CDC may be overestimating COVID-19 vaccination stats for older adults, state officials and experts say
By
Alicia Lasek
Dec 13, 2021
The agency’s online tracker currently shows that 99.9% of U.S. seniors have been at least partly vaccinated against COVID-19. But this sky-high figure is almost certainly not accurate, observers...
Use of common sleep meds nosedives, with 86 percent drop in oldest adults
By
Alicia Lasek
Aug 17, 2022
The use of sleep medications among Americans dropped by 31% just prior to the pandemic, with the steepest decline among adults aged 80 and older, investigators report.
Report: Moderate, severe loneliness linked to higher chance for long-term care, home care
By
Kristen Fischer
Feb 28, 2024
Older adults who are moderately and severely lonely have a higher probability of shifting to a long-term care community or home care compared to those who aren’t lonely — and severely lonely women...
One in 10 older U.S. adults has dementia, new national data show
By
Alicia Lasek
Oct 25, 2022
Ten percent of U.S. seniors have dementia and another 22% have cognitive impairment, finds the first such national study in two decades.
Older adults leave home for healthcare around 3 weeks a year
By
Kristen Fischer
Jan 23, 2024
Older adults receive healthcare outside of their homes an average total of three weeks a year (or 20.7 days), according to a study published Monday in Annals of Internal Medicine.
Expanding nursing assistant best practices may improve pain detection in older adults
By
John Roszkowski
Aug 14, 2023
Expanding the use of best care practices for nursing assistants, who are on the front lines of providing direct nursing home care, may help improve the early detection of pain and pain management for older...
Study probes well-being in older adults — and how it differs globally
By
Kristen Fischer
Dec 05, 2023
A new study examined well-being among older adults. Researchers found that mean well-being does not vary over time, but well-being inequality rises in all countries except those considered high-income...
Vaccinated seniors report more pandemic fears, isolation than unvaccinated peers, poll finds
By
Alicia Lasek
Oct 04, 2021
Vaccinated Americans aged 50 years and older are more worried about infection, more likely to practice social distancing, and more likely to describe their mental health as worse, say researchers at the...
Tooth survival after root canal varies widely across U.S. regions
By
Alicia Lasek (f3)
May 18, 2022
Tooth longevity ranges from about nine to 20 years after a root canal, depending in part on where one lives, a new study has found.
CDC data reveal drug types most linked to emergency department visits among seniors
By
Alicia Lasek
Oct 06, 2021
Emergency department visits for medication harm to older adults most frequently involve prescribed anticoagulants and diabetes drugs, according to a new federal study.