by Karen Harrison Dening  and Zena Aldridge

Received: 26 February 2019;  Published: 10 May 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.geriatr.1902053

People with dementia do not exist in isolation and whilst there has been a strong thrust to identify the needs of people with dementia against a background of person centred care, they live within relational contexts with family members. Case management is a model of care that can support the care needs of both the person with dementia and the family carers through coordinating care and services that are both integrated across health and social care but also carer that is sensitive to the needs of different member [...]

by Lindy A. Kilik  and Robert W. Hopkins

Received: 01 March 2019;  Published: 09 May 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.geriatr.1902052

Background: Clinical studies have shown that caregivers of dementia patients often experience a great deal of stress related to caregiving. This paper examines caregiver stress within the context of behaviour change in dementia using the Kingston Caregiver Stress Scale (KCSS) and the Kingston Standardized Behaviour Scale (Community Form) (KSBA(comm)). Methods: Eighty patients with moderate dementia and their caregivers participated. Each patient was cognitively assessed with the Kingston S [...]

by Gian Andrea Rollandi  , Aldo Chiesa  , Nicoletta Sacchi  , Mauro Castagnetta  , Matteo Puntoni  , Adriana Amaro  , Barbara Banelli  and Ulrich Pfeffer

Received: 31 January 2019;  Published: 05 May 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.geriatr.1902051

Aging is associated with an increasing incidence of major diseases among which cancer, cardiovascular, neurodegenerative, metabolic and autoimmune diseases. Primary prevention and early diagnosis of these diseases have a dramatic impact on incidence, outcome and quality of life and are commonly applied as age-dependent indications based on evidence of efficacy for specific groups of the aging population. They likely contribute to the observed increase in life expectancy through the reduction of incidence and the re [...]

by Claire Thompson  , Daniela Calafiore  , Julijana Chochovski  , Steven Trawley  and Kathryn von Treuer

Received: 29 October 2018;  Published: 26 April 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.geriatr.1902050

(1) Background: The increasing numbers and proportion of the ageing population make it essential to develop and evaluate programs to meet the needs of older adults to empower them to age actively, healthily and successfully. Consequently, positive ageing programs have been developed and the need to evaluate their efficacy is essential. This study used mixed methods to evaluate a longstanding positive ageing psychoeducation program “SAGE” conducted in Australia. (2) Methods: Two approaches were utilised. The first [...]

by Michael P. Cary  , Valerie A. Smith  , Megan Shepherd-Banigan  , Jennifer H. Lindquist  , Jennifer G. Chapman  , Susan N. Hastings  and Courtney H. Van Houtven

Received: 22 February 2019;  Published: 18 April 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.geriatr.1902049

Background: Moderator analyses may be helpful for evaluating intervention effects. The objective of this study was to evaluate whether the effect of a caregiver skills training intervention – Helping Invested Families Improve Veterans' Experience Study (HI-FIVES) – on care recipient outcome and caregiver outcome is moderated by the veteran’s risk for hospitalization or level of functional impairment. Methods: Secondary data analysis of HI-FIVES. Outcomes included community days (cumulative days in the community at [...]

by Keith A. Wollen  and John W. Hoyt

Received: 15 February 2019;  Published: 18 April 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.geriatr.1902048

Abstract Background: Cognitive abilities in Alzheimer’s Disease are usually examined by formal tests conducted in a laboratory or facility. Such tests are useful for determining the severity of the disease but do not indicate the types of cognition exhibited in the daily lives of patients. This study shows cognitive preservation in daily life by a woman given multiple therapeutic interventions. Since Alzheimer’s disease involves multiple dysfunctions, several studies found multiple therapeutic approaches to be effe [...]

by Joseph V. Pergolizzi, Jr.  and Jo Ann LeQuang

Received: 13 November 2018;  Published: 17 April 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.geriatr.1902047

As the 80 million “baby boomers” reach retirement, they bring their relaxed attitudes toward drug use to create a clinically significant population of geriatric drug abusers. Opioid use disorder (OUD) brings with it special considerations in the elderly population: age-related changes to drug disposition, brain changes in the elderly, polypharmacy, and the likelihood of comorbid conditions (such as cardiovascular or pulmonary diseases) and pain syndromes. Thirteen percent of patients in a New York city methadone cl [...]

by Kristy Lui  , Darlene Yee-Melichar  and Emiko Takagi

Received: 31 October 2018;  Published: 08 April 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.geriatr.1902046

This research review intended to examine the patterns of engagement in advance care planning (ACP) and utilization of end-of-life (EoL) care treatment services including, but not limited to hospice care, in distinct older Asian American ethnic groups. The research analysis suggested evidence that studies about different older subpopulations of Asian Americans remains scarce. This research systematically collected and analysed 28 small-scale studies on older Asian Americans’ attitudes and engagement in EoL care plan [...]

by Steve Liebich

Received: 02 February 2019;  Published: 04 April 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.geriatr.1902045

Telomere shortening in the somatic cells is one of the most well-documented factors of cellular ageing. Telomeres are composed of tandem hexanucleotide repeats that protect cells from unwanted recombination mechanisms, secure the ends of chromosomes and their stability, and are responsible for limited division capacity. Telomerase is an enzymatic ribonucleoprotein complex, present in embryonic cells, adult stem cells, and germinal progenitors, whose function is to extend the telomeres length by adding the lost tand [...]

by Olga Zichnali  , Despina Moraitou  , Christos Pezirkianidis  and Anastasios Stalikas

Received: 30 October 2018;  Published: 03 April 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.geriatr.1902044

Background: The present study examined the efficacy of two self-guided interventions, which aimed at enhancing adults’ wellbeing through the cultivation of forgiveness skills. Methods: A total of 11 men and 31 women aged 34-80 years were involved (M = 56.57, S.D. = 13.44). The participants were asked to complete questionnaires measuring the sense of wellbeing, the trait of forgiveness, and avoidance, revenge, and benevolence motivations. Subsequently, they were randomly divided into two groups which were matched in [...]