What happens when you find out your diagnosis from a patient portal, instead of your doctor? For more than a year, my mom suffered from a persistent, baffling cough. Two negative bronchoscopy procedures and several imaging scans later, her doctors still couldn’t figure out why she was coughing. Her pulmonologist scheduled an exploratory biopsy. A […]
Extreme cold and heat put seniors’ lives at risk. Know which thermostat settings are safe for older adults — and why. Temperature regulation is a serious health concern for older adults, especially when the facilities they live in don’t enable them to control their own thermostats. This proved lethal for three individuals in May 2022 […]Read More
Keep your loved ones with dementia safe through this holiday’s winter storms. While the snow, wind, and colder temps coming this week are a major inconvenience for most of us, for individuals with dementia, they can be life-threatening. The fact that the winter storm’s arrival coincides with the holidays is creating a quandary for families […]Read More
Communication-based healthcare apps stand to improve complex care coordination, which is especially important for older adults Consider all of the care providers involved in the typical person’s medical care: primary care physician, therapist, gynecologist or urologist, dentist, dermatologist….the list tends to increase with age. And the more people involved, the more easily things — appointments, […]Read More
Hearing aids and support groups help people counter hearing loss Picture the scene: A person with hearing impairment claims they don’t have a problem. They say they can hear perfectly fine, if only others stopped mumbling all the time. Meanwhile family members — tired of endlessly shouting or repeating themselves — plead with their […]Read More
Managing the risks of multiple medications More is not always better — especially when it comes to medications. Taking too many medications increases the risk for adverse drug reactions — a particularly acute problem for older adults. Adults age 65 and older visit the emergency department three times more often for medication-related adverse events than […]Read More
Why we shrink as we age, and how to preserve height In our youth, our height gradually increases, reaching our maximum peak around age 20. Afterward, our body’s bone density reduces over time, and we may begin to shrink. Men’s height shrinks by about an inch between the ages of 30 to 70, while women’s […]Read More
Older adults navigate pandemic restrictions, balancing safety with socialization When Illinois officials lifted pandemic mask mandates in February, Linda Balla, who is fully vaccinated, gave considerable thought as to whether to wear a mask. At 72, she is in a high-risk age group for complications from Covid-19. Ever since Covid-19 restrictions loosened — and now […]Read More
In January, actor and comedian Bob Saget, 65, died from accidental blunt head trauma, according to the final report from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. He likely hit his head on a surface in his hotel room and passed away in his sleep, according to a statement from his family. Saget’s tragic death grabbed headlines. […]Read More
Many of us will have experienced some unexpected honesty from the older people in our lives. Whether it’s grandma telling you your outfit is unflattering or grandpa saying he doesn’t like the meal you’ve prepared, we often explain it away by saying “Oh, don’t mind grandpa, he’s just lost his filter.” But do we really […]Read More
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