Substance Use Disorders in Older Adults.

Although substance misuse (primarily alcohol and prescribed benzodiazepines and opioids) among Americans aged ≥60 years is becoming an escalating health concern, substance use disorder (SUD) is often underestimated and/or undiagnosed, preventing older adults from receiving needed treatment. Chronic medical conditions, mental health issues, and psychosocial stressors increase older adults' risks for developing SUD. Racial/ethnic minority groups (e.

Loss and Grief in the Context of Dementia Caregiving.

As a universal human reaction to perceived and/or actual loss, grief is becoming increasingly pervasive at all levels of society. Among the broad spectrum of loss experiences, those associated with dementia are perhaps of the most complex. The shift toward considering loss and grief within the context of dementia caregiving is promising.

A chronic grief intervention for dementia family caregivers in long-term care.

Dementia caregivers do not relinquish their role after placing family members in long-term care and they experience increased chronic grief. The Chronic Grief Management Intervention (CGMI) is a12-week group-based program that uses guided discussion to deliver knowledge of Alzheimer's or a related dementia and teach skills in communication, conflict resolution, and chronic grief management in dementia caregivers who placed their family members in long-term care. Using a quasi-experimental design, 83 caregivers from 15 long-term care facilities received either the CGMI (n = 34) or a comparison condition consisting of two check-in calls (n = 49).

Caring for self while caring for others: the two-track life of coping with Alzheimer's disease.

Relationships between depressive symptoms and altered immune function have been documented in the literature; however, the links between depressive symptoms, altered immune function, and changes in physical health are less clear. Although a number of caregiver descriptive studies have examined immunological outcomes, only one intervention study with caregivers of individuals with Alzheimer's disease, known to the authors, has included immunological outcomes. The purpose of this pilot study was to assess the effectiveness of a caregiver skill-building intervention to decrease caregiver depressive symptomatology and care-receiver behavioral symptoms; and to assess the feasibility and stability of the delayed type hypersensitivity (DTH) skin test with this population.

Alzheimer's disease caregiving information and skills, part III: group process issues and concerns.

In this descriptive study we examined content and processes in a group-based component of an ongoing clinical trial with family caregivers of persons with dementia. The purpose was to identify issues arising from the group processes that could be used to inform future skill-building caregiver groups. Summaries from two types of intervention groups, a caregiver skill-building (CSB) treatment intervention and an information and support only (ISO) control intervention were examined, along with data collected during a group leader debriefing session.

Alzheimer's disease caregiving information and skills. Part II: family caregiver issues and concerns.

In recent years researchers have carried out an increasing number of clinical trials with family caregivers of the elderly. The results of these interventions have suggested that caregiver skill-building interventions may be more effective than information/support interventions. Although researchers have given considerable attention to the information and support needed by family caregivers, less is known about how this information and support translates into caregiver skills or into changes in behavior.

Alzheimer's disease caregiving information and skills. Part I: care recipient issues and concerns.

Increasing attention has been given to testing clinical trials with family caregivers of the elderly. More recent intervention studies indicated that caregiver skill-building interventions may be more effective than information/support interventions. Researchers have given considerable attention to the content and support needed by family caregivers, but we know less about how this content and support translates into caregiver skills.

Psychoneuroimmunological Outcomes in Dementia Caregiver Intervention Studies: An Idea Whose Time Has Come?

PURPOSE: Mounting evidence indicates that the chronic stress of family caregiving has physiological effects and that caregiver stress may be associated with changes in the caregiver's physical health. Existing caregiver behavioral intervention studies have focused on caregiver stress and psychological distress outcomes. To date, no known caregiver intervention studies have included psychoneuroimmunological (PNI) outcome measures.