Losing smell and taste signals COVID-19 infection with high recovery likelihood: study
By
Alicia Lasek
Apr 13, 2020
Patients with smell and taste loss are more than 10 times more likely to have a COVID-19 infection than another virus, report researchers.
Q&A: Clinical best practices when gauging residents’ end-of-life preferences — a POLST expert weighs...
By
Alicia Lasek
Apr 29, 2021
There’s a clear need to improve the quality of Physician’s Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment, or POLST, in nursing homes, says Susan E. Hickman, Ph.D. An expert on the subject, she spoke with...
Free LTC infection prevention tool from Yale aims to help nursing home staff save time
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 09, 2021
A one-stop set of infection prevention resources is meant to make work a bit easier for direct care providers, administrators, managers and support staff, say the Yale School of Nursing and the New York...
Residents’ lack of energy may signal malnutrition; full assessment advised
By
Alicia Lasek
Aug 10, 2021
In a study of 13 nursing homes, fully 43% of residents reported that they lacked energy, and 12% were malnourished. The two problems were significantly linked, investigators say.
FDA approves first-ever eye drop that corrects age-related vision loss
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 02, 2021
The new drug, Vuity, adjusts pupil size and corrects near vision without affecting distance vision, drugmaker Allergan says.
On eve of Alzheimer’s drug decision, Congress critiques FDA for Aduhelm review failures
By
Alicia Lasek
Jan 03, 2023
An “atypical review process and corporate greed” factored into the FDA’s approval of Alzheimer’s drug Aduhelm in 2021, congressional investigators say. They recommend sticking to protocol...
FDA OKs new insulin biosimilar for type 2 diabetes
By
Alicia Lasek
Jul 30, 2021
Semglee is a safe and more cost-effective alternative to the drug Lantus (insulin glargine), the agency announced Wednesday. Semglee does not need a prescriber’s input to be substituted at the pharmacy.
Dementia toolkit for clinicians underscores urgency of early diagnosis
By
Alicia Lasek
Mar 31, 2021
A primary care toolkit for brain health assessment and dementia diagnosis has gotten a much-needed update as more research points to the potential for better outcomes with earlier diagnoses, the authors...
LTC docs push for more training, competency requirements for medical directors
By
Alicia Lasek
Apr 11, 2022
It’s time for Congress and CMS to take action and raise the profile and competencies of industry clinicians — especially medical directors, according to long-term care physician advocate AMDA.
Cannabis-related issues sending more seniors to the ED, study finds
By
Alicia Lasek
Jan 12, 2023
Cannabis-related ED visits for older adults shot up by a whopping 1,800% between 2005 to 2019 in California, investigators say. The state’s experience mirrors national trends.