The current vaccine trials may be too focused on mild rather than severe disease, some advisors contend. But their arguments got pushback in a meeting streamed on the agency’s YouTube channel.
Clinicians should be aware of preoperative opioid exposure levels to ensure older patients’ safe recovery, and to help determine the dosage of post-surgical painkillers, researchers say.
The diseases are independent risk factors for dying from COVID-19, according to a nationwide analysis in England (diabetes) and a large study in the U.S. (Parkinson’s)
Official records do not capture dementia’s outsized impact on mortality rates in the United States, according to an analysis of nursing home data.
Among 250 hospitalized study participants, 75% survived the disease. Degree of frailty better indicated the likelihood of recovery and discharge than patient age, investigators say.
After a June drop in infections, an “alarming” July spike among nursing home residents put rates nearly back where they were in May. The numbers are not surprising, industry observers say.
The prevalence of common conditions tied to severe COVID-19 ranged from 30% for obesity to 3% for chronic kidney disease, the agency reports.
Lack of social connections may lead to unfulfilled care needs and poor health outcomes in frail older adults. Investigators suggest targeted interventions.
Clinicians who facilitate better sleep in seniors may help to improve their health, say investigators. In more than 2,600 study participants, there was a 13% higher mortality rate over 12 years for every 5% reduction in REM sleep.
The risk of dying from a heart attack or stroke was lower by 20% in elders who took statins. In fact, age and dementia diagnosis had no bearing on statin benefits, say researchers.
