders. The findings on elder abuse indicate the need to enhance elder protection in Malaysia, with both screening of and interventions for elder abuse. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use

Pharmacologic Therapy in the Elderly with Atrial Fibrillation

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Shih-Huang Lee

2008-03-01

Full Text Available Atrial fibrillation (AF is the most common sustained arrhythmia, and its prevalence significantly increases with age. Morphologic changes in the atrial myocardium associated with AF may result from underlying cardiovascular disease and/or physiologic aging processes. Congestive heart failure, tachycardia-induced cardiomyopathy and thromboembolic events resulting from AF are more common in elderly patients. It is important to assess any comorbidity and potential triggers of AF before considering pharmacologic therapy for AF. Proper rate control should include control in response to exercise, together with an avoidance of bradycardias and symptomatic pauses in patients with AF. Digoxin, β-blockers and calcium channel blockers can all be effective in controlling ventricular rate in elderly patients with AF. In the elderly, amiodarone is probably the safest drug for short-term administration to exert chemical cardioversion, facilitate electrical cardioversion, and prevent recurrence of AF. Warfarin has been shown to be highly effective in preventing stroke in the elderly with AF; however, many studies also have documented underuse of warfarin, may be because of the increased risk of warfarin-induced hemorrhage in such patients. These findings have raised concerns regarding quality of care, physician adherence to guidelines, and translation of clinical trial results into real-world practice in anticoagulation therapy in the elderly with AF. [International Journal of Gerontology 2008; 2(1: 1–6

Managing Gout Flares in the Elderly: Practical Considerations.

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Abhishek, Abhishek

2017-12-01

Gout is common in the elderly, affecting an estimated 4.7 million people aged > 60 years in the USA alone. The incidence and prevalence of gout increases, and male predisposition to gout reduces, with increasing age. The elderly have more comorbidities, and gout manifests differently, with more frequent involvement of knees, ankles, and wrists at disease onset, systemic upset, and tophi. Comorbidities and polypharmacy make the management of gout flares challenging in this population. Intra-articular corticosteroid injection remains the treatment of choice for accessible joints, oral prednisolone is preferred over low-dose colchicine, and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are best avoided. Xanthine oxidase inhibitors (XOI) remain the first-line treatment for hyperuricemia in the elderly. Arhalofenate, an emerging uricosuric anti-inflammatory drug, prevents gout flares while reducing serum urate. It may be particularly relevant in the treatment of gout in the elderly as they are unable to tolerate long-term colchicine for flare prophylaxis and frequently have contraindications to corticosteroids and NSAIDs. However, given its modest urate-lowering effect, it can only be used in combination with an XOI, and the safety and efficacy of this drug has not been examined in the elderly or in those with chronic kidney disease. Diuretics and beta-blockers should be discontinued where feasible, whereas low-dose aspirin can be continued if otherwise indicated.

Factors related to falls among community dwelling elderly.

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Kuhirunyaratn, Piyathida; Prasomrak, Prasert; Jindawong, Bangonsri

2013-09-01

Falls among the elderly can lead to disability, hospitalization and premature death. This study aimed to determine the factors related to falls among community dwelling elderly. This case-control study was conducted at the Samlium Primary Care Unit (SPCU), Khon Kaen, Thailand. Cases were elderly individuals who had fallen within the previous six months and controls were elderly who had not fallen during that same time period. Subjects were taken from elderly persons registered at the SPCU. The sample size was calculated to be 111 cases and 222 controls. Face to face interviews were conducted with subjects between May and June, 2011. The response rate was 100%. On bivariate analysis, the statistically significant factors related to falls were: regular medication use, co-morbidities, mobility, depression, cluttered rooms, slippery floors, unsupported toilets (without a hand rail), sufficient exercise, rapid posture change and wearing slippers. When controlling for others significant factors, multiple logistic regression revealed significant factors were: regular medication use (AOR: 2.22; 95%CI: 1.19 - 4.12), depression (AOR: 1.76, 95% CI: 1.03 - 2.99), sufficient exercise (AOR: 0.34; 95% CI: 0.19 - 0.58) and wearing slippery shoes (AOR: 2.31; 95% CI: 1.24 - 4.29). Interventions need to be considered to modify these significant factors associated with falls and education should be provided to these at risk.

Relationship of Mastication Capability and Nutrition Status of Elderly Buginese and Mandarnese

OpenAIRE

Bahruddin, Dr.drg.M.Kes

2010-01-01

The result show elderly Buginese had 64,9% with poor nutrition status caused by poor mastication capability, mastication capability and nutrition status elderly buginese had significant relation(p=0,04), while elderly Mandarnese had 39,8% with poor nutrition status caused by poor mastication, but statiscally, the relation between mastication capability with nutrition status in elderly mandarnese was not significant(P=0,076). As conclusion there was significant relationship between mastificati...

Awareness Status of Chronic Disabling Neurological Diseases among Elderly Veterans.

Science.gov (United States)

Tan, Ji-Ping; Zhu, Lin-Qi; Zhang, Jun; Zhang, Shi-Min; Lan, Xiao-Yang; Cui, Bo; Deng, Yu-Cheng; Li, Ying-Hao; Ye, Guang-Hua; Wang, Lu-Ning

2015-05-20

The awareness, treatment and prevention of chronic diseases are generally poor among the elderly population of China, whereas the prevention and control of chronic diseases in elderly veteran communities have been ongoing for more than 30 years. Therefore, investigating the awareness status of chronic disabling neurological diseases (CDND) and common chronic diseases (CCD) among elderly veterans may provide references for related programs among the elderly in the general population. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among veterans ≥60 years old in veteran communities in Beijing. The awareness of preventive strategies against dementia, Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), sleep disorders, cerebrovascular disease (CVD) and CCD such as hypertension, and the approaches used to access this information, including media, word of mouth (verbal communication among the elderly) and health care professionals, were investigated via face-to-face interviews. The awareness rates for CCD and CVD were approximately 100%, but that for AD was the lowest at word-of-mouth peer education.

Elder abuse within the family environment in the Azores Islands

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Juan Manuel Carmona-Torres

2017-09-01

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Objectives: to dimension abuse against vulnerable adults within the family and community environment in the Azores Islands, identify risk factors for abuse and describe the profile of an abused elder. Method: descriptive cross-sectional study. Random sampling. The instruments used were: clinical histories of the users, Mini-Mental State Examination, Index of Independence in Basic Activities of Daily Living, Family APGAR Scale, Elder Abuse Suspicion Index and Social Work Assessment Form. Descriptive statistical analysis was used for qualitative and quantitative variables and multiple logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with elder mistreatment. Results: abuse suspicion was identified in 24.5% of elderly participants. Psychological abuse was the most common type of abuse and sons were the main abusers. Conclusion: being a woman and belonging to a dysfunctional family is associated with an increased risk of becoming a victim of abuse; the high level of domestic violence against the elderly in the Azores Islands is in line with the rest of Portugal.

Communication in dental medicine: importance in motivating elderly dental patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Scutariu, Mihaela Monica; Forna, Norina

2013-01-01

Dental services for elderly patients are characterized by a series of particularities related to the vulnerability of this age group, which is affected by various co morbidities, and the diminished physical, cognitive and financial capacities. Finding ways to keep elderly patients coming to a dental office is possible by improving the dentist-patient relationship and implicitly the quality of care by increasing the self-esteem of the elderly and their place in society, by increasing the role of oral health in the quality of life, and here we refer to the pleasure of eating, the pleasant physical aspect and normal diction. The present paper presents the psychological aspects that interfere in the communication process between the dentist and the elderly patient and the changes motivation undergoes when people are in pain. These data can sometimes change the reticent attitude of the dentist towards the elderly patient which is often considered to be a risk patient.

Enhancing vestibular function in the elderly with imperceptible electrical stimulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Serrador, Jorge M; Deegan, Brian M; Geraghty, Maria C; Wood, Scott J

2018-01-10

Age-related loss of vestibular function can result in decrements in gaze stabilization and increased fall risk in the elderly. This study was designed to see if low levels of electrical stochastic noise applied transcutaneously to the vestibular system can improve a gaze stabilization reflex in young and elderly subject groups. Ocular counter-rolling (OCR) using a video-based technique was obtained in 16 subjects during low frequency passive roll tilts. Consistent with previous studies, there was a significant reduction in OCR gains in the elderly compared to the young group. Imperceptible stochastic noise significantly increased OCR in the elderly (Mean 23%, CI: 17-35%). Increases in OCR gain were greatest for those with lowest baseline gain and were negligible in those with normal gain. Since stimulation was effective at low levels undetectable to subjects, stochastic noise may provide a new treatment alternative to enhance vestibular function, specifically otolith-ocular reflexes, in the elderly or patient populations with reduced otolith-ocular function.

PERCEPTIONS AND EXPERIENCES OF ELDERLY RESIDENTS IN A NURSING HOME

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Renata Alessandra Evangelista

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The objective of this study was to evaluate the perception of the elderly residents of a long-stay nursing home on the process of institutionalization. We interviewed 14 subjects, five women and nine men, aged between 60 and 92 years. Data collection was conducted with a semi-structured sociodemographic interview, which presented the guiding question: “Tell me about how is your life, what do you do and how did you come to live here”. From the analysis, we found topics related to feelings of abandonment, loneliness, anger, ingratitude, living with chronic pain, satisfaction of property in the nursing home, productivity and social relationship. Given the thematic analysis, it was possible to group them into three categories such as: what the elderly feel, what the elderly perceive and what the elderly desire. As a result, we need public policies that addresses to the service provided by institutions regarding elderly expectations.

Survival strategies – living with an elderly person suffering from dementia

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lauritzen, Jette; Suzhen, Liu; Bro Aaen, Karen

College, School of Nursing, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China. Background: In China and Denmark the numbers of elderly demented citizens are rising. Therefore the contact between the Primary Health Care nurses and relatives of elderly demented persons has increased, in order to enable the elderly to stay...... groups of relatives, living in China and Denmark, has been performed. Preliminary Results: A thematic analysis of the interview transcripts identified themes such as the use of strategies in form of harassment of the elderly demented and fighting loneliness as a caregiver by using the Primary Health Care...

Substance abuse associated with elder abuse in the United States.

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Jogerst, Gerald J; Daly, Jeanette M; Galloway, Lara J; Zheng, Shimin; Xu, Yinghui

2012-01-01

Substance abuse by either victim or perpetrator has long been associated with violence and abuse. Sparse research is available regarding elder abuse and its association with substance abuse. The objective of this study was to evaluate the association of state-reported domestic elder abuse with regional levels of substance abuse. Census demographic and elder abuse data were sorted into substate regions to align with the substance use treatment-planning regions for 2269 US counties. From the 2269 US counties there were 229 substate regions in which there were 213,444 investigations of abuse. For the other Ns (reports and substantiations) there were fewer counties and regions. See first sentence of data analyses and first sentence of results. Elder abuse report rates ranged from .03 to .41% (80 regions), investigation rates .001 to .34% (229 regions), and substantiation rates 0 to .22% (184 regions). Elder abuse investigations and substantiations were associated with various forms of substance abuse. Higher investigation rates were significantly associated with a higher rate of any illicit drug use in the past month, a lower median household income, lower proportion of the population graduated high school, and higher population of Hispanics. Higher substantiation rates were significantly associated with higher rate of illicit drug use in the past month and higher population of Hispanics. It may be worthwhile for administrators of violence programs to pay particular attention to substance abuse among their clients and in their community's environment, especially if older persons are involved. Measures of documented elder abuse at the county level are minimal. To be able to associate substance abuse with elder abuse is a significant finding, realizing that the substance abuse can be by the victim or the perpetrator of elder abuse.

Elder abuse: research, practice, and health policy. The 2012 GSA Maxwell Pollack award lecture.

Science.gov (United States)

Dong, Xinqi

2014-04-01

Elder abuse, also called elder mistreatment or elder maltreatment, includes psychological, physical, and sexual abuse, neglect (caregiver neglect and self-neglect), and financial exploitation. Evidence suggests that 1 out of 10 older adults experiences some form of elder abuse, and only a fraction of cases are actually reported to social services agencies. At the same time, elder abuse is independently associated with significant morbidity and premature mortality. Despite these findings, there is a great paucity in research, practice, and policy dealing with this pervasive issue. In this paper, I review the epidemiology of elder abuse as well as key practical issues in dealing with the cases of elder abuse. Through my experiences as a Congressional Policy Fellow/National Health and Aging Policy Fellow, I highlight key previsions on 2 major federal legislations dealing with the issues of elder abuse: Older Americans Act (OAA) and Elder Justice Act (EJA). Lastly, I highlight major research gaps and future policy relevant research directions to advance the field of elder abuse. Interdisciplinary and community-based efforts are needed to devise effective strategies to detect, treat, and prevent elder abuse in our increasingly diverse aging populations. Collective advocacy and policy advances are needed to create a national infrastructure to protect the vulnerable older adults.

Take a Multidisciplinary, Team-based Approach on Elder Abuse.

Science.gov (United States)

2016-07-01

While EDs are well positioned to identify incidents of elder abuse, providers often miss the opportunity. Experts say providers find only one in every 24 cases, and that the pendulum must swing toward over-detection. Investigators acknowledge elder abuse is difficult to confirm, given that disease processes can explain some of the signs. Further, older adults are often reluctant to report abuse because they fear they will be removed from their homes or separated from their caregivers. Given the complexity involved with addressing the issue, investigators recommend EDs establish a multidisciplinary approach to the problem. Providing great care to a victim of elder abuse requires time and setting up a circumstance whereby one can actually communicate with the patient reliably and alone. While most states require providers to report suspected cases of elder abuse to Adult Protective Services, there is little evidence this requirement has incentivized more reports in the same way a similar requirement has prompted providers to report cases of suspected child abuse. Investigators advise ED leaders to train and empower every member of their team to identify potential signs of elder abuse.

PREVALENCE OF SARCOPENIA IN ELDERLY PATIENTS ON HEMODIALYSIS.

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Fernando Lamarca

2012-06-01

In conclusion, sarcopenia is highly prevalent in elderly HD patients and the inflammatory profile of sarcopenic and non-sarcopenic patients is similar. In addition, these results show that sarcopenia does not exclude the occurrence of increased adiposity, as shown by the elevated frequency of obesity and abdominal obesity in the elderly sarcopenic group.

Conducting research with African elderly persons: Is their ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The increase in social research conducted as a result of HIV/AIDS raises further concerns about the ethics of conducting research on elderly African persons with regards to issues of autonomy and informed consent. This paper examines the ethics and the notion of vulnerability of African elderly persons within the context of ...

Trends in the economic status of the elderly, 1976-2000.

Science.gov (United States)

Hungerford, T; Rassette, M; Iams, H; Koenig, M

The economic well-being of elderly Americans (aged 65 or older) improved between 1976 and 2000. Overall, poverty rates fell during this period, median real income rose, and median income relative to the working-age population was relatively stable. Most population subgroups shared in the reduced poverty rates; however, the economic status of elderly Hispanics did not improve. This article attempts to explain those economic trends by identifying changes in five sources of income for the elderly and analyzing the changes in the context of demographic changes in the elderly populations over the past 25 years. As a result of increased longevity, for example, larger proportions of elderly men and women are now 80 or older, and smaller proportions are 65 to 69. Hispanics and Asian Americans make up a larger share of the elderly population and whites a smaller share. The fraction of women who are married has increased, the fraction who are widowed has fallen, and the fraction who are divorced has grown. Such demographic changes can greatly affect the economic status of subgroups as well as the overall elderly population. Of the five sources of income for the elderly, Social Security remains the most prevalent and important. While both the rate of receipt and the share of aggregate income from Social Security benefits stayed relatively steady over the past 25 years, the average real Social Security benefit increased because of rising wages. Income from assets, the second most important source of income for the elderly, fluctuated. Because the elderly are more likely to hold interest-bearing assets such as bonds rather than stocks, their asset income is responsive to changes in nominal interest rates and bond yields. Receipt of pension income increased during this period, although it leveled off during the 1990s. Factors contributing to this pattern include enactment of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, which increased protections of pension benefits for

Assessment of the nutritional status of the elderly and its correlates

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Rashmi Agarwalla

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Background: The percentage of elderly is growing rapidly and malnutrition is not uncommon in the elderly. Objectives: The present study was carried out to assess the nutritional status of the elderly using the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA tool, and to study the various epidemiological factors influencing their nutritional status. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was done from July 2012 to August 2013 in Boko-Bongaon Block, Kamrup District, Assam, India. The elderly, those over 60 years of age, who met the inclusion criteria participated in the study. A total of 30 clusters were selected and 12 elderly from each cluster were taken to achieve the desired sample size of 360. Nutritional status was assessed by the MNA tool and a 24-h dietary recall method. Results: Out of the total of 360 elderly persons, 15% were found to be malnourished and 55% were at risk of malnutrition. The association between nutritional status and older age group, female gender, dependent functional status, dependent financial status and inadequate calorie intake was found to be significant. Conclusion: The present findings reveal that malnutrition is not an uncommon problem in the elderly, and further studies are needed in this regard.

Fall risk in an active elderly population

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Læssøe, Uffe; Hoeck, Hans C.; Simonsen, Ole

2007-01-01

risk can be assessed by testing balance performance. In this study a test battery of physiological parameters related to balance and falls was designed to address fall risk in a community dwelling elderly population. RESULTS: Ninety-four elderly males and females between 70 and 80 years of age were...... assessment in which the physiological performance is evaluated in relation to the activity profile of the individual. Udgivelsesdato: 2007-null...

The Elderly: A New Social Actor ahead of the finitude/death

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Rita de Cássia da Silva Oliveira

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Longevity is one of humanity’s greatest conquests, however the aging process and old age itself are still filed with stereotypes and negative stigmas. Despite all of the prejudice suffered by the elderly in the Brazilian culture, this age group has been gaining more visibility as far as public policies are concerned, and have also been understood in a distinctive manner by the research field. In spite of the demographic growth and aging, Brazil did not satisfactorily equate the issues regarding the demands of this age segment.  Today, the elderly Brazilian population represents 22 million people, or 12% of the total population. According to projections of the Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística, in 2025 Brazil will have an elderly population of 34 million: how will these elderlies? The goal of the article is after to identify the stereotypes that impregnated the old aged, reflect about the elderly in your new paper as a social actor while identifying the social movements focused for this segment. A bibliography research was performed. The conclusion was because of a hostile scenario imposed by a contemporary society to the elderly, the need for public policies recognize and guaranteeing basic rights for them is imperative. Despite the prejudices, the elderly mobilizations enable them to overcome situations of vulnerability, which they are exposed especially when in the proximity of your finitude. To the consolidation of a social actor, we need educational actions directed to that segment, bringing knowledge and information for all elderly. Education throughout life has a relevant role, in order to equip and empower the elderly. Hence, it will be possible to think, in actuality, of an elderly that is more active, participative and integrated to society, it is positioned to searching for their rights and engaging in social movements, ultimately escaping the stereotype still widespread in society that nothing else in life would

Elderly vs. younger problem drinker 'treatment' and recovery experiences.

Science.gov (United States)

Fitzgerald, J L; Mulford, H A

1992-09-01

To address the question of whether or not elderly problem drinkers experience any treatment contact discrimination or recovery rate disadvantages, the programme utilization and recovery rate experiences of a representative sample of older and younger persons arrested for drinking and driving (OWI) in Iowa were compared. Subjects were interviewed by phone or mail shortly after their OWI arrest and then again approximately 12 months later. Younger persons (18-54 years old) were compared with elderly persons (55 and over and 65 and over). The elderly subjects were also dichotomized as early onset (at least one problem drinking indicator occurred prior to age 55) or late onset (all problem drinking indicators occurred at age 55 or later). The elderly were as likely as, or more likely than, their younger counterparts to make a treatment contact, to remain in treatment and to recover.

Treatment and Prevention of Oral Candidiasis in Elderly Patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Sakaguchi, Hideo

2017-01-01

The incidence of oral candidiasis has increased in the elderly in recent years. Although the increase of the elderly population plays a big role in this rise of oral candidiasis, the broader recognition that elderly people have higher infection rates for oral candidiasis is considered to be also an important factor. Oral candidiasis can be categorized into three types. Pseudomembranous oral candidiasis is characterized by the appearance of white moss, erythematous oral candidiasis by the eruption of erythema, and hyperplastic oral candidiasis by mucosal hyperplasia. Miconazole has been commonly used when treating oral candidiasis. Elderly patients, however, have a tendency to develop oral candidiasis repeatedly. It is therefore critical to take measures to prevent recurrence. We recommend the use an oral moisturizer containing hinokitiol, an antifungal substance, on a regular basis, to help prevent recurrence of oral candidiasis.

Dietary Intake of Vitamin D in the Moroccan Elderly

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El-Houcine Sebbar

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Aim: Vitamin D deficiency is common in the elderly. The aim of our work is to evaluate the dietary intake of vitamin D in the Moroccan elderly. Methods: This study included 159 subjects aged over 60 years who performed a vitamin D questionnaire (VDQ, covering the consumption of four foods with high vitamin D content (fish, milk, margarine and yoghurt. Results: The average dietary vitamin D intake was 2.7 μg/day. This observational study in Moroccan elderly indicates a high prevalence of insufficient vitamin D intake, and below the recommended consumption values, particularly in those aged over 70 years. Conclusion: Inadequate vitamin D intake is common among the Moroccan elderly. To fight against this situation, initiatives must be implemented, including improved population education, lifestyle, and vitamin D supplementation, in order to avoid serious adverse health consequences of bone.

Augmented reality & gesture-based architecture in games for the elderly.

Science.gov (United States)

McCallum, Simon; Boletsis, Costas

2013-01-01

Serious games for health and, more specifically, for elderly people have developed rapidly in recent years. The recent popularization of novel interaction methods of consoles, such as the Nintendo Wii and Microsoft Kinect, has provided an opportunity for the elderly to engage in computer and video games. These interaction methods, however, still present various challenges for elderly users. To address these challenges, we propose an architecture consisted of Augmented Reality (as an output mechanism) combined with gestured-based devices (as an input method). The intention of this work is to provide a theoretical justification for using these technologies and to integrate them into an architecture, acting as a basis for potentially creating suitable interaction techniques for the elderly players.

A case of anorexia nervosa in an elderly man.

Science.gov (United States)

Malik, Fahd; Wijayatunga, Uditha; Bruxner, George M

2014-06-01

To explore aspects of anorexia nervosa occurring in older populations, especially men, by reviewing the literature and presenting a case study of an elderly man with unexplained vomiting and weight loss. The literature is reviewed and an illustrative case study of an elderly man with unexplained vomiting and weight loss is described. Anorexia nervosa is an uncommon cause of unexplained weight loss in the elderly, but may be under-recognized and associated with a high level of mortality. © The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists 2014.

Affective functioning after delirium in elderly hip fracture patients

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Slor, C.J.; Witlox, J.; Jansen, R.W.M.M.; Adamis, D.; Meagher, D.J.; Tieken, E.; Houdijk, A.P.J.; van Gool, W.A.; Eikelenboom, P.; de Jonghe, J.F.M.

2013-01-01

ABSTRACT Background: Delirium in elderly patients is associated with various long-term sequelae that include cognitive impairment and affective disturbances, although the latter is understudied. Methods: For a prospective cohort study of elderly patients undergoing hip fracture surgery, baseline

Quality of life and wellbeing of the elderly in Lebanese nursing homes.

Science.gov (United States)

Doumit, Jacqueline; Nasser, Ramzi

2010-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to assess quality of life in relation to wellbeing among Lebanese nursing home elderly residents. The study attempts to understand the impact of structures, processes and skills on elderly health status. In this paper, 220 normally functioning elderly respondents from 33 nursing homes were studied. A quasi-experimental approach measured psychological and health-related factors using the Geriatric Depression Scale, Activity of Daily Living, EuroQol EQ-5D and the Mini-Nutritional Assessment (MNA) instruments. A relatively high level of mild depression among elderly residents and a lack of mobility were found. Generally, normally functioning elderly residents were well nourished and had moderate daily activity levels. The study is original in the sense that it assesses elderly residents' psychological and physical health status in relation to institutional structures, processes, and skills.

Self-care of elderly people after the diagnosis of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome.

Science.gov (United States)

Araujo, Graciela Machado de; Leite, Marinês Tambara; Hildebrandt, Leila Mariza; Oliveski, Cinthia Cristina; Beuter, Margrid

2018-01-01

to characterize the seropositive elderly for the Human Immunodeficiency Virus and Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (HIV/AIDS) in their socio-demographic aspects; to understand how the elderly take care of themselves from the diagnosis of HIV/AIDS. Qualitative, descriptive, exploratory research conducted at a Voluntary Counseling and Testing Center with 10 elderly people receiving treatment for HIV/AIDS. The data were analyzed according to the content analysis. Data show the elderly people's lack of knowledge about HIV/AIDS transmission, the experience of being elderly and having HIV/AIDS, caring for oneself and life after diagnosis of HIV/AIDS in their daily lives. Final considerations: The diagnosis of HIV/AIDS seropositivity in the elderly generates a blend of feelings and fears that lead to food changes, adherence to treatment and the renunciation of daily and social habits, manifested as ways of self-care.

Elder Abuse and Neglect Content in Higher Education Programs on Aging.

Science.gov (United States)

Stein, Karen F.

This study sought to: (1) investigate the degree to which course content on elder abuse and neglect is a part of higher education curriculums in aging; (2) determine which specific elder abuse and neglect course content is included in required and elective coursework; and (3) describe the attitudes of instructors toward including elder abuse and…

Restless Legs Syndrome in a Nigerian Elderly Population

Science.gov (United States)

Fawale, Michael B.; Ismaila, Isiaka Alani; Mustapha, Adekunle F.; Komolafe, Morenikeji A.; Adedeji, Tewogbade A.

2016-01-01

Study Objectives: The prevalence of restless legs syndrome (RLS) is highest in the elderly in Caucasian populations; the prevalence of RLS in elderly Africans is not known. This study aimed at determining the frequency and associations of RLS in a Nigerian elderly population. Methods: The study population comprised of 633 consecutive elderly individuals aged 65–105 years attending the general outpatient clinic of the State Hospital, Ilesa, for minor complaints and routine check-up. The diagnosis of RLS was made using the 2003 minimal criteria of the International Restless Legs Syndrome Study Group. Relevant sociodemographic and clinical data, including sleep duration, were also obtained. Results: Restless legs syndrome was found in 3.5% of the study population with a male-female ratio of 2:1. There was no significant age (p = 0.427) or gender (p = 0.178) influence on the prevalence of RLS except in the 75- to 84-year age group where there was significant male preponderance (p = 0.044). A strong independent association between RLS and sleep duration (OR, 3.229; 95% CI, 1.283–8.486; p = 0.013) and past history of head injury (OR, 4.691; 95% CI, 1.750–12.577; p = 0.002) was found. Conclusions: Our finding support previous reports of a possible lower prevalence of RLS in Africans. Restless legs syndrome independently increases the odds of habitual sleep curtailment in elderly individuals. Head injury may be a risk factor for future RLS; this requires further investigation as indirect evidence for a possible link between RLS and traumatic brain injury exists. Citation: Fawale MB, Ismaila IA, Mustapha AF, Komolafe MA, Adedeji TA. Restless legs syndrome in a Nigerian elderly population. J Clin Sleep Med 2016;12(7):965–972. PMID:27070251

[AETIOLOGY AND PATHOGENESIS GASTRO-DUODENALES ULCERATIVE LESIONS IN ELDERLY].

Science.gov (United States)

Chernekhovskaya, N E; Povalayev, A V; Layshenko, G A

2015-01-01

In review today conceptions of view to aetiology and pathogenesis gastro-duodenales ulcerative lesions in elderly. Atherosclerosis, ischemic disease of the heart and hypertension are reasons of acute ulcers and erosions in elderly. The breaking of microcirculation are very importance.

Affective functioning after delirium in elderly hip fracture patients

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Slor, Chantal J.; Witlox, Joost; Jansen, René W. M. M.; Adamis, Dimitrios; Meagher, David J.; Tieken, Esther; Houdijk, Alexander P. J.; van Gool, Willem A.; Eikelenboom, Piet; de Jonghe, Jos F. M.

2013-01-01

Delirium in elderly patients is associated with various long-term sequelae that include cognitive impairment and affective disturbances, although the latter is understudied. For a prospective cohort study of elderly patients undergoing hip fracture surgery, baseline characteristics and affective and

Understanding Aboriginal Learning Ideology through Storywork with Elders

Science.gov (United States)

Atleo, Marlene R.

2009-01-01

Five Nuu-chah-nulth Elders engaged in the examination of a Nuu-chah-nulth story for what they considered learning. A network of eight learning archetypes inhabited the story to demonstrate a range of learning strategies. The Elders identified features central to a cultural learning project, which included prenatal care and grandparent teaching,…

Clothing for Elderly Persons: Management and Caring Strategies ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This paper examines the clothing requirements of the elderly across the globe and the management and caring strategies in supporting them. There is however, no specific requirement for the elderly in terms of what they wear or how they dress over and above the requirements of early adult life in many nations of the world.

The Smart Home for the Elderly: Perceptions, Technologies and Psychological Accessibilities : The Requirements Analysis for the Elderly in Thailand

OpenAIRE

Visutsak , Porawat; DAOUDI , Mohamed

2017-01-01

International audience; Various studies of assistive technology, embedded into the house for helping elderly persons have been introduced. There are many terms used to call this assistive technology, such as smart home, intelligent home, and home networking. The current technologies for smart home system can be divided into two basic categories: passive-intervention devices and active-intervention devices. Passive-intervention devices monitor an elderly person's condition and safety without i...

Needs of frail elderly people in informal settlements

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P du Rand

2001-09-01

Full Text Available The frail elderly in informal settlements find themselves in an extremely vulnerable position due to a number of factors, namely, their increasing dependency status, limited resources and adverse physical environment. Various aspects that influence the aged in their present environment will be highlighted. A survey method was used to explore and to describe the world in which they live in informal areas. The attitude, expectation and needs of the elderly in respect of their care was also determined. A random cluster sample was taken. Data was collected by means of interviews in terms of a semi-structured questionnaire. It appears that the frail elderly were happy in the environment in which they received care in spite of their unfavourable physical environment and limited resources. The communities where the frail elderly lived were largely unaware of the valuable inputs they can make regarding the care of the aged. This necessitates the development of programs in the heart of communities, owned by communities, where all role players in the care of the aged participate.

[A phenomenological study of suicide attempts in elders].

Science.gov (United States)

Im, Mi Young; Kim, Yun Jeong

2011-02-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the meaning and essence of suicide for elderly people who had previously attempted suicide as an older person. Giorgi's descriptive phenomenology was used for analysis. The researchers carried out in-depth interviews, recordings and memos individually with four elders. The elders were individuals who had attempted suicide sometime in the past 5 yr. They were interviewed from 5 to 10 times using open-ended questions and a semi-structural format. Demographic data were also collected. The meaning of suicide before a suicide attempt in older people had four core components: conflict with family, powerlessness and despair in their life with a drop in self-esteem, using internal and external resources to resolve their troubles and awareness of imminent crisis. These results of this study will increase understanding of suicide in older people by defining their subjective experience of suicide attempts and applying grounded data in the development of programs that provide concrete intervention strategies to prevent suicide in elderly people.

Return Migration among Elderly, Chronically Ill Bosnian Refugees

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Handlos, Line Neerup; Olwig, Karen Fog; Bygbjerg, Ib Christian

2015-01-01

Elderly migrants constitute a considerable share of global return migration; nevertheless, literature on the health aspects of the return migration among these migrants is still scarce. This study explores the significance of return migration among elderly, chronically ill Bosnian refugees from D...... of illness, health did matter. Viewed as physical, social and mental well-being in line with WHO's definition of health, health was indeed one of the most important factors when the decision to return was made....... that physical health, in the sense of the absence of illness and easy access to necessary health-care services and medicines, was not highly prioritized when the decision was made whether or not to return. However, if health is regarded more broadly as involving more than mere physical health and the absence......Elderly migrants constitute a considerable share of global return migration; nevertheless, literature on the health aspects of the return migration among these migrants is still scarce. This study explores the significance of return migration among elderly, chronically ill Bosnian refugees from...

The management of gastric volvulus in elderly patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Zuiki, Toru; Hosoya, Yoshinori; Lefor, Alan Kawarai; Tanaka, Hiroyuki; Komatsubara, Toshihide; Miyahara, Yuzo; Sanada, Yukihiro; Ohki, Jun; Sekiguchi, Chuji; Sata, Naohiro

2016-01-01

Gastric volvulus is torsion of the stomach and requires immediate treatment. The optimal treatment strategy for patients with gastric volvulus is not established, because of significant variations in the cause and clinical course of this condition. We describe our experience with six elderly patients with gastric volvulus caused by different conditions using various approaches. This includes two patients managed with endoscopic reduction, followed by endoscopic or laparoscopic gastropexy. Endoscopy is a necessary first step to determine the optimal treatment strategy, and endoscopic reduction is often effective. The indications for surgical repair of gastric volvulus depend on the patient's overall condition, and several options are available. In some elderly patients with severe comorbidities, major surgery may have an unacceptably high risk. We propose a novel treatment strategy for gastric volvulus in the elderly and a review of the literature. Early endoscopy is necessary in patients with gastric volvulus. Endoscopic or laparoscopic gastropexy may be adequate therapy in selected elderly patients. Copyright © 2016 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Nutrition and protein energy homeostasis in elderly.

Science.gov (United States)

Boirie, Yves; Morio, Béatrice; Caumon, Elodie; Cano, Noël J

2014-01-01

Protein-energy homeostasis is a major determinant of healthy aging. Inadequate nutritional intakes and physical activity, together with endocrine disturbances are associated with of sarcopenia and frailty. Guidelines from scientific societies mainly address the quantitative aspects of protein and energy nutrition in elderly. Besides these quantitative aspects of protein load, perspective strategies to promote muscle protein synthesis and prevent sarcopenia include pulse feeding, the use of fast proteins and the addition of leucine or citrulline to dietary protein. An integrated management of sarcopenia, taking into account the determinants of muscle wasting, i.e. nutrition, physical activity, anabolic factors such as androgens, vitamin D and n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids status, needs to be tested in the prevention and treatment of sarcopenia. The importance of physical activity, specifically resistance training, is emphasized, not only in order to facilitate muscle protein anabolism but also to increase appetite and food intake in elderly people at risk of malnutrition. According to present data, healthy nutrition in elderly should respect the guidelines for protein and energy requirement, privilege a Mediterranean way of alimentation, and be associated with a regular physical activity. Further issues relate to the identification of the genetics determinants of protein energy wasting in elderly. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Dizziness in elderly men.

Science.gov (United States)

Davis, L E

1994-11-01

To evaluate the causes of dizziness in elderly men. A descriptive study involving the clinical and laboratory features of elderly men with dizziness. A university-affiliated Veterans Affairs medical center. One hundred seventeen consecutive men more than 50 years of age attending a general neurology clinic with the chief complaint of dizziness. The median duration of dizziness at first office visit was 45 weeks. Forty-nine percent of patients had more than one diagnosis that contributed to their dizziness. Dysfunctions of the peripheral vestibular system were found in 71% and were the principal causes in 56%. Benign positional vertigo was present in 34%. Disorders of the visual system were found in 26% but were the major cause in only 1%. Diagnoses involving the proprioceptive system were present in 17% and were the principal cause in 7%. Structural lesions of the brainstem or cerebellum or metabolic disorders that affected normal brainstem function were identified in 59% and were the major diagnoses in 22%. A psychophysiologic diagnosis was made in 6% but was the major diagnosis in only 3%. At the 6-months follow-up, 55% of patients improved, 34% were unchanged, 4% worsened, and 7% were lost to follow-up. Contrary to reports in the literature, dizziness in the elderly is more persistent, has more causes, is less often due to a psychophysiologic cause, and seems to be more incapacitating than dizziness in younger patients.

Prediction of critical illness in elderly outpatients using elder risk assessment: a population-based study

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Biehl M

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Michelle Biehl,1 Paul Y Takahashi,2 Stephen S Cha,3 Rajeev Chaudhry,2 Ognjen Gajic,1 Bjorg Thorsteinsdottir2 1Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, 2Division of Primary Care Internal Medicine, 3Health Sciences Research, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA Rationale: Identifying patients at high risk of critical illness is necessary for the development and testing of strategies to prevent critical illness. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between high elder risk assessment (ERA score and critical illness requiring intensive care and to see if the ERA can be used as a prediction tool to identify elderly patients at the primary care visit who are at high risk of critical illness. Methods: A population-based historical cohort study was conducted in elderly patients (age >65 years identified at the time of primary care visit in Rochester, MN, USA. Predictors including age, previous hospital days, and comorbid health conditions were identified from routine administrative data available in the electronic medical record. The main outcome was critical illness, defined as sepsis, need for mechanical ventilation, or death within 2 years of initial visit. Patients with an ERA score of 16 were considered to be at high risk. The discrimination of the ERA score was assessed using area under the receiver operating characteristic curve. Results: Of the 13,457 eligible patients, 9,872 gave consent for medical record review and had full information on intensive care unit utilization. The mean age was 75.8 years (standard deviation ±7.6 years, and 58% were female, 94% were Caucasian, 62% were married, and 13% were living in nursing homes. In the overall group, 417 patients (4.2% suffered from critical illness. In the 1,134 patients with ERA >16, 154 (14% suffered from critical illness. An ERA score ≥16 predicted critical illness (odds ratio 6.35; 95% confidence interval 3.51–11.48. The area under the

COCHLEAR IMPLANTATION PREVALENCE IN ELDERLY

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A. V. Starokha

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Current paper describes an experience of cochlear implantation in elderly. Cochlear implantation has become a widely accepted intervention in the treatment of individuals with severe-to-profound sensorineural hearing loss. Cochlear implants are now accepted as a standard of care to optimize hearing and subsequent speech development in children and adults with deafness. But cochlear implantation affects not only hearing abilities, speech perception and speech production; it also has an outstanding impact on the social life, activities and self-esteem of each patient. The aim of this study was to evaluate the cochlear implantation efficacy in elderly with severe to profound sensorineural hearing loss. There were 5 patients under our observation. Surgery was performed according to traditional posterior tympanotomy and cochleostomy for cochlear implant electrode insertion for all observed patients. The study was conducted in two stages: before speech processor’s activation and 3 months later. Pure tone free field audiometry was performed to each patient to assess the efficiency of cochlear implantation in dynamics. The aim of the study was also to evaluate quality of life in elderly with severe to profound sensorineural hearing loss after unilateral cochlear implantation. Each patient underwent questioning with 36 Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36. SF-36 is a set of generic, coherent, and easily administered quality-of-life measures. The SF-36 consists of eight scaled scores, which are the weighted sums of the questions in their section. Each scale is directly transformed into a 0-100 scale on the assumption that each question carries equal weight. The eight sections are: physical functioning; physical role functioning; emotional role functioning; vitality; emotional well-being; social role functioning; bodily pain; general health perceptions. Our results demonstrate that cochlear implantation in elderly consistently improved quality of life

Approach to Fall in Elderly Population

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Mehmet Ilkin Naharci

2009-10-01

Full Text Available Falls are one of the geriatric syndromes which occur commonly and significantly increase morbidity and mortality rates in elderly. The incidence of falls increases with age. Falls usually occur when impairments in cognitive, behavioral, and executive function begin. The incidence of fall is between 30 and 40 percent of community-dwelling people and approximately 50 percent of individuals in the long-term care setting over the age of 65 years. Fracture (hip, arm, wrist, pelvis, head trauma or major lacerations, as defined serious wounding, occur 10-25% of elderly cases. Fall is overlooked in clinical examination due to various reasons; the patient never mentions the event to a doctor; there is no injury at the time of the fall; the doctor fails to ask the patient about a history of falls; or either doctor or patient erroneously believes that falls are an inevitable part of the aging process. Elderly give not usually any self-information about fall, for this reason, all older patients should be asked at least once per year about falls and should be assessed in terms of balance and gait disorders. There are many distinct causes for falls in old people. Falls in older individuals occur when a threat to the normal homeostatic mechanisms that maintain postural stability is superimposed on underlying age-related declines in balance, ambulation, and cardiovascular function. This factor may be an acute illness (eg, fever, water loss, arrhythmia, a new medication, an environmental stress (eg, unfamiliar surrounding, or an unsafe walking surface. The elderly person can not cope with happened additional stress. To prevent and decrease the frequency of falls, effective approaches are medical interventions, environmental modifications, education-exercise programs, and assisted device. Detection and amelioration of risk factors can significantly reduce the rate of future falls. The assessment of fall, causing mobility restriction, use of nursing home, and

Tolerance for uncertainty in elderly people

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KHRYSTYNA KACHMARYK

2014-09-01

Full Text Available The aim of the study. The aim of the paper is a comparison of tolerance to uncertainty in two groups of elderly: the students of the University of the Third Age (UTA and older people who are not enrolled but help to educate grandchildren. A relation to uncertainty was shown to influence on decision making strategy of elderly that indicates on importance of the researches. Methods. To obtain the objectives of the paper the following methods were used: 1 Personal change readiness survey (PCRS adapted by Nickolay Bazhanov and Galina Bardiyer; 2 Tolerance Ambiguity Scale (TAS adapted by Galina Soldatova; 3 Freiburg personality inventory (FPI and 4 The questionnaire of self-relation by Vladimir Stolin and Sergej Panteleev. 40 socially involved elderly people were investigated according the above methods, 20 from UTA and 20 who are not studied and served as control group. Results. It was shown that relations of tolerance to uncertainty in the study group of students of the University of the Third Age substantially differ from relations of tolerance to uncertainty in group of older people who do not learn. The majority of students of the University of the Third Age have an inherent low tolerance for uncertainty, which is associated with an increase in expression personality traits and characteristics in self-relation. The group of the elderly who are not enrolled increasingly shows tolerance of uncertainty, focusing on the social and trusting relationship to meet the needs of communication, and the ability to manage their own emotions and desires than a group of Third Age university students. Conclusions. The results of experimental research of the third age university student’s peculiarities of the tolerance to uncertainty were outlined. It was found that decision making in the ambiguity situations concerning social interaction is well developed in elderly who do not study. The students of the University of Third Age have greater needs in

Factors Related to Korean Nurses' Willingness to Report Suspected Elder Abuse

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chungmee Ko, PhD

2012-09-01

Conclusion: As the Welfare of the Aged Act included a clause on mandated reporters, nurses' role in intervening in elder abuse cases has become more critical. In order to increase nurses' reporting, education on elder abuse should be provided to all nurses, and support programs should be designed for nurses to effectively involve them in reporting elder abuse.

Elder mistreatment and physical health among older adults: the South Carolina Elder Mistreatment Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Cisler, Josh M; Amstadter, Ananda B; Begle, Angela M; Hernandez, Melba; Acierno, Ron

2010-08-01

Exposure to potentially traumatic events (PTEs), including interpersonal violence, is associated with poorer physical health in young adults. This relation has not been well-investigated among older adults in specific populations. The present study was designed to investigate whether exposure to PTEs and elder mistreatment are associated with physical health status among older adults residing in South Carolina. Older adults aged 60 and above (N = 902) participated in a structured interview assessing elder mistreatment history, PTEs, demographics, and social dependency variables. Results demonstrated that PTEs were associated with poor self-rated health independently and when controlling for other significant predictors. A recent history of emotional mistreatment was associated with poor self-rated health independently, but not when controlling for other significant predictors.

Efficacy and safety of febuxostat in elderly female patients

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mizuno T

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Tomohiro Mizuno,1,2 Takahiro Hayashi,3 Sayo Hikosaka,1 Yuka Shimabukuro,1 Maho Murase,1 Kazuo Takahashi,2 Hiroki Hayashi,2 Yukio Yuzawa,2 Tadashi Nagamatsu,1 Shigeki Yamada3 1Department of Analytical Pharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmacy, Meijo University, Nagoya, Japan; 2Department of Nephrology, School of Medicine, Fujita Health University, Toyoake, Japan; 3Department of Clinical Pharmacy, School of Medicine, Fujita Health University, Toyoake, Japan Background: Maintenance of low serum urate levels is important for the management of gout. Achieving the recommended serum urate levels of less than 6.0 mg/dL is difficult in elderly (65 years of age or older patients with renal impairment. Xanthine oxidase inhibitors allopurinol and febuxostat are used for this purpose. Although febuxostat had been shown to be efficacious in elderly patients, its safety and efficacy in elderly female patients with hyper­uricemia remain unclear.Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy and safety of febuxostat in elderly female patients.Methods: We studied a retrospective cohort study. The study included elderly Japanese patients (65 years of age or older who were treated with febuxostat at Fujita Health University Hospital from January 2012 to December 2013. The treatment goal was defined as achievement of serum urate levels of 6.0 mg/dL or lower within 16 weeks; this was the primary endpoint in the present study. Adverse events of febuxostat were defined as more than twofold increases in Common Terminology Criteria for adverse events scores from baseline. Results: We evaluated 82 patients treated with febuxostat during the observation period and classified them into male (n=53 and female (n=29 groups. The mean time to achievement of the treatment goal was significantly shorter in the female group (53 days than in the male group (71 days. There were no significant differences in adverse events between the 2 groups.Conclusion: Our

Sharing Elderly Healthcare information on Cloud Computing

OpenAIRE

Lu, Fangjie; Khan, Israr

2012-01-01

Context: Due to rapid increase in the population of elderly people, sharing healthcare information has become an essential requirement for the development of e-health system. By conducting a research in e-health and cloud computing we have explored the advantages and disadvantages of sharing healthcare information for elderly people through cloud computing. Objectives: The main purpose of this research is to investigate the suitability of cloud computing to share healthcare information. The s...

Dyadic Vulnerability and Risk Profiling for Elder Neglect

Science.gov (United States)

Fulmer, Terry; Paveza, Gregory; VandeWeerd, Carla; Fairchild, Susan; Guadagno, Lisa; Bolton-Blatt, Marguarette; Norman, Robert

2005-01-01

Purpose: Neglect of older adults accounts for 60% to 70% of all elder-mistreatment reports made to adult protective services. The purpose of this article is to report data from research, using a risk-and-vulnerability model, that captures the independent contributions of both the elder and the caregiver as they relate to the outcome of neglect.…

Elder Abuse Prevention Project - Phase I. Literature Summary.

Science.gov (United States)

Draper, Lori; And Others

This document summarizes information on elder abuse collected from various sources in Canada and the United States. It is noted that document entries are often representative of more than one source, and have been selected as each adds something new and valuable to the overall research on elder abuse. An attempt has been made to choose information…

An indoor air filtration study in homes of elderly

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Karottki, Dorina Gabriela; Spilak, Michal; Frederiksen, Marie

2013-01-01

Exposure to particulate air pollution increases respiratory and cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, especially in elderly, possibly through inflammation and vascular dysfunction.......Exposure to particulate air pollution increases respiratory and cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, especially in elderly, possibly through inflammation and vascular dysfunction....

Anesthesia and the risk of dementia in the elderly

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Steinmetz, Jacob; Rasmussen, Lars Simon

2018-01-01

Cognitive complications are common after surgery in the elderly, and with an increased number of elderly patients undergoing surgery, a potential impact of anaesthesia and surgery on long term cognition, and especially dementia would be concerning. The question whether anaesthesia and surgery in ...

Drug treatment in elderly diabetic.

Science.gov (United States)

Parikh, A O

2007-12-01

Diabetes causes greater decline in physical and functional status in elderly diabetic than in a younger one. Also the rise of MI, stroke and hypertension is also higher. In elderly diabetics management is always on challenging task due to atypical disease presentation, classical symptoms often absent, presence of other coexisting conditions delays the diagnosis, dietary advice not followed properly and due to non-compliance of drug therapy. The antidiabetic drugs which are often used are: sulfonylureas, metformin, thiazolidinediones, meglitinides, alpha-glucosidase inhibitors, insulin. Advantages and disadvantages of these drugs are discussed in a nutshell. Moreover control of hypertension, CAD risk reduction and practice pearls eg, lifestyle changes and goals setting for HbA(1c) are important.

Elderly victims of gender violence in Portugal: Invisible and not heard?

Science.gov (United States)

Magalhães, Maria José; Rodríguez Castro, Yolanda; Ruido, Patricia Alonso; Braga Lopez, Rita DeOliveira

2016-12-01

In this article, we explore professionals' representations of elderly female victims of gender violence. Semi-structured interviews were used to explore seven professionals' work philosophies and intervention methodologies in their work with elderly female victims of violence, their main problems and difficulties, and their perspectives regarding shelters for elderly women. Results show that there are no specific philosophies and methodologies to intervene with these victims. There is a tendency to homogenize all the victims of gender violence, regardless of their age and specific needs. The professionals also tended to trivialize gender violence against elderly female victims, considering that these women tolerate violence.

Development of a Health Care Information System for the Elderly at Home

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wang Dong

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The growing population aging is a serious social problem in the world today. Accidental death at home is increasing because abnormal conditions can not be discovered in time, especially to the elderly who live alone. Besides, according to statistics, over 80 percent of the elderly need the service of home care in China. A health care information system for the elderly at home is developed to monitor the real–time state of the elderly remotely in this thesis. The system can show the current positions of the elderly in the house and judge whether they are in dangerous locations or have dangerous activities. In the case of emergency, the elderly can press the emergency button. The system also provides some help for the elderly’s daily life. The system offers the advantage for living at home more safely and more comfortably, and has better application prospect

Neuromuscular performance in the hip joint of elderly fallers and non-fallers.

Science.gov (United States)

Morcelli, Mary Hellen; LaRoche, Dain Patrick; Crozara, Luciano Fernandes; Marques, Nise Ribeiro; Hallal, Camilla Zamfolini; Rossi, Denise Martineli; Gonçalves, Mauro; Navega, Marcelo Tavella

2016-06-01

Low strength and neuromuscular activation of the lower limbs have been associated with falls making it an important predictor of functional status in the elderly. To compare the rate of neuromuscular activation, rate of torque development, peak torque and reaction time between young and elderly fallers and non-fallers for hip flexion and extension. We evaluated 44 elderly people who were divided into two groups: elderly fallers (n = 20) and elderly non-fallers (n = 24); and 18 young people. The subjects performed three isometric hip flexion and extension contractions. Electromyography data were collected for the rectus femoris, gluteus maximus and biceps femoris muscles. The elderly had 49 % lower peak torque and 68 % lower rate of torque development for hip extension, 28 % lower rate of neuromuscular activation for gluteus maximus and 38 % lower rate of neuromuscular activation for biceps femoris than the young (p neuromuscular for rectus femoris than the young (p < 0.05). The elderly fallers showed consistent trend toward a lower rate of torque development than elderly non-fallers for hip extension at 50 ms (29 %, p = 0.298, d = 0.76) and 100 ms (26 %, p = 0.452, d = 0.68).The motor time was 30 % slower for gluteus maximus, 42 % slower for rectus femoris and 50 % slower for biceps femoris in the elderly than in the young. Impaired capacity of the elderly, especially fallers, may be explained by neural and morphological aspects of the muscles. The process of senescence affects the muscle function of the hip flexion and extension, and falls may be related to lower rate of torque development and slower motor time of biceps femoris.

Iatrogenic disease in the elderly: risk factors, consequences, and prevention

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sompol Permpongkosol

2011-03-01

Full Text Available Sompol PermpongkosolDivision of Urology, Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, ThailandAbstract: The epidemiology of iatrogenic disease in the elderly has not been extensively reported. Risk factors of iatrogenic disease in the elderly are drug-induced iatrogenic disease, multiple chronic diseases, multiple physicians, hospitalization, and medical or surgical procedures. Iatrogenic disease can have a great psychomotor impact and important social consequences. To identify patients at high risk is the first step in prevention as most of the iatrogenic diseases are preventable. Interventions that can prevent iatrogenic complications include specific interventions, the use of a geriatric interdisciplinary team, pharmacist consultation and acute care for the elderly units.Keywords: iatrogenic disease, elderly, risk factors, prevention

Particularities of the elderly in relation to onco specific treatment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Terradas, M.; Santini, A.; Mara, C.

2004-01-01

The aging population leads to an increase in the proportion of elderly with different oncological diseases. However, the group of the elderly is often poorly represented in the studies which derive many therapeutic recommendations, which worries many specialists and patients usually over 70 years are not included in the clinicians essays which has hampered on decision based on clinical evidence.The elderly patient has a number of features in the structure, organization and function of their body that should always be considered by the oncologist; within them are: psychological changes, the social and family environment, drug addicts due to interactions poly pharmacy often linked to increased co morbid conditions, existing conditions systems related to metabolism and excretion of drugs: liver and kidney. On the other hand, most frequently metabolic disorders affects negatively to the tolerance of treatments. It is also important to evaluate the nutritional status of the patient because are often altered by different causes in elderly patients. In the elderly with cancer task decisions should take into account the hope life and the overall effect of the disease and its treatment on quality of life of patients in relation to the coexistence of other chronic diseases. Therefore, elderly patients with geriatric cancer assessment is useful to help diagnose various diseases of the elderly that can interfere with treatment cancer. In addition, to improve the overall knowledge of the patient, we can try to improve present problems in mental, emotional sphere and the social support network, to improve tolerance to treatment and therefore the quality of life, a concept difficult to define as it varies between individuals and over time and depends on various factors both cultural, religious and personal experiences. In conclusion, in elderly patients with tumor pathology must make an assessment in depth of their overall situation prior to disease and make treatment decisions

EHR adoption among doctors who treat the elderly.

Science.gov (United States)

Yeager, Valerie A; Menachemi, Nir; Brooks, Robert G

2010-12-01

The purpose of this study is to examine Electronic Health Record (EHR) adoption among Florida doctors who treat the elderly. This analysis contributes to the EHR adoption literature by determining if doctors who disproportionately treat the elderly differ from their counterparts with respect to the utilization of an important quality-enhancing health information technology application. This study is based on a primary survey of a large, statewide sample of doctors practising in outpatient settings in Florida. Logistic regression analysis was used to determine whether doctors who treat a high volume of elderly (HVE) patients were different with respect to EHR adoption. Our analyses included responses from 1724 doctors. In multivariate analyses controlling for doctor age, training, computer sophistication, practice size and practice setting, HVE doctors were significantly less likely to adopt EHR. Specifically, compared with their counterparts, HVE doctors were observed to be 26.7% less likely to be utilizing an EHR system (OR=0.733, 95% CI 0.547-0.982). We also found that doctor age is negatively related to EHR adoption, and practice size and doctor computer savvy-ness is positively associated. Despite the fact that EHR adoption has improved in recent years, doctors in Florida who serve the elderly are less likely to adopt EHRs. As long as HVE doctors are adopting EHR systems at slower rates, the elderly patients treated by these doctors will be at a disadvantage with respect to potential benefits offered by this technology. © 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Vertigo and Dizziness in the Elderly

Science.gov (United States)

Fernández, Lara; Breinbauer, Hayo A.; Delano, Paul Hinckley

2015-01-01

The prevalence of vertigo and dizziness in people aged more than 60 years reaches 30%, and due to aging of world population, the number of patients is rapidly increasing. The presence of dizziness in the elderly is a strong predictor of falls, which is the leading cause of accidental death in people older than 65 years. Balance disorders in the elderly constitute a major public health problem, and require an adequate diagnosis and management by trained physicians. In the elderly, common causes of vertigo may manifest differently, as patients tend to report less rotatory vertigo and more non-specific dizziness and instability than younger patients, making diagnosis more complex. In this mini review, age-related degenerative processes that affect balance are presented. Diagnostic and therapeutic approaches oriented to the specific impaired system, including visual, proprioceptive, and vestibular pathways, are proposed. In addition, presbystasis – the loss of vestibular and balance functions associated with aging – benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, and stroke (in acute syndromes) should always be considered. PMID:26167157

Drug interactions in hospitalized elderly patients

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Juliana Locatelli

2007-12-01

Full Text Available Objective: To assess the prevalence of drug interactions in elderlyinpatients and to describe the most prevalent interactions. Methods:A retrospective study was conducted in 155 elderly inpatients enrolledin the Clinical Pharmacy program at the elderly-care unit of theHospital Israelita Albert Einstein from January 2006 to January 2007.Interactions were classified according to severity using Micromedex®.Results: A total of 705 potential drug interactions were found, withapproximately 4 interactions per patient. According to severity, 201(28% were major severities and 504 (72% were of moderate severity.Among these 705 interactions, 444 were selected according to theirresulting effect including 161 (36% had increased risk of bleeding, 78(18% hypoglycemia or hyperglycemia, 50 (11% cardiotoxicity, 46(10% digitalis toxicity, 40 (9% phenytoin toxicity, 31 (7% additiverespiratory depression, 20 (5% hyperkalemia, 18 (4% decreasedlevothyroxine absorption. Conclusion: The high drug interactionrate found in this study shows the relevance of this issue amongelderly inpatients and the need to assess and monitor drug therapyin the elderly to prevent and reduce consequences of potential druginteraction effects.

Influence of environmental street characteristics on walking route choice of elderly people

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Borst, H.C.; Vries, S.I. de; Graham, J.M.A.; Dongen, J.E.F. van; Bakker, I.; Miedema, H.M.E.

2009-01-01

Walking is an important source of outdoor physical activity among elderly people. In order to devise measures aimed at encouraging walking among the elderly it is important to understand how the local environment influences the walking behaviour of elderly people. Here, a model describing the

[Elder].

Science.gov (United States)

Arroyo, Pedro; Gutiérrez-Robledo, Luis Miguel

2016-09-01

The aim of this review is to present scientific evidence on the biological, dietary, cultural and economic advantages of cow´s milk and dairy products intake in adults, with emphasis on the elderly. The role of milk and dairy products as part of the regular diet, as well as their contribution to a healthy diet for the aged population is described. The updated scientific references on the importance of milk and dairy products on the dietary management of the most prevalent diseases of the eldery -among these energy-protein malnutrition, sarcopenia, obesity, sarcopenic obesity, osteoporosis, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases- are presented.

Alcohol and Medication Use Among Elderly Community-dwelling Brazilians

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Patrícia Veríssimo Costa e Silva

2014-09-01

Conclusion: Harmful consumption of alcohol in the evaluated sample was very low. The average of used medicines (2.5 medicines/day was similar to those obtained previously in elderly populations in the same region, with relatively low use of inappropriate drugs for the elderly.

Elderly Taiwanese's Intrinsic Risk Factors for Fall-related Injuries

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In-Fun Li

2016-09-01

Conclusion: Elderly Taiwanese inpatients with existing intrinsic conditions of cancer, vertigo, and lower leg weakness were at high risk of falling, resulting in severe injuries. Additional research including controlled trials is necessary to further identify treatable, causal intrinsic risk factors for this elderly group.

Institutional abuse toward the elderly: Perceptions of health care providers and older adult

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M. Guadalupe Ruelas-González

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Objective. To analyze the health care providers (HCP and elderly patients’ perceptions about abuse of the elderly by health personnel of public health services, in selected cities in Mexico. Materials and methods. A qualitative study and a strategy of data triangulation were performed during 2009 and 2012; 13 HCPs and 12 elders were interviewed, in order to obtain their experience regarding elder abuse. Grounded Theory proceedings were used for the analysis. Results. Elder abuse is a naturalized practice, from HCP and elderly people’s point of view; these perceptions are showed in different ways. Conclusion. Institutionalization, historical professionalization and lack of consciousness about needs of the elderly (sociocultural and economic, require changes in planning, organization and monitoring process in the Health System; training and educational interventions on staff and exchange attitudes and behavior are necessary in order to offer a health care that is comprehensive, decent, human and with respect for the human rights.

[Public policies for the elderly in Brazil: an integrative review].

Science.gov (United States)

Andrade, Luana Machado; Sena, Edite Lago da Silva; Pinheiro, Gleide Magali Lemos; Meira, Edmeia Campos; Lira, Lais Santana Santos Pereira

2013-12-01

This paper is an integrative review analyzing the scientific production and legal documents regarding public policies for the elderly in Brazil. Research was conducted in the Virtual Health Library and Scopus databases, examining publications since 2003. Data were collected from June to September of 2011 using the following key words: "elderly" (idosos), "public policies" (políticas públicas), "elderly person" (pessoa idosa), "aging" (envelhecimento) and "civic participation" (participação cidadã). The search resulted in the selection of 15 articles and six legal documents targeted at the elderly in Brazil that were submitted to content analysis by categorization. The results revealed that aging in Brazil has occurred in the midst of adaptations entrenched in cultural biases, social, economic and educational discrepancies and the implementation of public welfare policies. There were few studies that indicated the importance of strengthening social movements that elicit discussion related to the elderly in Brazil. The conclusion reached is that the study will provide material for reflection about the construction of a new reality about aging in Brazil.

Altered Pain Sensitivity in Elderly Women with Chronic Neck Pain

Science.gov (United States)

Uthaikhup, Sureeporn; Prasert, Romchat; Paungmali, Aatit; Boontha, Kritsana

2015-01-01

Background Age-related changes occur in both the peripheral and central nervous system, yet little is known about the influence of chronic pain on pain sensitivity in older persons. The aim of this study was to investigate pain sensitivity in elders with chronic neck pain compared to healthy elders. Methods Thirty elderly women with chronic neck pain and 30 controls were recruited. Measures of pain sensitivity included pressure pain thresholds, heat/cold pain thresholds and suprathreshold heat pain responses. The pain measures were assessed over the cervical spine and at a remote site, the tibialis anterior muscle. Results Elders with chronic neck pain had lower pressure pain threshold over the articular pillar of C5-C6 and decreased cold pain thresholds over the cervical spine and tibialis anterior muscle when compared with controls (p pain thresholds and suprathreshold heat pain responses (p > 0.05). Conclusion The presence of pain hypersensitivity in elderly women with chronic neck pain appears to be dependent on types of painful stimuli. This may reflect changes in the peripheral and central nervous system with age. PMID:26039149

The effect of 12-week Pilates exercises on wellness in the elderly.

Science.gov (United States)

Roh, Su Yeon

2016-04-01

The purpose of this study is to examine the efficiency of 12-week Pilates exercises on wellness in the elderly. Before Pilates exercises training, the 88 elderly (63 females, 25 males) were given and completed a Wellness Scale. Then, the elderly participated in Pilates exercises and completed the same scale afterwards. Results of paired t-test showed that participants in 12-week Pilates exercises experienced significant improvement in physical (t=2.762, PPilates exercises helped improve wellness of the elderly.

Children and the Elderly: Wealth Inequality Among America's Dependents.

Science.gov (United States)

Gibson-Davis, Christina M; Percheski, Christine

2018-05-07

Life cycle theory predicts that elderly households have higher levels of wealth than households with children, but these wealth gaps are likely dynamic, responding to changes in labor market conditions, patterns of debt accumulation, and the overall economic context. Using Survey of Consumer Finances data from 1989 through 2013, we compare wealth levels between and within the two groups that make up America's dependents: the elderly and child households (households with a resident child aged 18 or younger). Over the observed period, the absolute wealth gap between elderly and child households in the United States increased substantially, and diverging trends in wealth accumulation exacerbated preexisting between-group disparities. Widening gaps were particularly pronounced among the least-wealthy elderly and child households. Differential demographic change in marital status and racial composition by subgroup do not explain the widening gap. We also find increasing wealth inequality within child households and the rise of a "parental 1 %." During a time of overall economic growth, the elderly have been able to maintain or increase their wealth, whereas many of the least-wealthy child households saw precipitous declines. Our findings suggest that many child households may lack sufficient assets to promote the successful flourishing of the next generation.

Multisensory training for postural sway control in non-injured elderly ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Multisensory training for postural sway control in non-injured elderly females. ... Elderly adults demonstrate increased postural sway, which may ultimately lead to falls. ... Keywords: multisensory training, postural sway control, balance ability, ...

Sensible aging : nutrient dense foods and physical exercise for the vulnerable elderly

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Jong, de N.

1999-01-01

As a consequence of present western health policy, an increasing number of elderly people live in the community. A particularly vulnerable group among the total elderly population are the so-called 'frail elderly' who have a reduced physiologic reserve and are classified at risk. Increasing

PRESCRIPTION OF PHYSICAL EXERCISES FOR ELDERLY

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Sheilla Tribess

2005-11-01

Full Text Available The present study has as objective investigates the prescription of exercises for elderly, constant in the literature in portuguese language, under form of books, newspapers, annals and publications electronics. For so much, it tried to collect data with relationship to the following aspects: a Impact of the aging in the human organism; b evaluation of the components of the functional aptitude; and, c composition of a program of physical exercise. The aging process evidences changes in the levels antropométrics, neuromuscular, cardiovascular, lung, neural, besides the decrease of the agility, coordination, balance, flexibility, mobility to articulate and increase in the cartilage rigidity, tendons and ligaments. Those changes associated to the low level of physical activity in the elderly take to the decline of the functional capacity. The evaluation of the level of functional dependence becomes important to the elderly, because it will provide a prescription of physical exercises more addressed your needs, increasing the effectiveness of the program and reducing the risks. The general beginnings for the prescription of physical exercises for elderly are based in the modalities appropriate, intensity, duration, frequency and progression of the physical activity, with the objective of improving the life quality, to minimize the physiologic alterations, to improve the motive capacity and to provide benefits social, psychological and physical. Therefore, in the prescription of physical exercises for older people is necessary the training of the capacity aerobics, of the force, of the balance, of the time of reaction and movement and of the agility.

Effects of professional oral health care on elderly: randomized trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Morino, T; Ookawa, K; Haruta, N; Hagiwara, Y; Seki, M

2014-11-01

To better understand the role of the professional oral health care for elderly in improving geriatric oral health, the effects of short-term professional oral health care (once per week for 1 month) on oral microbiological parameters were assessed. Parallel, open-labelled, randomize-controlled trial was undertaken in a nursing home for elderly in Shizuoka, Japan. Thirty-four dentate elderly over 74 years were randomly assigned from ID number to the intervention (17/34) and control (17/34) groups. The outcomes were changes in oral microbiological parameters (number of bacteria in unstimulated saliva; whole bacteria, Streptococcus, Fusobacterium and Prevotella: opportunistic pathogens detection: and index of oral hygiene evaluation [Dental Plaque Index, DPI]) within the intervention period. Each parameter was evaluated at before and after intervention period. Four elderly were lost from mortality (1), bone fracture (1), refused to participate (1) and multi-antibiotics usage (1). Finally, 30 elderly were analysed (14/intervention and 16/control). At baseline, no difference was found between the control and intervention groups. After the intervention period, the percentage of Streptococcus species increased significantly in the intervention group (Intervention, 86% [12/14]; Control, 50% [8/16]: Fisher's, right-tailed, P oral health care can improve oral conditions in the elderly. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Understanding the Need of Mobile ICT Learning as an Elderly Learning Tool

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Sanches Lam

2009-12-01

Full Text Available With a rapid deployment of mobile devices, mobile learning gives rise to new possibilities for extending learning opportunities. Nevertheless, current research on mobile learning has mostly been aimed at enhancing learning of school or college students. In this light, the paper seeks to throw light on the potential of mobile learning for elderly. We describe in this paper a research study for examining needs that determine the adoption and usage of mobile devices by elderly population. The elderly are an often neglected group in product development and marketing, but they are the only growing age group in most developed societies. By using semi-structured interviews with a number of different stakeholders interested in elderly people, we identify a set of issues that need to be taken into account when designing strategy for the elderly learners. The results of our study indicate that elderly people are interested in using mobile devices and services, but these services need to deliver real value for them.

Protein Consumption and the Elderly: What Is the Optimal Level of Intake?

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Jamie I. Baum

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Maintaining independence, quality of life, and health is crucial for elderly adults. One of the major threats to living independently is the loss of muscle mass, strength, and function that progressively occurs with aging, known as sarcopenia. Several studies have identified protein (especially the essential amino acids as a key nutrient for muscle health in elderly adults. Elderly adults are less responsive to the anabolic stimulus of low doses of amino acid intake compared to younger individuals. However, this lack of responsiveness in elderly adults can be overcome with higher levels of protein (or essential amino acid consumption. The requirement for a larger dose of protein to generate responses in elderly adults similar to the responses in younger adults provides the support for a beneficial effect of increased protein in older populations. The purpose of this review is to present the current evidence related to dietary protein intake and muscle health in elderly adults.

Extra-intracranial standard bypass in the elderly

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sandow, Nora; von Weitzel-Mudersbach, Paul; Rosenbaum, Sverre

2013-01-01

Patients with chronic atherosclerotic vessel occlusion and cerebrovascular hemodynamic insufficiency may benefit from extra-intracranial (EC-IC) bypass surgery. Due to demographic changes, an increasing number of elderly patients presents with cerebrovascular hemodynamic insufficiency. So far......, little data for EC-IC bypass surgery in elderly patients suffering occlusive cerebrovascular disease are available. We therefore designed a retrospective study to address the question whether EC-IC bypass is a safe and efficient treatment in a patient cohort ≥70 years....

The Dementia and Disability Project in Thai Elderly: rational, design, methodology and early results.

Science.gov (United States)

Senanarong, Vorapun; Harnphadungkit, Kamolthip; Poungvarin, Niphon; Vannasaeng, Sathit; Chongwisal, Samut; Chakorn, Tipa; Jamjumrus, Piyanuch; Raksthaput, Atthapon; Chaichanettee, Sinisa; Aoonkaew, Nattapol; Udompunthurak, Suthipol; Doody, Rachelle S; Cummings, Jeffrey L

2013-01-10

A strong inverse relationship of functional limitation and socioeconomic status has been established in western ageing society. Functional limitation can be related to chronic diseases, disuse, cognitive decline, and ageing. Among chronic diseases in the Thai population, cerebrovascular diseases, diabetes, and arthritis are common. These factors are known to contribute to disability and poor quality of life in the elder population. Neuropsychiatric problems, cognitive decline, dementia, and cultural issues in elderly people also can alter the quality of life of the elderly. The Dementia and Disability Project in Thai Elderly (DDP) aims at comprehensively assessing community dwelling Thai elderly to understand the relationship between disability and motor function, neuropsychiatric symptoms, cognitive function, and chronic diseases. The DDP is the first study to look at the prevalence and etiology of dementia and of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in Thai elders and to explore the relationship of cognition, disability, small vessel diseases and cortical degeneration with neuroimaging in Thai elderly people. 1998 Thai elders were screened in 2004-2006 and diagnosed as having MCI or dementia. 223 elders with MCI or dementia and cognitively normal elderly had brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or at baseline. 319 elders from the 3 groups had blood tests to investigate the risks and possible etiologies of dementia including genotyping at baseline. The mean age of elders in this study is 69.51(SD=6.71, min=60, max=95) years. 689(34.9%) are men and 1284(65.1%) are women. Mean body weight was 58.36(SD=11.20) kgs. The regression model reveals that performance on gait and balance and serum triglyceride predicts activity of daily living performance (adjusted r2 = 0.280, f=2.644, p=0.003). The majority of abnormal gait in Thai elders was lower level gait disturbance. Only 1.5% (29/1952) had highest level gait disorders. 39.5% of 1964 subjects were free of chronic diseases

The dementia and disability project in Thai elderly: rational, design, methodology and early results

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Senanarong Vorapun

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background A strong inverse relationship of functional limitation and socioeconomic status has been established in western ageing society. Functional limitation can be related to chronic diseases, disuse, cognitive decline, and ageing. Among chronic diseases in the Thai population, cerebrovascular diseases, diabetes, and arthritis are common. These factors are known to contribute to disability and poor quality of life in the elder population. Neuropsychiatric problems, cognitive decline, dementia, and cultural issues in elderly people also can alter the quality of life of the elderly. Methods The Dementia and Disability Project in Thai Elderly (DDP aims at comprehensively assessing community dwelling Thai elderly to understand the relationship between disability and motor function, neuropsychiatric symptoms, cognitive function, and chronic diseases. The DDP is the first study to look at the prevalence and etiology of dementia and of mild cognitive impairment (MCI in Thai elders and to explore the relationship of cognition, disability, small vessel diseases and cortical degeneration with neuroimaging in Thai elderly people. 1998 Thai elders were screened in 2004–2006 and diagnosed as having MCI or dementia. 223 elders with MCI or dementia and cognitively normal elderly had brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI or at baseline. 319 elders from the 3 groups had blood tests to investigate the risks and possible etiologies of dementia including genotyping at baseline. Results The mean age of elders in this study is 69.51(SD=6.71, min=60, max=95 years. 689(34.9% are men and 1284(65.1% are women. Mean body weight was 58.36(SD=11.20 kgs. The regression model reveals that performance on gait and balance and serum triglyceride predicts activity of daily living performance (adjusted r2 = 0.280, f=2.644, p=0.003. The majority of abnormal gait in Thai elders was lower level gait disturbance. Only 1.5% (29/1952 had highest level gait disorders. 39

Pre-operative assessment of cancer in the elderly (PACE) : A comprehensive assessment of underlying characteristics of elderly cancer patients prior to elective surgery

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Pope, D.; Ramesh, H.; Gennari, R.; Corsini, G.; Maffezzini, M.; Hoekstra, H. J.; Mobarak, D.; Sunouchi, K.; Stotter, A.; West, C.; Audisio, R. A.

2006-01-01

Background: Cancer is a disease that particularly affects the elderly and, although surgery is the first treatment choice, many elderly cancer patients do not receive standard surgery because they are considered unfit for treatment due to an inaccurate estimation of operative risk. Pre-operative

The Effect of Narrative Reminiscence on Happiness of Elderly Women.

Science.gov (United States)

Yousefi, Zahra; Sharifi, Khadijeh; Tagharrobi, Zahra; Akbari, Hossien

2015-11-01

Happiness has a considerable impact on elderly quality of life. Reminiscence therapy can be an effective intervention in increasing the positive emotions among elderly. This study was performed to investigate the effect of reminiscence therapy on Iranian elderly women's happiness. This randomized clinical trial conducted on 32 elderly women (census sampling) attending the jahandidegan daycare elderly center IN Gorgan city, Iran, in 2013. Happiness scores of 4 phases were measured: before, the third session, the sixth session and one month after the intervention. Three instruments were used in this study including a demographic questionnaire, the mini mental state examination test, and Oxford happiness questionnaire. The intervention group participated in six sessions of narrative group reminiscence that were held in three consecutive weeks, two sessions per week. The control group was also participated in six sessions of group discussions that were held in three consecutive weeks, two sessions per week. Data analysis was performed the chi-square, independent t-test, Paired t-test. From a total of 32 elderly women, 29 cases completed the study. No significant differences were found between the two groups in terms of demographic characteristics. The mean happiness scores before the intervention between the two groups were not significantly different (P = 0.824). Comparison of the mean happiness scores of the intervention group in the four measurement times revealed a significant difference only after the third and sixth sessions (P = 0.03), and no significant difference was found between the mean happiness scores of the control group in the four measurement times. The elderly participating in the matched group sessions can be effective in increasing positive emotions.

Visual Morbidities among Elderly Patients Presenting at a Primary ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: Visual challenges compromise mobility, increase dependency on family members and constitute a major health problem mainly seen by the primary care physicians among the elderly. However, there is little information on the pattern of visual problems of elderly patients attending the primary care clinics in ...

The Pro-Elderly Bias of Social Policies in Israel

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gamliel-Yehoshua, Haya; Vanhuysse, Pieter

2010-01-01

orientation of social policies in Israel, which is a comparatively young society that has nevertheless aged significantly since independence in 1948. We present a historical overview of the development of policy efforts towards different age groups and estimate an Elderly/Non-Elderly Spending Ratio at four...

77 FR 36901 - World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, 2012

Science.gov (United States)

2012-06-20

... this global public health issue, and we rededicate ourselves to providing our elders the care and... abuse cuts across race, gender, culture, and circumstance, and whether physical, emotional, or financial... signs of elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation, and by raising awareness about this public health issue...

Robots to motivate elderly people: present and future challenges

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gallego Pérez, J.; Lohse, M.; Evers, Vanessa

2013-01-01

In this paper we argue for the development of new methodological approaches to create and evaluate robots for elderly-care, which offer support for the psychological determinants of the quality of life of elderly people. Relevant determinants, such as mood, self-efficacy and happiness are discussed

Considerations for Sexuality Education and Services for LGB Elders

Science.gov (United States)

Chaya, Julie; Bernert, Donna J.

2014-01-01

Sexuality education and health services for elderly individuals who reside in care settings (e.g., assisted living facilities, nursing homes, retirement communities) have received limited attention in the professional literature. However, the lack of sexual health promotion practices in elder care facilities can be detrimental to older…

Promoting Sexual Health and Wellbeing among Elderly Nursing Home Residents

OpenAIRE

Benewaa Kusi, Daisy

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study is to provide research based information on the elderly and sexuality as it relates to the concept of impact on the elderly and competence in handling such cases in nursing care during aged-care period especially. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of aging on the sexual life of the elderly, their sexual needs, and how those concerns are handled by healthcare professionals. The method used is literature review. The search engines include;...

Isolated elders demonstration project : closer to home - a descriptive evaluation

OpenAIRE

Cusack, Sandra A.

1996-01-01

The purpose of this demonstration project is to support isolated elders through outreach. The goal is to get seniors "out of their homes" and back into the community, assisting them to make decisions and take action on their own behalf. The process involved training a group of volunteers to interview elders, using a mini-life review technique to encourage reminiscence. In listening to their stories, the volunteer's task was to discover the elder's needs and barriers to socialization, and to l...

Risk of falls and associated factors in institutionalized elderly

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Jacy Aurelia Vieira de Sousa

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Objective: to identify the factors associated with the risk of falls in institutionalized elderly. Methods: analytical study carried out in two long-stay institutions for the elderly, with 61 residents of both sexes. Data collection was performed by means of a socio-demographic and clinical form and Downton’s Fall Risk Index. Results: 31 (50.8% old people at high risk of falling were identified. There was an association of risk for falls in institutionalized elderly with gender (p=0.007, age (p=0.004, time of institutionalization (p=0.028, adverse events (p=0.000, use (p=0.035 and number of drugs (p=0.038, use of auxiliary equipment (p=0.022, type of walking (p=0.044 and history of falls in the last 12 months (p=0.000 Conclusion: it is recognized as essential to identify factors associated with the occurrence of falls for the prioritization of specific interventions aimed at institutionalized elderly.

Risk of falls and associated factors in institutionalized elderly

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Jacy Aurelia Vieira de Sousa

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Objective: to identify the factors associated with the risk of falls in institutionalized elderly. Methods: analytical study carried out in two long-stay institutions for the elderly, with 61 residents of both sexes. Data collection was performed by means of a socio-demographic and clinical form and Downton’s Fall Risk Index. Results: 31 (50.8% old people at high risk of falling were identified. There was an association of risk for falls in institutionalized elderly with gender (p=0.007, age (p=0.004, time of institutionalization (p=0.028, adverse events (p=0.000, use (p=0.035 and number of drugs (p=0.038, use of auxiliary equipment (p=0.022, type of walking (p=0.044 and history of falls in the last 12 months (p=0.000. Conclusion: it is recognized as essential to identify factors associated with the occurrence of falls for the prioritization of specific interventions aimed at institutionalized elderly.

Preventive practices in the elderly and vulnerability to HIV

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Valéria Peixoto Bezerra

Full Text Available Objective: To know the vulnerability of the elderly to the HIV infection in the context of preventive practices. Method: Exploratory qualitative study, lead from December 2012 to May 2013, with 37 nursing Coexistence Groups in João Pessoa - Paraiba. The Focus Group was elected as the research technique, and the empirical material obtained was subjected to a Content Analysis Technique, thematic modality. Results: The elderly recognize the importance of preventive practices, but they face difficulties in its use when their emotional relationships with their partners do not favor preventive behavior, resulting in vulnerability. The elderly showed the population groups most vulnerable to HIV and do not recognize themselves as such. Conclusion: The complexity of the various contexts experienced by the elderlies of this study indicate the need for more research that allows advances in the understanding of subjectivity imposed in relations that underlie the aging process and the experience of sexuality in this age group.

Danish Dietary Recommandations for the Elderly

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, Agnes Nadelmann

1993-01-01

and 2) sick elderly people resident at home and in institutions. The majority of the elderly enjoy generally good health. The diet-related diseases are the same as those affecting the rest of the population, and they are caused by an excessively high energy content of a diet which is poorly balanced...... in terms of macro-nutrients. While Danes receive adequate supplies of most vitamins and minerals, their fat intake is too high. Danish nutritional recommendations for healthy pensioners include a daily vitamin D intake of 10 microgrammes. Sick pensioners or small-eaters should follow the dietary...

Mentoring in Gerontology Doctoral Education: The Role of Elders in Mentoring Gerontologists

Science.gov (United States)

Wangmo, Tenzin; Ewen, Heidi H.; Webb, Alicia K.; Teaster, Pamela B.; Russell Hatch, Laurie

2009-01-01

This study examined elder mentors' and students' roles, functions, and satisfaction with the Elder Mentorship program at the Graduate Center for Gerontology, University of Kentucky. The Elder Mentorship program matches gerontology doctoral students with older adults in the community. Parallel surveys were constructed to evaluate the program from…

Concern with falls in elderly people attended in an Integral Attention Center

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Elizandro Correia de Araújo

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Falls are concerning factors in elderly people, because they cause diverse complications. The objective of this study was to identify the level of concern with falls, associating them with self-reported diseases and history of falls of elderly attended in an Integral Attention Center. This was a descriptive study with 80 elderly. The results demonstrated an extreme concern regarding the possibility of falling for most female, married, of 60-79 years and receiving low monthly income; there is also extreme concern for those with hypertension and arthrosis. Nursing should establish integral actions to map elderly with risk of falling and, that promote awareness for these elderly and their family members regarding fall prevention measures, to prevent falls and to reduce the fear of falling.

Mortality associated with traumatic injuries in the elderly: a population based study.

Science.gov (United States)

O'Neill, Stephen; Brady, Richard R; Kerssens, Jan J; Parks, Rowan W

2012-01-01

Elderly trauma is increasing in incidence and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. The primary objective of the study was to identify factors associated with survival or mortality in the elderly following trauma. The secondary objective was to compare the epidemiology of trauma in the elderly with younger patients. A retrospective analysis was performed of data that was obtained from a prospectively collected multi-centre trauma database maintained by The Scottish Trauma Audit Group (STAG) containing details of 52,887 trauma patients admitted to 25 participating Scottish Hospitals over an 11-year period. Elderly trauma patients (aged >80 years) were separately analyzed and compared to younger trauma patients (aged 13-80). Of 52,887 trauma patients identified, 4791 were elderly (9.1%). Elderly patients had a higher absolute mortality rate following traumatic injury (9.9% versus 4%, pelderly was higher in males, following a high fall, with lower Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), in those with higher Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS)/Injury Severity Score (ISS), in those with concomitant injuries, hemodynamic compromise and following delayed presentation. Multiple logistic regression analysis confirmed an independent relationship between mortality and low GCS, male gender, higher ISS, higher AIS of spinal injury, hemodynamic compromise and concomitant minor leg/arm injury(ies) in the elderly. In conclusion, trauma in elderly patients is associated with significantly higher mortality. Low GCS, male gender, higher ISS, higher AIS of spinal injury, hemodynamic compromise and concomitant minor leg/arm injury(ies) have the strongest independent relationships with mortality after trauma in the elderly population. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Body composition as a frailty marker for the elderly community

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Falsarella GR

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Gláucia Regina Falsarella,1 Lívia Pimenta Renó Gasparotto,1 Caroline Coutinho Barcelos,2 Ibsen Bellini Coimbra,1,2 Maria Clara Moretto,1 Mauro Alexandre Pascoa,3 Talita C B Rezende Ferreira,1 Arlete Maria Valente Coimbra1,41Gerontology Program, Faculty of Medical Sciences, 2Department of Medical Clinics, Faculty of Medical Sciences, 3Department Biodynamics of Movement, Faculty of Physical Education, 4Family Health Program, Gerontology Program, Faculty of Medical Sciences, State University of Campinas (Unicamp, Campinas, São Paulo, BrazilBackground: Body composition (BC in the elderly has been associated with diseases and mortality; however, there is a shortage of data on frailty in the elderly.Objective: To investigate the association between BC and frailty, and identify BC profiles in nonfrail, prefrail, and frail elderly people.Methods: A cross-sectional study comprising 235 elderly (142 females and 93 males aged ≥65 years, from the city of Amparo, State of São Paulo, Brazil, was undertaken. Sociodemographic and cognitive features, comorbidities, medication, frailty, body mass index (BMI, muscle mass, fat mass, bone mass, and fat percent (% data were evaluated. Aiming to examine the relationship between BC and frailty, the Mann–Whitney and Kruskal–Wallis nonparametric tests were applied. The statistical significance level was P<0.05.Results: The nonfrail elderly showed greater muscle mass and greater bone mass compared with the prefrail and frail ones. The frail elderly had greater fat % than the nonfrail elderly. There was a positive association between grip strength and muscle mass with bone mass (P<0.001, and a negative association between grip strength and fat % (P<0.001. Gait speed was positively associated with fat mass (P=0.038 and fat % (P=0.002. The physical activity level was negatively associated with fat % (P=0.022. The weight loss criterion was positively related to muscle mass (P<0.001, bone mass (P=0.009, fat mass

Hillel the elder: A Talmudic perspective of his leadership intelligence

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Alexander Maune

2015-05-01

Full Text Available There is a great deal of interest in discovering the secrets behind quality/good leadership as this is the backborne for organisational or national success. This article traces and reviews Hillel the Elder`s leadership intelligence, which saw him rose from being a woodcutter to became the ‘Nasi’ (President of Israel, from a Talmudic perspective. Relevant literature from the Babylonian Talmud, journal articles and other Jewish books was reviewed in order to bring to light some of the secrets behind Hillel the Elder`s leadership intelligence. A number of leadership lessons were discovered and are discussed in this article. This article will go a long way in influencing leadership practices in the 21st century given the rampant corporate failures due to mismanagement, corruption and misappropriation of funds.

Factors Affecting Hypertension among the Malaysian Elderly

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Sima Ataollahi Eshkoor

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Hypertension is a common chronic disease in the elderly. This study aimed to determine the effects of age, ethnicity, gender, education, marital status, nutritional parameters, and blood elements on the risk of high blood pressure in the Malaysian elderly. This research was conducted on a group of 2322 non-institutionalized Malaysian elderly. The hierarchy binary logistic regression analysis was applied to estimate the risk of hypertension in respondents. Approximately, 45.61% of subjects had hypertension. The findings indicated that the female gender (Odds ratio (OR = 1.54, an increase in body weight (OR = 1.61, and an increase in the blood levels of albumin (OR = 1.51, glucose (OR = 1.92, and triglycerides (OR = 1.27 significantly increased the risk of hypertension in subjects (p < 0.05. Conversely, an increase in both dietary carbohydrates (OR = 0.74, and blood cholesterol level (OR = 0.42 significantly reduced the risk of hypertension in samples (p < 0.05. Furthermore, the results showed that ethnicity was a non-relevant factor to increase the risk of hypertension in subjects. It was concluded that female gender, an increase in body weight, and an increase in the blood levels of glucose, triglycerides, and albumin enhanced the risk of high blood pressure in the Malaysian elderly. In addition, an increase in both dietary carbohydrates and blood cholesterol level decreased hypertension in subjects.

Factors associated with protein consumption in elderly

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Natália GASPARETO

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Objective We evaluated factors associated with protein consumption by the elderly. Methods We performed a cross-sectional study in a sample of 295 elderly consumers of health facilities in São Caetano do Sul, São Paulo, Brazil. Protein consumption data (g and g/kg were obtained through 24-hour dietary recalls, which was reapplied in a 30% sub-sample to estimate habitual consumption, with an interval of two weeks. The association between protein consumption and sociodemographic, economic, health, and dietary variables was tested using multiple linear regression. Results There was a positive association between protein consumption (g and g/kg and better Brazilian Healthy Eating Index-Revised, between protein consumption (g and male sex, and a negative association between protein consumption (g/kg and greater calf circumference. Higher average protein consumption (g or g/kg was observed among married elderly, individuals with higher income and schooling, who were economically active, eutrophic, without dyslipidemia and symptoms of dysphagia, who consumed three main meals and an intermediate snack. Conclusion The results showed that protein consumption was associated with diet quality, sex, and calf circumference. The identification of elderly groups prone to protein inadequacy may direct individual and collective interventions to prevent muscle mass reduction and its implications, such as sarcopenia and other adverse outcomes.

[Effect of cognitive stimulation in elderly community].

Science.gov (United States)

Apóstolo, João Luís Alves; Cardoso, Daniela Filipa Batista; Paúl, Constança; Rodrigues, Manuel Alves; Macedo, Marinha Sofia

2016-01-01

To demonstrate that the implementation of the Cognitive Stimulation (CS) program 'Making a Difference' (MD) improves cognition and depressive symptoms in retired community elders. This was a multicenter quasi-experimental study of 45 community dwelling elders (38 women and 7 men), with a mean age of 75.29, from 3 day-care centers in rural, semi-rural and urban environments in the central region of Portugal. Participants attended 14 sessions twice a week over seven weeks. The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15) were administered at the following three time points: baseline, post-test, and follow-up. From baseline to post-test, there is a statistically significant difference in depressive symptoms (F=7.494; P=.010) explaining 21% of the variance (partial eta squared [ηp(2)]=.21), power=.75, but there is no statistically significant difference in cognition. From post-test to follow-up, there is no difference in both cognition and depression outcomes. Our results showed improvement in elders' depressive symptoms after a seven weeks intervention program but it did not have a protective effect after the three months follow-up. No evidence was found for its efficacy in improving cognition. Cognitive stimulation may be a useful in preventing elder's depressive symptoms when included in their health promotion care plan. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Under treated Breast Cancer in the Elderly

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Malik, M.K.; Tartter, P.I.; Belfer, R.

2013-01-01

The effect of under treatment with adjuvant hormonal therapy, chemotherapy, or radiation was studied in elderly women with breast cancer. A prospectively maintained database was used to identify women undergoing potentially curative surgery between 1978 and 2012. The presentation, pathologic findings, treatment, and outcomes of 382 women over 70 were compared to the findings in 2065 younger patients. Subsequently, conventionally treated and under treated elderly patients were identified and their characteristics and outcomes were compared. Both young and old patients presented most frequently with mammographic findings, but older patients presented more frequently with mammographic masses while younger patients presented more frequently with mammographic calcifications. Cancers of older patients were significantly more favorable than cancers in younger patients: smaller, with more infiltrating lobular, fewer ductal carcinoma in situ, and more frequently estrogen receptor positive and fewer were poorly differentiated. Elderly patients had less axillary sampling, fewer mastectomies, less adjuvant radiation therapy, and more hormonal therapy. Fifty-one percent of the 382 elderly patients were under treated by conventional criteria. Under treated patients were more frequently in situ, better differentiated, smaller, and more often estrogen receptor positive. Forty-four percent of the under treated patients died during followup without disease recurrence. Despite under treatment, local and distant disease-free survival was comparable to patients who were not under treated.