Medicines commonly used to treat high blood pressure and heart disease may cut the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease and dementia, U.S. scientists said on Wednesday.
Researchers from Boston found that older people taking a certain type of blood pressure medication known as angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) were significantly less likely to develop the brain-wasting illnesses.
Dementia affects some 35 million people around the world and the number of cases -- and their impact on health policy and the economic and social costs of healthcare -- is set to grow dramatically as populations age.
Despite decades of research, doctors still have few effective weapons against dementia and experts commenting on the latest study said it could have major implications.
READ MORE @ REUTERS
Showing posts with label elderlry. Show all posts
Showing posts with label elderlry. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Saturday, November 14, 2009
UK study warns against anti-psychotics for dementia
* Most dementia patients given anti-psychotics needlessly
* Report could inform clinical practice around the world
* Global dementia cases seen doubling to 66 mln by 2030
More than 140,000 dementia patients in Britain are given anti-psychotic drugs needlessly and overprescribing of the medicines is linked to an extra 1,800 deaths in elderly people each year, a report said on Thursday.
The government-backed review showed that only around 36,000 of around 180,000 dementia patients prescribed anti-psychotics got any benefit from them -- findings it said could affect clinical practice in dementia across the world.
"Anti-psychotics are used too often in dementia," Sube Banerjee, the report's author and a professor of mental health and ageing at the Institute of Psychiatry at King's College London, said in a statement.
He said use of anti-psychotics drugs for dementia should be cut to a third of current levels in Britain and said his study would "provide international leadership in this complex clinical area."
Alzheimer's Disease International predicted in September that more than 35 million people around the world will suffer from dementia in 2010. That number is expected to almost double every 20 years, to 66 million in 2030 and more than 115 million in 2050. [ID:nN20262573]
READ MORE @ REUTERS
* Report could inform clinical practice around the world
* Global dementia cases seen doubling to 66 mln by 2030
More than 140,000 dementia patients in Britain are given anti-psychotic drugs needlessly and overprescribing of the medicines is linked to an extra 1,800 deaths in elderly people each year, a report said on Thursday.
The government-backed review showed that only around 36,000 of around 180,000 dementia patients prescribed anti-psychotics got any benefit from them -- findings it said could affect clinical practice in dementia across the world.
"Anti-psychotics are used too often in dementia," Sube Banerjee, the report's author and a professor of mental health and ageing at the Institute of Psychiatry at King's College London, said in a statement.
He said use of anti-psychotics drugs for dementia should be cut to a third of current levels in Britain and said his study would "provide international leadership in this complex clinical area."
Alzheimer's Disease International predicted in September that more than 35 million people around the world will suffer from dementia in 2010. That number is expected to almost double every 20 years, to 66 million in 2030 and more than 115 million in 2050. [ID:nN20262573]
READ MORE @ REUTERS
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Severe COPD Linked to Mental Decline - Doctors need to recognize challenges these patients face, researchers say
Severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease appears linked to lower cognitive function in older adults, making it more difficult for them to remember and perform daily tasks, a new study finds.
Researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City analyzed national data on 4,150 Americans aged 50 and older, including 492 with COPD. Of those, 153 had severe COPD. On a 35-point cognition scale, scores among all COPD patients declined an average of one-point between 1996 and 2002. Further analysis showed that patients with severe COPD had significantly lower scores than those without COPD.
"Our findings should raise awareness that adults with severe COPD are at greater risk for developing cognitive impairment, which may make managing their COPD more challenging, and will likely further worsen their general health and quality of life," study author Dr. William W. Hung said in a news release.
The results suggest that patients with severe COPD have a 22 percent increase in the difficulty they experience with daily tasks.
READ MORE @ FORBES
Researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City analyzed national data on 4,150 Americans aged 50 and older, including 492 with COPD. Of those, 153 had severe COPD. On a 35-point cognition scale, scores among all COPD patients declined an average of one-point between 1996 and 2002. Further analysis showed that patients with severe COPD had significantly lower scores than those without COPD.
"Our findings should raise awareness that adults with severe COPD are at greater risk for developing cognitive impairment, which may make managing their COPD more challenging, and will likely further worsen their general health and quality of life," study author Dr. William W. Hung said in a news release.
The results suggest that patients with severe COPD have a 22 percent increase in the difficulty they experience with daily tasks.
READ MORE @ FORBES
Monday, November 17, 2008
Medication misuse
As people live longer and suffer from more chronic diseases, the risk of inappropriately using drugs or overmedicating increases among the elderly, says Susan Zieman, geriatric cardiologist and assistant professor of medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
Most elderly people are on multiple medications and frequently metabolize drugs differently from younger people, she says. The drugs may build up in their systems and interact with other drugs in unexpected ways.
READ MORE @ BALTIMORE SUN
Most elderly people are on multiple medications and frequently metabolize drugs differently from younger people, she says. The drugs may build up in their systems and interact with other drugs in unexpected ways.
READ MORE @ BALTIMORE SUN
Friday, November 14, 2008
Watch for depression in the elderly - Know the signs, step in if necessary
Experts are quick to say that depression isn't a normal part of aging, nor is it a sign of weakness.
But older family members who suffer from the condition may need your help to overcome those misconceptions and get treatment.
"In the elderly community, there is a lot of stigma still about depression and anxiety," said Dr. Greg Jicha, a neurologist at the University of Kentucky Sanders-Brown Center on Aging. "People are very hesitant to seek out any kind of help for these sorts of things."
Jicha believes it's important for relatives to be alert to signs of depression in older people to help restore joy in their lives and keep them from entering nursing homes too early. He recommends raising a red flag with primary care physicians, who may otherwise miss the signs.
READ MORE @ LOUISVILLE COURIER-JOURNAL
But older family members who suffer from the condition may need your help to overcome those misconceptions and get treatment.
"In the elderly community, there is a lot of stigma still about depression and anxiety," said Dr. Greg Jicha, a neurologist at the University of Kentucky Sanders-Brown Center on Aging. "People are very hesitant to seek out any kind of help for these sorts of things."
Jicha believes it's important for relatives to be alert to signs of depression in older people to help restore joy in their lives and keep them from entering nursing homes too early. He recommends raising a red flag with primary care physicians, who may otherwise miss the signs.
READ MORE @ LOUISVILLE COURIER-JOURNAL
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Drugged-out seniors a prescription for disaster
They are the drugged-out generation, and they're not who you think they are.
They're 80. And 85 and 90 and 95 – overmedicated seniors clogging emergency departments, blocking hospital beds and sicker than they have any reason to be.
The Number 1 drug users in North America, outside of patients in long-term care facilities, are women over the age of 65. Twelve per cent are on 10 or more meds, sometimes up to 20 or more drugs; 23 per cent take at least five drugs. In long-term care, seniors are on six to eight medications, on average. Fifteen per cent of seniors admitted to hospital are suffering drug side effects. It's not uncommon to find seniors dizzy and dotty from being prescribed so many drugs.
"You'd fall down, too, if you were on so many drugs," says Dr. William Dalziel, a prominent Ottawa geriatrician.
Typically, overmedicated seniors have been seen by numerous specialists who have prescribed various medications to treat a host of chronic ailments – high blood pressure, hypertension, diabetes, osteoporosis, arthritis, heart disease, cancer – but there hasn't been any oversight by a geriatrician skilled in looking at the big picture and assessing contra-indications and side effects. Ask any doctor with expertise in seniors what their top health concerns are and they all cite overmedication.
read more @ THE TORONTO STAR
They're 80. And 85 and 90 and 95 – overmedicated seniors clogging emergency departments, blocking hospital beds and sicker than they have any reason to be.
The Number 1 drug users in North America, outside of patients in long-term care facilities, are women over the age of 65. Twelve per cent are on 10 or more meds, sometimes up to 20 or more drugs; 23 per cent take at least five drugs. In long-term care, seniors are on six to eight medications, on average. Fifteen per cent of seniors admitted to hospital are suffering drug side effects. It's not uncommon to find seniors dizzy and dotty from being prescribed so many drugs.
"You'd fall down, too, if you were on so many drugs," says Dr. William Dalziel, a prominent Ottawa geriatrician.
Typically, overmedicated seniors have been seen by numerous specialists who have prescribed various medications to treat a host of chronic ailments – high blood pressure, hypertension, diabetes, osteoporosis, arthritis, heart disease, cancer – but there hasn't been any oversight by a geriatrician skilled in looking at the big picture and assessing contra-indications and side effects. Ask any doctor with expertise in seniors what their top health concerns are and they all cite overmedication.
read more @ THE TORONTO STAR
Sunday, October 26, 2008
States Taking Pharma to Court for Risky Antipsychotic-Prescribing Spree
Certain antipsychotics are leaving legions of children and elderly in chemical straightjackets for treatment of conditions they didn't even have.
Some state legislators are mad as hell and not going to take it anymore.
They've seen state outlays for controversial antipsychotics like Zyprexa grow as much as twelvefold since 2000, with a corresponding growth in side effects like weight gain, blood sugar changes and cholesterol problems.
In March, Alaska won a $15 million settlement from Eli Lilly in a suit to recoup medical costs generated by Medicaid patients who developed diabetes while taking Zyprexa.
Last year Bristol-Myers Squibb settled a federal suit for $515 million charging that it illegally hawked the antipsychotic Abilify to children and the elderly, bilking taxpayers.
Now Idaho, Washington, Montana, Connecticut, California, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Utah, West Virginia, Arkansas and Texas are taking pharma to court over its antipsychotic prescrib-athon that has left the poor and mentally ill in even worse health and legions of children and elderly in chemical straightjackets for treatment of conditions they didn't even have.
The atypical antipsychotics Zyprexa, Risperdal, Seroquel, Abilify and Geodon can be thought of as the credit swaps of the pharmaceutical world.
READ MORE @ ALTERNET
Some state legislators are mad as hell and not going to take it anymore.
They've seen state outlays for controversial antipsychotics like Zyprexa grow as much as twelvefold since 2000, with a corresponding growth in side effects like weight gain, blood sugar changes and cholesterol problems.
In March, Alaska won a $15 million settlement from Eli Lilly in a suit to recoup medical costs generated by Medicaid patients who developed diabetes while taking Zyprexa.
Last year Bristol-Myers Squibb settled a federal suit for $515 million charging that it illegally hawked the antipsychotic Abilify to children and the elderly, bilking taxpayers.
Now Idaho, Washington, Montana, Connecticut, California, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Utah, West Virginia, Arkansas and Texas are taking pharma to court over its antipsychotic prescrib-athon that has left the poor and mentally ill in even worse health and legions of children and elderly in chemical straightjackets for treatment of conditions they didn't even have.
The atypical antipsychotics Zyprexa, Risperdal, Seroquel, Abilify and Geodon can be thought of as the credit swaps of the pharmaceutical world.
READ MORE @ ALTERNET
Friday, April 18, 2008
Antipsychotic Drugs Increase Risk Of Developing Pneumonia In Elderly, Study Suggests
Elderly patients who use antipsychotic drugs have a 60 percent increased risk of developing pneumonia compared to non-users. This risk is highest in the first week following prescription and decreases gradually thereafter. Antipsychotic drugs are frequently used in elderly patients for the treatment of psychosis and behavioral problems associated with dementia and delirium. This study is the first to show that the development of pneumonia is associated with antipsychotic drug use.
“The risk of developing pneumonia is not associated with long-term use, but is the highest shortly after starting the drug,” say Drs. Rob van Marum and Wilma Knol, authors of the study. They caution that “all antipsychotic drugs may be associated with pneumonia in elderly patients.”
READ MORE @ SCIENCE DAILY
“The risk of developing pneumonia is not associated with long-term use, but is the highest shortly after starting the drug,” say Drs. Rob van Marum and Wilma Knol, authors of the study. They caution that “all antipsychotic drugs may be associated with pneumonia in elderly patients.”
READ MORE @ SCIENCE DAILY
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Drugs may increase falls in nursing home residents
Cutting down on medication, especially tranquilizers and antidepressants, and using wheelchairs and bed rails selectively, could help reduce the number of falls among nursing home residents, Swedish researchers report.
"Although freedom-restricting actions cannot eliminate falls totally, our results support the hypothesis that they might be protective when used selectively with fewer...benzodiazepines," Edit Fonad of the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm and colleagues write.
Fonad and her team investigated risk factors for falls among residents of 21 nursing home units over a 4-year period, during which time 2,343 falls occurred.
Patients in wheelchairs were more likely to also be using bed rails, safety belts, sleeping pills and antidepressants. Those who were using bed rails were also more likely to be using safety belts and medication. Patients using safety belts were more likely to be on several different drugs.
READ MORE @ REUTERS
"Although freedom-restricting actions cannot eliminate falls totally, our results support the hypothesis that they might be protective when used selectively with fewer...benzodiazepines," Edit Fonad of the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm and colleagues write.
Fonad and her team investigated risk factors for falls among residents of 21 nursing home units over a 4-year period, during which time 2,343 falls occurred.
Patients in wheelchairs were more likely to also be using bed rails, safety belts, sleeping pills and antidepressants. Those who were using bed rails were also more likely to be using safety belts and medication. Patients using safety belts were more likely to be on several different drugs.
READ MORE @ REUTERS
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