Elderly Healthcare

Research Findings

Research Activities, February 2013:
Bevacizumab, when added to chemotherapy regimen for elderly patients with lung cancer, does not increase survival rates
Older women with breast cancer experience more complications with brachytherapy than whole breast irradiation

Research Activities, January 2013:
Being a caregiver linked to poor health behaviors among baby boomers
Elderly colon cancer patients receiving chemotherapy after surgery are at risk for various toxicities
Antipsychotic choices in nursing homes partly influenced by nursing home's prescribing culture
Partial kidney removal offers survival advantage for elderly patients with small tumors

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Research Activities, December 2012:
Restorative care appears to lower emergency department visits and falls by nursing home residents
Care processes in nursing home and residential long-term care settings may benefit people with dementia
Review looks at outcomes of patients at different types of long-term care facilities
Medicare Part D coverage gap reduces antidepressant use in the elderly
New tool released that improves the safety of care for nursing home residents

Research Activities, November 2012:
Seniors learn some things from prescription drug advertisements, but can also be misled
Radiation therapy linked to dry mouth in elderly patients with head and neck cancers

Research Activities, October 2012:
Depression, falls, and low blood sugar affect quality of life as much as diabetes complications in older adults with diabetes
Alcohol may be misused by residents in assisted living places
Elderly blacks less likely than elderly whites to receive a depression diagnosis or treatment

Research Activities, September 2012:
Studies link adverse drug interactions to elevated risk for hospitalization among the elderly
Conventional and atypical antipsychotic drugs show differing safety risks among older nursing home residents
Several factors influence completion of chemotherapy in elderly patients with stage-III colon cancer

Research Activities, August 2012:
JAMA special issue focuses on comparative effectiveness research
Adverse drug reactions a major cause of unplanned hospitalizations of elderly veterans
Certain medications are associated with functional decline in the elderly
Bowel incontinence and other clinical factors predict the development of pressure ulcers
Introduction of hospice services by nursing homes does not significantly affect nursing assistant staffing

Research Activities, July 2012:
Study results argue against decisions about screening colonoscopy based on age alone
Key treatments for high blood pressure and high blood lipids do not reduce elderly patients' risk of limited mobility
Study identifies demographic and clinical factors related to fractures among older Americans
Hard-of-hearing individuals more likely to report difficulties in accessing care

Research Activities, June 2012:
Patients recovering in the hospital from total knee or hip replacement have increased risk of falls
Clinicians find triggers and algorithms in e-prescribing software helpful in avoiding inappropriate medications in older adults
Risks high for elderly patients receiving angioplasty to fix narrowed heart artery
Several risk factors point to the use of high-risk medications in older veterans
Drug industry-sponsored patient assistance programs are seldom used by older adults
Study of Medicare beneficiaries validates Medical Expenditure Panel Survey's prescription drug data

Research Activities, May 2012:
Research review finds support for some off-label uses of atypical antipsychotic medications

Research Activities, April 2012:
Elders and families find it difficult to interpret data from passive sensors that help monitor elderly activity
Improving quality of care for falls and urinary incontinence also improves quality of life in elderly patients
Lower flu vaccination rates for black nursing home residents a cause for concern

Research Activities, March 2012:
Older patients with chronic conditions have greater risk of problems and death following bilateral knee replacement
Diagnosis and treatment rates for depression in older adults have grown over time, with medication edging out therapy

Research Activities, February 2012:
Depression, hearing impairment, and health literacy influence older adults' abilities to self-manage their care
Study finds potentially suboptimal use of antidepressants for residents in Veterans Affairs nursing homes

Research Activities, January 2012:
Residents should document sexual history during health care maintenance visits for older, asymptomatic adults
State regulation of care quality is costly to nursing homes
Clinical informatics monitoring tool helps reduce adverse drug events in nursing home settings
Lower educational level increases the likelihood of preclinical changes in mobility in older women
More seniors getting pneumonia shots, but some lag behind

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Research Activities, December 2011:
Human factors challenges in home health care
Three Publications Highlight Human Factors Research

Research Activities, November 2011:
Fecal occult blood tests and followup need to be better targeted to healthy older adults

Research Activities, October 2011:
Study identifies fractures most and least likely to be caused by osteoporosis

Research Activities, September 2011:
Informal caregivers of older adults need more practical information to care for loved ones
Anxiety is common among older adults receiving care from aging services agencies

Research Activities, August 2011:
High performance on quality measures linked to financial benefits for nursing homes
Patients with heart failure are older, have more illnesses, and take more medications than earlier
Studies examine possible disparities surrounding implantable cardioverter defibrillators

Research Activities, July 2011:
Studies examine safety of pain killers among older adults
Communication problems between hospitalists and primary care providers lead to postdischarge problems for seniors

Research Activities, June 2011:
Patient gender does not influence the management or diagnosis of acute abdominal pain in the elderly, but affects outcome
Mental status deficits a major factor in elderly falls in the hospital
Older persons with chronic kidney disease and lower systolic blood pressure have higher mortality rates
Elders' preferences for end-of-life care are not captured by documentation in their medical records

Research Activities, May 2011:
Low health literacy linked to higher risk of death and more emergency room visits and hospitalizations

Research Activities, April 2011:
Korean Americans with high blood pressure who are confident they can achieve blood pressure control are more likely to do so
Patients' income and where they live influence hospitalization for chronic lung disease

Research Activities, March 2011:
Colony-stimulating factor is effective in reducing infection for elderly patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma on chemotherapy
Anemia is common among nursing home residents and affects their physical functioning
Better hospital quality of care for the elderly is associated with lower mortality after discharge
More nursing home residents are receiving hospice care
Approximately 5 percent of seniors report one or more cognitive disorders
Routine osteoporosis screening recommended for all women over age 65

Research Activities, February 2011:
Nurse-facilitated guided care for elders and their caregivers leads to improved perceptions of quality of care
Use of physician extenders associated with increase in antidepressant prescribing in nursing homes
Gender trumps religiosity in older Mexican Americans' views on physician-assisted suicide
More than one in five hospital patients in 2008 were born in 1933 or earlier

Research Activities, January 2011:
Black Medicare patients less likely than whites to follow their doctor's instructions on taking medicines
Public reporting on quality of care has definite, if modest, effects on nursing home care improvement
Public report cards prompt nursing homes to spend more on clinical services
Nursing home hospice patients are not receiving adequate treatment for nonpain symptoms
Review looks at approaches to improve drug prescribing in nursing homes
Rates of emergency department use greater among women and low-income, older, and rural Americans

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Research Activities, December 2010:
Dependent elderly people are adversely affected by HIV/AIDS in Africa
Risk factors for cognitive decline still murky
Four million hospital admissions potentially unnecessary
Older Americans getting pneumonia shots, but not enough

Research Activities, October 2010:
For elderly patients with depression, cost-sharing insurance policies reduce drug use without increasing use of care
Rural elderly with dementia are hospitalized more often for conditions that primary care visits might have caught

Research Activities, September 2010:
Blacks with lung cancer have higher mortality rates than whites
Study shows Guided Care benefits family caregivers, chronically ill older adults, and physicians, and may reduce costs
Benefits of chemotherapy for elderly patients with lung cancer must be weighed against risk of long-term toxicities
Measure of inappropriate prescribing predicts risk of adverse drug events in older adults
Early followup with a physician reduces readmissions for Medicare patients hospitalized for heart failure
Use of physical restraint in nursing homes cut by half in 8 years

Research Activities, July 2010:
Elderly lung cancer patients experience more adverse events during chemotherapy than younger patients
Implantable heart defibrillator is effective in reducing deaths among older heart failure patients
Evidence inconclusive regarding prevention of Alzheimer's disease and cognitive decline

Research Activities, June 2010:
Disadvantages in housing, food, and health care all predict health declines in older Americans
Nursing homes using more agency staff have lower quality of care
Nursing home physicians and nurses struggle with communication barriers
Developing community health resources entices more elderly patients to seek hospital care locally

Research Activities, May 2010:
Opioid-naïve nursing home residents are commonly prescribed long-acting opioids, a potentially dangerous practice

Research Activities, April 2010:
Older black women with breast cancer do not receive beneficial chemotherapy as often as white women
Aging causes changes in the brain's white matter, which is worsened by hypertension and other vascular problems
Medication review technique may help identify drug-related problems in the elderly
Many older adults with mental health problems do not believe they need help
A guided care approach helps curb health care costs of elderly patients with chronic conditions
Caregiver dissatisfaction affects outpatient care for the elderly with dementia
Cholesterol and diabetes drugs lead drug spending for the elderly

Research Activities, March 2010:
Octogenarians fare well after aortic valve replacements
Nursing home studies focus on the costs of staff turnover rates and selective admission of patients

Research Activities, February 2010:
Many unhealthy people remain happy because they adapt to their medical conditions

Research Activities, January 2010:
Medicare payment caps on home care add to the family caregiving burden, especially among lower-income families
Persons with mental disorders switching from Medicaid to Medicare drug coverage may have drug access problems
Criteria used to identify "drugs to avoid" in the elderly are not very accurate
Antibiotic resistance is prevalent and varied in long-term-care facilities
Computerized decisionmaking systems improve physician prescribing for long-term-care residents

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