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In November, after a bad fall, 85-year-old Elizabeth Cannon was taken to a hospital outside Philadelphia for six and a half days of “observation,” followed by nearly five months at a nearby nursing home for rehabilitation and skilled nursing care. The cost: more than $40,000.
The hospital insisted that Ms. Cannon had never been formally admitted there as an inpatient, so under federal rules, Medicare would not pay for her nursing home stay. The money would have to come from her pocket.
I am an Alzheimer’s doctor. I practice at a “university-based memory center.” I care for patients with failing brains, and I also care for their families, because you cannot have one without the other.
Technology surrounds me. Beneath me, in a basement encased in concrete, a 220-ton cyclotron spins hydrogen atoms to near light speed, creating a beam of protons to shoot at a cancer. Around me, infusions suites house intravenous pumps delivering powerful medications. There are devices to monitor, pace and even resuscitate hearts. The building itself testifies to invention, a multi-storied glass-and-steel-framed atrium, a kind of crystal palace.
As an only child, Aline Roberts, 57, always knew the role of caregiver for her parents would eventually fall to her. Then when her father was hospitalized after a fall a few days before Christmas 2013, it did. Shortly thereafter, she took the lead in moving her 85-year-old parents out of their home of 40-plus years into an assisted living facility.
“We spoke on the phone daily, often two or three times,” she recalls. She was also regularly on calls with her parents’ health care providers, insurance company and caregivers at the assisted living facility. She made the 10-hour roundtrip drive from her home in Dothan, Ala., to New Orleans at least once a month, if not twice, to check on them in person.
New research putting the spotlight on differences between the sexes when it comes to Alzheimer’s disease.
Among the 5.2 million Americans age 65 or older with Alzheimer’s disease, nearly two-thirds are women reports Dr. Deanna Lites.
This may be because men don’t show the same symptoms so they’re often misdiagnosed.
Almost since she got the devastating news eight years ago, Joanne has been looking forward, without really even knowing it, to the conference to be held in Toronto on Saturday.
Early-onset Alzheimer’s disease caused by a genetic mutation was rife in her husband Ted’s family. His late mother had it. A half-dozen aunts and uncles had or have the disease, and some are now in advanced stages.
In 2007, Ted began to have a few mild symptoms.
It’s difficult to see an aging father reach a point where full independence is impossible. Helping Dad transition from a role of caregiver to that of someone who needs care can be just as difficult—and can begin to feel like an exercise in walking on eggshells. Polite offers of help can be met with stern rebuffs, leaving you feeling helpless.
No one is ever fully ready for the tough, but necessary, conversations with a father who is clinging to his former way of life, but prolonging his struggles could have serious consequences in the long run.
One in 3 seniors dies with Alzheimer’s or another form of dementia, according to the Alzheimer’s Association, and nearly 16 million family members and friends are caregivers. Loretta Veney’s book “Being My Mom’s Mom” outlines many practical do’s and don’ts culled from her own experience with her mother. Here are a few:
Pat Summitt’s fight against Alzheimer’s disease continues, and it has even gained momentum since her death.
Summitt, the longtime Tennessee women’s basketball coach, made sure of that through her efforts the last five years. As soon as she announced her diagnosis in 2011, Summitt vowed to take an active role in leading the battle against the disease that would eventually kill her.
Joan Cronan, the former Tennessee women’s athletic director, recalled Summitt’s determination: “She looked me directly in the eye, and she said, ‘Joan, I thought I was going to be remembered for winning basketball games, but I hope I’m remembered for making a difference in this disease.’”
Barry J. Jacobs knows something about caregiving. Not only does he regularly work with caregivers as a clinical psychologist, he also cared for his mother after she became ill with dementia and osteoarthritis.
“I didn’t enjoy it,” he admits. “But on balance, I’m glad to have done it. I think I did the right thing, and I got my mother into a much better place, living with a level of comfort that she didn’t have otherwise.”
I sat down today and figured out that I was a caregiver of older loved-ones for varying amounts of time and intensity for much of the past 30 years. It started with my dad who died in 1987 at age 83. He had a major stroke about six months earlier and was totally incapacitated - no speech, swallowing, walking - nothing. His mind was still working because he tried to spell out words to express his needs and feelings. “How are you feeling, dad?” I would ask. “D......., E....., A....., D.....,” he responded. It was agonizing to watch. My mom who was 79 at the time was still healthy and able to bear most of the responsibility for watching over him in the nursing home. She didn’t want to drive across town every day so she hired a driver, Bernie, who took her back and forth, and who provided consistent friendship and kindness.
Could an estrogen patch cut Alzheimer's risk among newly postmenopausal women?
According to new findings from researchers at the Mayo Clinic, it could be. The team used data from the Kronos Early Estrogen Prevention Study, which looked at healthy and younger women's reaction to menopausal hormone therapy, to explore the therapy's effects five to 36 months after menopause, when estrogen loss is swift.
They found that women who wore estrogen patches had fewer deposits of beta-amyloid, the plaque found in brains damaged by Alzheimer's disease, according to findings published this month in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease.
A gene related to Alzheimer's disease may start to show effects on brain structure and mental sharpness as early as preschool, a new study suggests.
Researchers have long known that a gene called APOE is related to the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. People who carry a variant of the gene known as e4 have a higher-than-average risk.
The new study confirms what smaller studies have hinted: The gene's effects may be apparent even in early childhood.