Health Support for At-Risk Older Adults during COVID-19.

Older adults are highly susceptible to COVID-19 infection and at the highest risk for severe disease and death. Yet, older adults lacked access to accurate and easy-to-use COVID-19 information and support early in the pandemic. This prospective, experimental cohort study sought to examine whether older adults could be engaged during the pandemic through a community partner and if a low-touch intervention, designed with health literacy best practices, could positively impact COVID-19 knowledge, mitigation behaviors, telehealth/doctor visits, exercise, and loneliness.

A national pilot of donation after circulatory death (DCD) heart transplantation within the United Kingdom.

Background: The United Kingdom (UK) was one of the first countries to pioneer heart transplantation from donation after circulatory death (DCD) donors. To facilitate equity of access to DCD hearts by all UK heart transplant centers and expand the retrieval zone nationwide, a Joint Innovation Fund (JIF) pilot was provided by NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) and NHS England (NHSE). The activity and outcomes of this national DCD heart pilot program are reported.

Functional assessment and transplantation of the donor heart after circulatory death.

Background: After a severe shortage of brain-dead donors, the demand for heart transplantation has never been greater. In an attempt to increase organ supply, abdominal and lung transplant programs have turned to the donation after circulatory-determined death (DCD) donor. However, because heart function cannot be assessed after circulatory death, DCD heart transplantation was deemed high risk and never adopted routinely.

Incidence and cost of pneumonia in older adults with COPD in the United States.

Objectives: To estimate the incidence of pneumonia by COPD status and the excess cost of inpatient primary pneumonia in elders with COPD.

Study Design: A retrospective, longitudinal study using claims linked to eligibility/demographic data for a 5% sample of fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries from 2005 through 2007.

Methods: Incidence rates of pneumonia were calculated for elders with and without COPD and for elders with COPD and coexistent congestive heart failure (CHF).

Drinking patterns of older adults with chronic medical conditions.

Background: Understanding alcohol consumption patterns of older adults with chronic illness is important given the aging baby boomer generation, the increase in prevalence of chronic conditions and associated medication use, and the potential consequences of excessive drinking in this population.

Objectives: To estimate the prevalence of alcohol consumption patterns, including at-risk drinking, in older adults with at least one of seven common chronic conditions.

Design/methods: This descriptive study used the nationally representative 2005 Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey linked with Medicare claims.

Incidence and cost of pneumonia in medicare beneficiaries.

Background: Pneumonia is a frequent and serious illness in elderly people, with a significant impact on mortality and health-care costs. Lingering effects may influence clinical outcomes and medical service use beyond the acute hospitalization. This study describes the incidence and mortality of pneumonia in elderly Medicare beneficiaries based on treatment setting (outpatient, inpatient) and location of origin (health-care associated, community acquired) and estimates short- and long-term direct medical costs and mortality associated with an inpatient episode of pneumonia.

Older adults' inpatient and emergency department utilization for ambulatory-care-sensitive conditions: relationship with alcohol consumption.

Objective: This study examined the relationship between drinking that exceeds guideline-recommended limits and acute-care utilization for ambulatory-care-sensitive conditions (ACSCs) by older Medicare beneficiaries.

Method: This secondary data analysis used the 2001-2006 Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey (unweighted n = 5,570 community dwelling, past-year drinkers, 65 years and older). Self-reported alcohol consumption (categorized as within guidelines, exceeding monthly but not daily limits, or heavy episodic) and covariates were used to predict ACSC hospitalization, emergency department visit not resulting in admission, and emergency department visit that did result in admission.

Cardiac recovery in a human non-heart-beating donor after extracorporeal perfusion: source for human heart donation?

Successful renal, liver and more recently lung transplantation using organs from non-heart-beating donors (NHBDs) has been reported. Regarding the heart, it has generally been assumed that warm ischemic insult would result in overwhelming and irreversible myocardial damage. We report recovery of cardiac function in a human NHBD by using extracorporeal perfusion 23 minutes after cardiorespiratory arrest.

Unhealthy drinking patterns and receipt of preventive medical services by older adults.

Background: Preventive service use among older adults is suboptimal. Unhealthy drinking may constitute a risk factor for failure to receive these services.

Objectives: To determine the relationship between unhealthy drinking and receipt of recommended preventive services among elderly Medicare beneficiaries, applying the framework of current alcohol consumption guidelines.

Preoperative teaching and hysterectomy outcomes.

This study used a theoretical model to determine whether an efficacy-enhancing teaching protocol was effective in improving immediate postoperative behaviors and selected short- and long-term health outcomes in women who underwent abdominal hysterectomies. The model used was the self-efficacy theory of Albert Bandura, PhD. One hundred eight patients in a 486-bed teaching hospital in the Midwest who underwent hysterectomies participated.