scholarly journals Cardiovascular care of older adults

BMJ ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. n1593
Author(s):  
Deirdre E O’Neill ◽  
Daniel E Forman
Keyword(s):  
Cardiovascular Disease ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Older Patients ◽  
Clinical Status ◽  
Functional Decline ◽  
Traditional Practice ◽  
Care Givers ◽  
Geriatric Conditions ◽  
Personalized Approach

ABSTRACT Age is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease. With the accelerated growth of the population of older adults, geriatric and cardiac care are becoming increasingly entwined. Although cardiovascular disease in younger adults often occurs as an isolated problem, it is more likely to occur in combination with clinical challenges related to age in older patients. Management of cardiovascular disease is transmuted by the context of multimorbidity, frailty, polypharmacy, cognitive dysfunction, functional decline, and other complexities of age. This means that additional insight and skills are needed to manage a broader range of relevant problems in older patients with cardiovascular disease. This review covers geriatric conditions that are relevant when treating older adults with cardiovascular disease, particularly management considerations. Traditional practice guidelines are generally well suited for robust older adults, but many others benefit from a relatively more personalized therapeutic approach that allows for a range of medical circumstances and idiosyncratic goals of care. This requires weighing of risks and benefits amidst the patient’s aggregate clinical status and the ability to communicate effectively about this with patients and, where appropriate, their care givers in a process of shared decision making. Such a personalized approach can be particularly gratifying, as it provides opportunities to optimize an older patient’s function and quality of life at a time in life when these often become foremost therapeutic priorities.

Anaemia

2017 ◽  
pp. 1133-1138
Author(s):  
Ammon M. Fager ◽  
Harvey Jay Cohen
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Older Patients ◽  
Functional Decline ◽  
Functional Deficits ◽  
Mild Anaemia ◽  
Clinical Trial Evidence ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Trial Evidence

Anaemia is an important problem in the older population. As it is usually mild and insidious in onset, the symptoms of anemia are often overlooked by older adults who attribute their symptoms to an inevitable consequence of ageing while clinicians may ignore mild anaemia in favour of focusing on more prominent comorbidities. However, anaemia in older adults is associated with significant mortality and decreased quality of life due to functional decline. As our understanding of anaemia in elderly people on a biological and clinical level increases, our ability to impact the functional deficits associated with it will improve. However, quality clinical trial evidence on the impact of anaemia and its treatment on crucial outcomes in older patients is currently lacking. The completion of such trials will be critical to assure the safety and efficacy of future interventions designed to improve the treatment and quality of life for older adults.

scholarly journals Health-Related Quality of Life, Functional Decline, and Long-Term Mortality in Older Patients Following Hospitalisation Due to COVID-19

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marte Walle-Hansen ◽  
Anette Ranhoff ◽  
Marte Mellingsæter ◽  
Marte Wang-Hansen ◽  
Marius Myrstad
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Older Patients ◽  
Functional Decline ◽  
Health Related Quality ◽  
Negative Change ◽  
Related Quality ◽  
Health Related

Abstract Background Older people are particularly vulnerable to severe COVID-19. Little is known about long-term consequences of COVID-19 on health-related quality of life and functional status in older people, and the impact of age in this context. We aimed to study age-related change in health-related quality of life (HR-QoL), functional decline and mortality among older patients six months following hospitalisation due to COVID-19. Methods This was a cohort study including patients aged 60 years and older admitted to four general hospitals in South-Eastern Norway due to COVID-19, from March 1 up until July 1, 2020. Patients who were still alive were invited to attend a six-month follow-up. Change in HR-QoL and functional status compared to before the COVID-19 hospitalisation were assessed using the EuroQol 5-dimensional-5 levels questionnaire (EQ 5D-5L). A change in visual analogue scale (VAS) score of 7 or more was considered clinically relevant. Results Out of 216 patients aged 60 years and older that were admitted to hospital due to COVID-19 during the study period, 171 were still alive 180 days after hospital admission, and 106 patients (62%) attended the six-month follow-up. Mean age was 74.3 years, 27 patients (26%) had experienced severe COVID-19. 57 participants (54%) reported a decrease in the EQ5D-5L VAS score after six months, with no significant difference between persons aged 75 years and older compared to younger. 70 participants (66%) reported a negative change in any of the dimensions of the EQ-5D-5L, with impaired ability to perform activities of daily life (35%), reduced mobility (33%) and having more pain or discomfort (33%) being the most commonly reported changes. 46 participants (43%) reported a negative change in cognitive function compared to before the COVID-19 hospitalisation. Six-month mortality was 21%, and increased with increasing age. Conclusions More than half of the patients reported a negative change in HR-QoL six months following hospitalisation due to COVID-19, and one out of three experienced a persistently impaired mobility and ability to carry out activities of daily living. The results suggest awareness of long-term functional decline in older COVID-19 patients.

scholarly journals The Prevalence and Impact on Patient Outcomes of Malnutrition Among Older Adults Presenting at an Irish Emergency Department: A Secondary Analysis of the OPTIMEND Trial

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne Griffin ◽  
Aoife O´Neill ◽  
Margaret O´Connor ◽  
Damien Ryan ◽  
Audrey Tierney ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Functional Ability ◽  
Hospital Admissions ◽  
Functional Decline ◽  
Secondary Analysis ◽  
Adverse Outcomes ◽  
Nutrition Status

Abstract BackgroundMalnutrition is common among older adults and is associated with adverse outcomes but remains undiagnosed on healthcare admissions. Older adults use emergency departments (EDs) more than any other age group. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and factors associated with malnutrition on admission and with adverse outcomes post-admission among older adults attending an Irish ED. MethodsSecondary analysis of data collected from a randomised trial exploring the impact of a dedicated team of health and social care professionals on the care of older adults in the ED. Nutritional status was determined using the Mini Nutritional Assessment- short form. Patient parameters and outcomes included health related quality of life, functional ability, frailty, hospital admissions, falls history and clinical outcomes at index visit, 30-day and 6-month follow up. Aggregate anonymised participant data linked from baseline to 30-days and 6-month follow-up were used for statistical analysis.ResultsAmong 353 older adults (mean age 79.6 years (SD=7.0); 59.2% (n=209) female) the prevalence of malnutrition was 7.6% (n=27) and ‘risk of malnutrition’ was 28% (n=99). At baseline, those who were malnourished had poorer quality of life scores, functional ability, were more frail, more likely to have been hospitalised or had a fall recently, had longer waiting times and were more likely to be discharged home from the ED than those who had normal nutrition status. At 30-days, those who were malnourished were more likely to have reported another hospital admission, a nursing home admission, reduced quality of life and functional decline than older adults who had normal nutrition status at the baseline ED visit. At 6-months, a reported further decline in functional ability was more likely among those who were malnourished compared to those who had normal nutritional status. ConclusionOver one-third of older adults admitted to an Irish ED are either malnourished or at risk of malnourishment. Malnutrition was associated with a longer stay in the ED, functional decline, poorer quality of life, increased risk of hospital admissions and a greater likelihood of admission to long-term care at 30 days. Trial registration: Protocol registered in ClinicalTrials.gov, ID: NCT03739515, first posted November 13, 2018. https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03739515

scholarly journals Effectiveness of acute geriatric unit care on functional decline and process outcomes among older adults admitted to hospital with acute medical complaints: a protocol for a systematic review

BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. e050524
Author(s):  
Íde O’Shaughnessy ◽  
Katie Robinson ◽  
Margaret O'Connor ◽  
Mairéad Conneely ◽  
Damien Ryan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Functional Decline ◽  
Index Admission ◽  
Research Centre ◽  
Cochrane Library ◽  
Process Outcomes

IntroductionOlder adults are clinically heterogeneous and are at increased risk of adverse outcomes during hospitalisation due to the presence of multiple comorbid conditions and reduced homoeostatic reserves. Acute geriatric units (AGUs) are units designed with their own physical location and structure, which provide care to older adults during the acute phase of illness and are underpinned by an interdisciplinary comprehensive geriatric assessment model of care. This review aims to update and synthesise the totality of evidence related to the effectiveness of AGU care on clinical and process outcomes among older adults admitted to hospital with acute medical complaints.DesignUpdated systematic review and meta-analysisMethods and analysisMEDLINE, Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Controlled Trials in the Cochrane Library and Embase electronic databases will be systematically searched from 2008 to February 2021. Trials with a randomised design that deliver an AGU intervention to older adults admitted to hospital for acute medical complaints will be included. The primary outcome measure will be functional decline at discharge from hospital and at follow-up. Secondary outcomes will include length of stay, cost of index admission, incidence of unscheduled hospital readmission, living at home (the inverse of death or institutionalisation combined; used to describe someone who is in their own home at follow‐up), mortality, cognitive function and patient satisfaction with index admission. Title and abstract screening of studies for full-text extraction will be conducted independently by two authors. The Cochrane risk of bias 2 tool will be used to assess the methodological quality of the included trials. The quality of evidence for outcomes reported will be assessed using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluations framework. A pooled meta-analysis will be conducted using Review Manager, depending on the uniformity of the data.Ethics and disseminationFormal ethical approval is not required as all data collected will be secondary data and will be analysed anonymously. The authors will present the findings of the review to a patient and public involvement stakeholder panel of older adults that has been established at the Ageing Research Centre in the University of Limerick. This will enable the views and opinions of older adults to be integrated into the discussion section of the paper.PROSPERO registration numberCRD42021237633.

Aspirin and statin therapy for primary prevention of cardiovascular disease in older adults

Heart ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. heartjnl-2021-320154
Author(s):  
Sophie Montgomery ◽  
Michael D Miedema ◽  
John Dodson
Keyword(s):  
Cardiovascular Disease ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Cognitive Impairment ◽  
Primary Prevention ◽  
Absolute Risk ◽  
Functional Decline ◽  
Calcium Score ◽  
Risk Of Death ◽  
Therapeutic Decisions

The value of primary preventative therapies for cardiovascular disease (CVD) in older adults (age ≥75 years) is less certain than in younger patients. There is a lack of quality evidence in older adults due to underenrolment in pivotal trials. While aspirin is no longer recommended for routine use in primary prevention of CVD in older adults, statins may be efficacious. However, it is unclear which patient subgroups may benefit most, and guidelines differ between expert panels. Three relevant geriatric conditions (cognitive impairment, functional impairment and polypharmacy) may influence therapeutic decision making; for example, baseline frailty may affect statin efficacy, and some have advocated for deprescription in this scenario. Evidence regarding statins and incident functional decline are mixed, and vigilance for adverse effects is important, especially in the setting of polypharmacy. However, aspirin has not been shown to affect incident cognitive or functional decline, and its lack of efficacy extends to patients with baseline cognitive impairment or frailty. Ultimately, the utility of primary preventative therapies for CVD in older adults depends on potential lifetime benefit. Rather than basing treatment decisions on absolute risk alone, consideration of comorbidities, polypharmacy and life expectancy should play a significant role in decision making. Coronary calcium score and new tools for risk stratification validated in older adults that account for the competing risk of death may aid in evaluating potential benefits. Given the complexity of therapeutic decisions in this context, shared decision making provides an important framework.

Interprofessional Team-Based Care

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beverly Lunsford ◽  
Terry A. Mikovich
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Interprofessional Collaboration ◽  
Functional Decline ◽  
Care Program ◽  
Coordination Of Care ◽  
Palliative Care Teams

As older adults live longer, they experience a concomitant increase in chronic illness, which may be associated with a more frequent need for health care and intermittent or progressive functional decline. There is an increased need for regular health care monitoring as well as treatment and coordination of care among multiple providers and across settings to prevent, delay, or minimize decline in health and quality of life. Interprofessional collaboration is critical for safe coordination of care, reduction of duplication in services, and cost containment. Health care professionals who serve older adults are developing new models of collaboration to provide more integrated and person-centered approaches to maintaining the quality of life for older adults, especially those with multiple chronic illnesses. These models include health-oriented teams, home and community-based services, Acute Care for Elders (ACE), home-based primary care, Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE), comprehensive geriatric assessment, and palliative care teams.

scholarly journals Predicting hospitalisation-associated functional decline in older patients admitted to a cardiac care unit with cardiovascular disease: a prospective cohort study

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bastiaan Van Grootven ◽  
Anthony Jeuris ◽  
Maren Jonckers ◽  
Els Devriendt ◽  
Bernadette Dierckx de Casterlé ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cardiovascular Disease ◽  
Cohort Study ◽  
Prospective Cohort Study ◽  
Prospective Cohort ◽  
Older Patients ◽  
Functional Decline ◽  
Cardiac Care ◽  
Cardiac Care Unit

Regaining a satisfactory quality of life and predicting functional decline after major cancer surgery in older adults: The Geriatric Oncology Surgical Assessment and Functional rEcovery after Surgery (GOSAFE) study.

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (15_suppl) ◽  
pp. 12051-12051
Author(s):  
Isacco Montroni ◽  
Giampaolo Ugolini ◽  
Nicole Saur ◽  
Antonino Spinelli ◽  
Siri Rostoft ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Functional Recovery ◽  
Functional Outcomes ◽  
Older Patients ◽  
Functional Decline ◽  
Geriatric Oncology ◽  
Cancer Surgery ◽  
Before And After ◽  
After Cancer

12051 Background: Older cancer patients value quality of life (QoL) and functional outcomes as much as survival but surgical studies lack specific data. The international, multicenter GOSAFE study (ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03299270) aims to evaluate patients’ QoL and functional recovery (FR) after cancer surgery and to assess predictors of FR Methods: GOSAFE prospectively collected functional and clinical data before and after major elective cancer surgery on senior adults (≥70 years). Surgical outcomes were recorded (30, 90, and 180 days post-operatively) with QoL (EQ-5D-3L) and FR (Activities of Daily Living (ADL), Timed Up and Go (TUG) and MiniCog), 26 centers enrolled patients from February 2017 to April 2019. Results: 942 patients underwent a major cancer resection. Median age was 78 (range 70-95); 52.2% males, ASA III-IV 49%. 934 (99%) lived at home, 51% lived alone, and 87% were able to go out. Patients dependent (ADL < 5) were 8%. Frailty was detected by means of G8 ≤14 in 68.8% and fTRST ≥2 in 37% of patients. Major comorbidities (CCI > 6) were reported in 36% and 21% had cognitive impairment according to MiniCog (2.2% self-reported). 25% had > 3 kg weight loss, 27% were hospitalized in the last 90 days, 54% had ≥3 medications (6% none). Postoperative overall morbidity was 39.1% (30 day) and 22.5% (90 day), but Clavien-Dindo III-IV complications were only 13.4% and 6.9% respectively. 30/90/180-day mortality was 3.6/6/8.9% (10/30/33% in patients with severe functional disability). At 3 months after surgery, QoL was stable/improved (mean EQ-5D index 0.78 was equivalent before vs. after surgery, while the EQ-5D VAS score > 60 raised from 74.3% at baseline to 80.2%, p < 0.01). 76.6% experienced postoperative FR/stability. Logistic regression analysis showed that ASA 3-4, CCI≥7 and CD III-IV complications are significantly associated with functional decline while a G8 > 14 has a positive association with functional recovery. Age is not associated with functional outcomes. Conclusions: The largest prospective study on older patients undergoing structured frailty assessment before and after major elective cancer surgery has shown that QoL remains stable/improves after cancer surgery. The majority of patients return to independence and G8 can predict functional recovery. Older patients with multiple comorbidities, high ASA score or postoperative severe complications are likely to functionally deteriorate after oncologic surgery Clinical trial information: NCT03299270 .

scholarly journals Oropharyngeal Dysphagia in Older Patients

2021 ◽  
pp. 225-235
Author(s):  
Lina Spirgienė ◽  
Rebecca Lindhe ◽  
Gytė Damulevičienė
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Healthcare Costs ◽  
Older Patients ◽  
Oropharyngeal Dysphagia ◽  
Hydration Status ◽  
Speech Language Pathologist ◽  
Nutrition And Hydration ◽  
Adverse Influence ◽  
Management Of Dysphagia

AbstractDysphagia in older adults can have a profound adverse influence nutrition and hydration status, quality of life, morbidity, mortality and healthcare costs in adults. Identification and management of dysphagia in older adults are most effective when implemented by a team, including a nurse, physician, speech-language pathologist, dietitian and occupational therapist. However, each professional’s role may vary according to the standards, responsibilities and resources available in local settings.

scholarly journals A Review on Deprescribing in Elderly

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 136-137
Author(s):  
Christy Babu ◽  
Lincy George ◽  
K. Krishnakumar
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
High Risk ◽  
Older Patients ◽  
Adverse Drug Events ◽  
Patient Centered ◽  
Inappropriate Medications ◽  
Related Harm ◽  
Improve Health

Deprescribing can be defined as the process of stopping a medication or reducing its dose to reduce adverse effects and improve health outcomes. Elderly people with co morbidities usually have a risk of adverse drug events and these events can only be treated by medicines. Despite the benefits offered by these medicines, older patients are at a high risk of harm caused by these medications. The use of multiple medications for treating the comorbidities may also leads to severe health problems. Deprescribing help to reduce the risk related to inappropriate medicines. Deprescribing is usually a patient centered process which helps to withdraw drugs which are harmful to be prescribed to older patients. Several explicit and implicit tools have been developed internationally to identify these inappropriate medications. Deprescribing of inappropriate medicines would help to reduces drug-related harm and improves the quality of life of older adults. Keywords: Deprescribing, polypharmacy, older adults

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