Aging Reduces EEG Markers of Recognition Despite Intact Performance: Implications for Forensic Memory Detection

AbstractERP-based forensic memory detection is based on the logic that guilty suspects will hold incriminating knowledge about crimes they have committed, and therefore should show parietal ERP positivities related to recognition when presented with reminders of their crimes. We predicted that such forensic memory detection might however be inaccurate in older adults, because of changes to recognition-related brain activity that occurs with aging. We measured both ERPs and EEG oscillations associated with episodic old/new recognition and forensic memory detection in 30 younger (age < 30) and 30 older (age > 65) adults. EEG oscillations were included as a complementary measure which is less sensitive to temporal variability and component overlap than ERPs. In line with predictions, recognition-related parietal ERP positivities were significantly reduced in the older compared to younger group in both tasks, despite highly similar behavioural performance. We also observed ageing-related reductions in oscillatory markers of recognition in the forensic memory detection test, while the oscillatory effects associated with episodic recognition were similar across age groups. This pattern of results suggests that while both forensic memory detection and episodic recognition are accompanied by ageing-induced reductions in parietal ERP positivities, these reductions may be caused by non-overlapping mechanisms across the two tasks. Our findings suggest that EEG-based forensic memory detection tests are invalid in older populations, limiting their practical applications.

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Comparing age and sex trends of chlamydia, gonorrhoea, hepatitis and syphilis infections in Samoa in 2012 and 2017

Western Pacific Surveillance and Response ◽

10.5365/wpsar.2019.10.2.004 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 1-6

Author(s):

Robert Carney ◽

Michaela Howells ◽

Aaone Tanumafili ◽

Athena Matalavea ◽

Judith Gafa ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Hepatitis B ◽

Age Groups ◽

Older Age ◽

Chlamydia Infection ◽

Prevention Programming ◽

Sexually Transmitted ◽

Factors Associated ◽

The Past ◽

Younger Age ◽

Older Populations

In Samoa, the seroprevalence rates of sexually transmitted infections other than HIV have been endemically high over the past decade, despite years of prevention programming. Odds ratio and χ2 tests were conducted to compare the rates of positivity of chlamydia, gonorrhoea, hepatitis B and C, and syphilis across age groups from 2012 and 2017 surveillance data in Samoa. Young people aged 15–19 years were significantly more likely to have a chlamydia infection compared to all other age groups in both 2012 and 2017. Hepatitis B infections were more common in males and those aged 30 and above in both 2012 and 2017. Hepatitis C had no significant differences in age, but it was more common in males in 2012 and more common in females in 2017. Older age groups (aged 45 and above) were more likely to have a positive syphilis test in both 2014 and 2017 when compared to those aged 15–24 years. The results of this analysis confirm previously observed trends in Samoa for younger age groups’ prevalence of chlamydia and gonorrhoea, and for older age groups’ prevalence of hepatitis B and C. But the analysis also unexpectedly found that older age groups (aged 45 and above) are more likely to test positive for syphilis (for years 2014 and 2017). Further studies are needed to assess behavioural risk factors associated with older populations in order to explain the increase in risk and to design interventions suited to this demographic.

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Trends in Mortality from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease in Alberta: Back to the Future?

Canadian Respiratory Journal ◽

10.1155/1995/543869 ◽

1995 ◽

Vol 2 (2) ◽

pp. 97-103

Author(s):

Tee L Guidotti

Keyword(s):

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease ◽

Older Adults ◽

Pulmonary Disease ◽

Age Groups ◽

Older Age ◽

Chronic Obstructive ◽

Obstructive Pulmonary Disease ◽

Younger Age ◽

Health Related ◽

Health Related Behaviour

Trends in mortality from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in Alberta over 60 years, from 1927 to 1987, for ages 15 and above or both sexes, were examined. There was a striking decline in mortality among older adults in the 1930s and 1940s. a nadir that lasted almost 10 years in the 1950s, and a striking increase thereafter. By 1970, most age groups had returned to levels of the 1930s. This overall trend was observed in both the younger age groups (aged 15 to 50) and older adults, although mortality from COPD in the former disproportionately reflected asthma-related deaths. Subsequently, mortality climbed still higher in older age groups, but not in the younger age groups. The sustained rise in mortality in older age groups after the Second World War is presumably related to smoking habits. Historical trends in Alberta were then compared with Canada as a whole for both sexes over 50 years of age. Although Alberta had a much lower mortality from COPD than Canada as a whole, this difference disappeared by 1980. There is no obvious explanation that would explain all of the observed trends, but they appear more likely to be a consequence of social and environmental conditions, including changes in health-related behaviour, than of major changes in medical management at the time.

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Age-Cohort Differences in Longitudinal Associations Between the Rate of Internet Use and Memory Functioning

Innovation in Aging ◽

10.1093/geroni/igaa057.1321 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 410-410

Author(s):

Vineet Raichur ◽

Lindsay Ryan ◽

Richard Gonzalez ◽

Jacqui Smith

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Episodic Memory ◽

Cognitive Complexity ◽

Internet Use ◽

Age Groups ◽

Word Recall ◽

Use Patterns ◽

Younger Age ◽

Rate Of Increase ◽

Over Time

Abstract Cross-sectional analyses of internet use patterns among older adults find that the rate of internet use is less with greater physical and memory difficulties. It is not clear, however, how age-cohorts differ in their internet use as physical and memory difficulties increase over time. In addition to factors such as increasing accessibility (cost) and social influences, the expansion and cognitive complexity of functions performed by the internet-enabled devices over time could influence internet use patterns. In this study, we investigate how the association between internet use and episodic memory difficulties over time varies between cohorts. We analyzed longitudinal data from the Health and Retirement Study (N = 15,703 in 2002; Aged 51 and older) between years 2002-2016 using mixed effects logistic regression models. Immediate and delayed word recall measures were used to assess episodic memory. Rate of internet use in the sample increased from 30% in 2002 to 53% in 2016. Rate of internet use among younger age groups was significantly higher in the baseline year. Younger age groups also showed a significantly higher rate of increase in internet use over time. In general, internet use decreased with episodic memory impairment. In addition to these effects, the effect of episodic memory on the rate of increase in internet use over time is lower in younger cohorts. These results indicate that younger cohorts of older adults are more likely to maintain internet use as they continue to age and therefore could better utilize technology for communication, social interactions and health interventions.

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Housing Transitions and Recovery of Older Adults Following Hurricane Sandy

The Journals of Gerontology Series B ◽

10.1093/geronb/gby126 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 74 (6) ◽

pp. 1041-1052 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Alexis A Merdjanoff ◽

Rachael Piltch-Loeb ◽

Sarah Friedman ◽

David M Abramson

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Age Groups ◽

Family Health ◽

Hurricane Sandy ◽

Younger Adults ◽

Younger Age ◽

Observational Cohort ◽

Emergency Housing ◽

Young Old ◽

Post Disaster

Abstract Objectives This study explores the effects of social and environmental disruption on emergency housing transitions among older adults following Hurricane Sandy. It is based upon the Sandy Child and Family Health (S-CAFH) Study, an observational cohort of 1,000 randomly sampled New Jersey residents living in the nine counties most affected by Sandy. Methods This analysis examines the post-Sandy housing transitions and recovery of the young-old (55–64), mid-old (65–74), and old-old (75+) compared with younger adults (19–54). We consider length of displacement, number of places stayed after Sandy, the housing host (i.e., family only, friends only, or multi-host), and self-reported recovery. Results Among all age groups, the old-old (75+) reported the highest rates of housing damage and were more likely to stay in one place besides their home, as well as stay with family rather than by themselves after the storm. Despite this disruption, the old-old were most likely to have recovered from Hurricane Sandy. Discussion Findings suggest that the old-old were more resilient to Hurricane Sandy than younger age groups. Understanding the unique post-disaster housing needs of older adults can help identify critical points of intervention for their post-disaster recovery.

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WHY DON’T OLDER ADULTS USE SENIOR CENTERS? EVIDENCE FROM A SAMPLE OF MASSACHUSETTS ADULTS AGE 50 AND OLDER

Innovation in Aging ◽

10.1093/geroni/igz038.1845 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. S498-S498

Author(s):

Ceara Somerville ◽

Nidya Velasco Roldan ◽

Cindy N Bui ◽

Caitlin E Coyle

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Age Groups ◽

Community Dwelling ◽

Senior Center ◽

Community Resource ◽

Senior Centers ◽

Data Set ◽

Younger Age ◽

And Gender ◽

Vast Range

Abstract Senior centers are an integral community resource, providing programs and services intended to meet the vast range of needs and interests of older adults. There is a growing literature describing senior center participants and benefits to participation, but little is known about those who choose not to participate at a local senior center. This presentation uniquely characterizes non-users of senior centers, based on a sample of community-dwelling adults aged 50+ from seven communities in Massachusetts (N = 9,462). To date, this is the largest data set that describes senior center usage. Most of the sample were women (60%) and in the 60-69 age group (36%). More than three quarters of the sample do not use the local senior center (77%). The most common reasons for non-usage were lack of interest (27%) and not feeling old enough (26%). There are significant differences in reasons of non-usage among age groups and gender (p < .001). Younger age groups’ (50-69) most popular reasons for non-usage were not feeling old enough, not having time, inconvenient senior center hours, and not knowing what is offered. In contrast, older age groups (80+) more frequently reported having no interest or using programs elsewhere. Men were more likely to report not being interested and not being familiar with what is offered. Women were more likely to report not having time, inconvenient hours of programming, and using programs elsewhere. Based on results from this study, this presentation will outline implications for the future of senior centers and their programming.

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Use of seroprevalence to guide dengue vaccination plans for older adults in a dengue non-endemic country

PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases ◽

10.1371/journal.pntd.0009312 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 15 (4) ◽

pp. e0009312

Author(s):

Yi-Hua Pan ◽

Mei-Ying Liao ◽

Yu-Wen Chien ◽

Tzong-Shiann Ho ◽

Hui-Ying Ko ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Adult Population ◽

Age Groups ◽

The Elderly ◽

Denv Infection ◽

Serum Samples ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Southern Taiwan ◽

Older Populations ◽

Age Range

A shift in dengue cases toward the adult population, accompanied by an increased risk of severe cases of dengue in the elderly, has created an important emerging issue in the past decade. To understand the level of past DENV infection among older adults after a large dengue outbreak occurred in southern Taiwan in 2015, we screened 1498 and 2603 serum samples from healthy residents aged ≥ 40 years in Kaohsiung City and Tainan City, respectively, to assess the seroprevalence of anti-DENV IgG in 2016. Seropositive samples were verified to exclude cross-reaction from Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV), using DENV/JEV-NS1 indirect IgG ELISA. We further identified viral serotypes and secondary DENV infections among positive samples in the two cities. The overall age-standardized seroprevalence of DENV-IgG among participants was 25.77% in Kaohsiung and 11.40% in Tainan, and the seroprevalence was significantly higher in older age groups of both cities. Although the percentages of secondary DENV infection in Kaohsiung and Tainan were very similar (43.09% and 44.76%, respectively), DENV-1 and DENV-2 spanned a wider age range in Kaohsiung, whereas DENV-2 was dominant in Tainan. As very few studies have obtained the serostatus of DENV infection in older adults and the elderly, this study highlights the need for further investigation into antibody status, as well as the safety and efficacy of dengue vaccination in these older populations.

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INTERNET USE AND LONELINESS: CURE OR CAUSE? LONGITUDINAL ANALYSIS OF OLDER ADULTS’ INTERNET USE

Innovation in Aging ◽

10.1093/geroni/igz038.051 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. S14-S14

Author(s):

Elena Hees ◽

Clemens Tesch-Römer ◽

Oliver Huxhold

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Structural Equation ◽

Internet Use ◽

Age Groups ◽

The Internet ◽

Equation Modelling ◽

Younger Age ◽

Using Data ◽

German Ageing Survey ◽

Two Age Groups

Abstract The internet provides an indispensable platform for social interaction, entertainment and everyday tasks. Especially older adults might benefit from staying engaged online to counteract loneliness. Yet, current research on how internet use effects loneliness still paints a contradictory picture. The current study investigates the longitudinal influence of social internet use forms as opposed to general internet use on loneliness across three years (2014-2017) separately in two age groups (pre-retirement: 40-64 years and post-retirement: 65-85 years), using data from the German Ageing Survey (DEAS). Structural equation modelling shows, that general web use predicts an increase in loneliness in both age-groups. However, contacting friends and family online seems to protect against loneliness over and above the effect of overall internet use, at least for the younger age-group. Therefore, the current study underlines the importance of investigating what exactly people do online instead of seeing the internet as a homogenous tool.

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Design of Telephone Answering Machines for Older Adults

Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting ◽

10.1177/1071181397041002142 ◽

1997 ◽

Vol 41 (2) ◽

pp. 1367-1367

Author(s):

Chin Chin Lee ◽

Jessica D'Agostini ◽

Sara J. Czaja ◽

Joseph Sharit

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Older People ◽

Age Differences ◽

Task Analysis ◽

Age Groups ◽

Older Age ◽

Hearing Impairments ◽

Usage Patterns ◽

Automatic Teller Machines

Older adults frequently have difficulty when attempting to use various forms of technology such as computers or automatic teller machines. This study evaluated the usability of telephone answering machines for older adults. Initially, a task analysis of four commonly used answering machines was performed to identify the subtasks involved in using an answering machine. A questionnaire was then developed which assessed usage patterns and usability issues associated with answering machines. This questionnaire was administered to a sample of 68 people aged 65+ yrs. and 50 people aged 20 — 30 yrs. The data indicated that most older people own answering machines and perceive them as useful. There were, however, some age differences in aspects of usability. The older adults were more likely to have difficulty understanding messages than the younger people and to perceive the messages as distorted. Further, the older people reported that they have difficulty replaying messages and accessing messages remotely. The results also indicated that older people with hearing impairments were more likely to have problems with message distortion than those without hearing impairments. Overall, the data suggest features of answering machines which affect the usability of this technology for older age groups. Data is currently being collected regarding the ability of a sample of older people to perform a common set of tasks using two different answering machines. The results from the research are being used to develop recommendations for improving the design of telephone answering machines for people of all age groups.

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Comparison of anthropometric data quality in children aged 6-23 and 24-59 months: lessons from population-representative surveys from humanitarian settings

BMC Nutrition ◽

10.1186/s40795-020-00385-0 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 6 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Oleg Bilukha ◽

Alexia Couture ◽

Kelly McCain ◽

Eva Leidman

Keyword(s):

Data Quality ◽

Age Groups ◽

Older Age ◽

Demographic And Health Surveys ◽

Age Group ◽

Anthropometric Data ◽

Digit Preference ◽

Anthropometric Indicators ◽

Younger Age

Abstract Background Ensuring the quality of anthropometry data is paramount for getting accurate estimates of malnutrition prevalence among children aged 6–59 months in humanitarian and refugee settings. Previous reports based on data from Demographic and Health Surveys suggested systematic differences in anthropometric data quality between the younger and older groups of preschool children. Methods We analyzed 712 anthropometric population-representative field surveys from humanitarian and refugee settings conducted during 2011–2018. We examined and compared the quality of five anthropometric indicators in children aged 6–23 months and children aged 24–59 months: weight for height, weight for age, height for age, body mass index for age and mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) for age. Using the z-score distribution of each indicator, we calculated the following parameters: standard deviation (SD), percentage of outliers, and measures of distribution normality. We also examined and compared the quality of height, weight, MUAC and age measurements using missing data and rounding criteria. Results Both SD and percentage of flags were significantly smaller on average in older than in younger age group for all five anthropometric indicators. Differences in SD between age groups did not change meaningfully depending on overall survey quality or on the quality of age ascertainment. Over 50% of surveys overall did not deviate significantly from normality. The percentage of non-normal surveys was higher in older than in the younger age groups. Digit preference score for weight, height and MUAC was slightly higher in younger age group, and for age slightly higher in the older age group. Children with reported exact date of birth (DOB) had much lower digit preference for age than those without exact DOB. SD, percentage flags and digit preference scores were positively correlated between the two age groups at the survey level, such as those surveys showing higher anthropometry data quality in younger age group also tended to show higher quality in older age group. Conclusions There should be an emphasis on increased rigor of training survey measurers in taking anthropometric measurements in the youngest children. Standardization test, a mandatory component of the pre-survey measurer training and evaluation, of 10 children should include at least 4–5 children below 2 years of age.

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How Multiple Retrievals Affect Neural Reactivation in Young and Older Adults

The Journals of Gerontology Series B ◽

10.1093/geronb/gbz075 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 74 (7) ◽

pp. 1086-1100 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Marie St-Laurent ◽

Bradley R Buchsbaum

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Episodic Memory ◽

Brain Activity ◽

Activity Patterns ◽

Age Groups ◽

Memory Representation ◽

Functional Magnetic Resonance ◽

Resonance Imaging ◽

Transformative Process ◽

Repeated Retrieval

Abstract Objectives Aging can reduce the specificity with which memory episodes are represented as distributed patterns of brain activity. It remains unclear, however, whether repeated encoding and retrieval of stimuli modulate this decline. Memory repetition is thought to promote semanticization, a transformative process during which episodic memory becomes gradually decontextualized and abstracted. Because semantic memory is considered more resilient to aging than context-rich episodic memory, we hypothesized that repeated retrieval would affect cortical reinstatement differently in young versus older adults. Methods We reanalyzed data from young and older adults undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging while repeatedly viewing and recalling short videos. We derived trial-unique multivariate measures of similarity between video-specific brain activity patterns elicited at perception and at recall, which we compared between age groups at each repetition. Results With repetition, memory representation became gradually more distinct from perception in young adults, as reinstatement specificity converged downward toward levels observed in the older group. In older adults, alternative representations that were item-specific but orthogonal to patterns elicited at perception became more salient with repetition. Discussion Repetition transformed dominant patterns of memory representation away and orthogonally from perception in young and older adults, respectively. Although distinct, both changes are consistent with repetition-induced semanticization.

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