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If you are an older adult with recurring episodes of cough wheezing, chest tightness, or difficulty breathing, you may have asthma. Are you surprised? There is a common misconception among [...]

The risk of herpes zoster in older blacks was approximately one-third that of older whites, study findings showed. 'This racial difference may have important implications in understanding the activity of [...]

I LIVED MANY years with a lot of self-doubt, wondering what was wrong with me," says Winnie Imperio. "I did really well in high school, but only because the environment [...]

Although the coexistence of chronic conditions (i.e., comorbidity) is considered common in the older population, there has been little systematic evaluation of the prevalence, patterns, and impact of comorbidity in [...]

Some 3-6% of elderly people in the UK suffer from non-insulin dependent diabetes, and sometimes following a diet can be sufficient to control the symptoms. The British Diabetes Assn. advises diabetics to have a full medical examination and speak to a dietician, who should warn them of the symptoms of hypoglycaemia. It is essential to inform the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency. Doctors should check the eyes, nerves and kidneys for complications. Pupils are dilated to examine the eyes; a tuning fork is used to test for nerve damage; urine specimens are tested for protein to determine kidney malfunction.

Many elderly people suffer from myxoedema, or insufficient thyroxide production, leaving them feeling listless. It can easily be mistaken for senile dementia in older people, who should be given a blood test. Myxoedema is readily treatable with thyroxine tablets, which restore the body's basic metabolic rate. Other symptoms of myxoedema include dry skin, flushed cheeks, and loss of the outer parts of the eyebrows.. Sufferers' blood vessels become congested, so fluid and protein escapes into the tissue, because the pulse rate is reduced.

Some 11% of AIDS sufferers are over 50, and the elderly HIV-positive, who generally deteriorate and die more rapidly than younger sufferers, are frequently on their own and immobile, but they are often overlooked and unwilling to use AIDS organisations. AIDS education for both heterosexuals and homosexuals tends to focus on younger people. Age Concern has published a report entitled 'A Crisis of Silence: HIV, Aids and Older People'.

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) presents serious problems in the elderly. However, there are some lifestyle modifications that staff should be aware of that can reduce the symptoms and even help [...]

University of Pittsburgh dental medicine researchers have found that age, not only tobacco and alcohol use, may affect a person's risk for developing oral cancer. A study of 307 women [...]

American Society of Colon & Rectal Surgeons The age of patients afflicted with rectal cancer has little effect on long-term survival rates, according to two studies presented at the 89th [...]

SOURCE: Journal of Clinical Oncology, February, 1990; 8(2):272-279. Chemotherapy with low-dose cytarabine appears to result in fewer treatment-related deaths and longer partial remissions than intensive chemotherapy in the treatment of [...]

Older people who are normal weight can have the metabolic syndrome--also known as insulin resistance syndrome or Syndrome X--if their fat is stored in the wrong places. You have the [...]

Older people who lower the thermostat to cut heating bills raise their risk of hypothermia, a potentially fatal condition in which the body's temperature drops for a prolonged period. Hypothermia […]

Source: Murphy C, et al. JAMA. 2002;2.88:2307-2312. DESPITE WIDESPREAD ATTENTION to the demographics and management of hearing and visual impairments in older adults, there has been little study of olfactory [...]

Although HIV/AIDS is continuing to have an enormous impact on the public health of all persons in general, it appears to be taking an unfair toll on the elderly population. [...]

How widespread is Alzheimer's? On November 7, a news release from the National Institute on Aging came across my desk. "Embargoed for Release: Thursday, November 9, 1989, 5:30 p.m. EST" […]

Don't forget about the elderly -- they need AIDS education, too Medical and government leaders, educators, and activists are all talking about AIDS, but you seldom hear how the disease [...]

/ADVANCE FOR RELEASE AT 5:30 P.M., EST, TODAY/ NEW ESTIMATES ON PREVALENCE OF ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE PROMPT CALLS FOR GREATER RESEARCH EFFORT /ADVANCE/ CHICAGO, Nov. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- The Alzheimer's Association [...]

/ C O R R E C T I O N / In CH7, Bowman Gray Part of Largest Study of Heart Disease in Elderly, that ran earlier today, the [...]

COALITION PUSHES FUNDING TO CURE AGING DISEASES ON PAR WITH AIDS, CANCER WASHINGTON, Feb. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- A coalition of 20 of the nation's most prominent health and aging organizations, [...]

>R N % TO CITY AND ASSIGNMENT DESKS, MEDICAL EDITOR: /NEWS ADVISORY/ BOSTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE'S CARDIOVASCULAR INSTITUTE TO SPONSER POLICY CONFERENCE ON HYPERTENSION AND THE ELDERLY On Thursday, [...]

The pattern of risk for pancreatic cancer is poorly understood; the disease progresses so rapidly that many patients die before they can be located and interviewed by epidemiologic researchers. Retrospective [...]

SOURCE: Cancer, May 1, 1994;73(9):2417-2425. According to the authors' abstract of an article published in Cancer, 'Background: The Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program of the National Cancer Institute [...]

Have you had a tetanus booster recently? If you can't remember, you are not alone. Only 38% of Canadian adults surveyed could recall the date of their last tetanus immunization. [...]