Complex interventions such as preventive home visits and community-based care after hospital discharge can help improve physical function and maintain independent living in older people, according to a Bristol University study of more than 90,000 older people published in this week’s edition of the Lancet. The authors also advise against withdrawal of existing well-developed services for older people.
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According to the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS), 2006 statistics from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) indicate that there were an estimated 1.1 million people treated at U.S. hospital emergency rooms for head injuries related to common products found around the home. The number of head injuries is actually greater, since many people are treated at doctor’s offices, immediate care centers, or do not seek any medical treatment.
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Older adults who don't get enough vitamin D - either from their diets or exposure to the sun - may be at increased risk for poor physical performance and disability, according to new research from Wake Forest University School of Medicine and colleagues.
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A University of Virginia study suggests that older adults are not only more inclined than younger adults to make errors in recollecting details that have been suggested to them, but are also more likely than younger people to have a very high level of confidence in their recollections, even when wrong. The finding has implications regarding the reliability of older persons' eyewitness testimonies in courtrooms.
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Memory training and other non-drug treatments may one day help older adults ward off declines in mental function, according to researchers from Wake Forest University School of Medicine in an editorial in the current issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
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