Benzodiazepine Overuse in Elders: Defining the Problem and Potential Solutions.

Objective To determine the prevalence of benzodiazepine use in adults aged 65 and older at two West Virginia academic medical centers as phase one of a benzodiazepine deprescribing strategy.  Design Cross-sectional Setting Two academic hospitals in West Virginia with 107,504 hospitalized adults age 65 and older from the years 2010 to 2018 with information on admission medication use.  Measurements Use of benzodiazepines based on presence on the admission medication list.

Analysis of Benzodiazepine Prescription Practices in Elderly Appalachians with Dementia via the Appalachian Informatics Platform: Longitudinal Study.

Background: Caring for the growing dementia population with complex health care needs in West Virginia has been challenging due to its large, sizably rural-dwelling geriatric population and limited resource availability.

Objective: This paper aims to illustrate the application of an informatics platform to drive dementia research and quality care through a preliminary study of benzodiazepine (BZD) prescription patterns and its effects on health care use by geriatric patients.

Methods: The Maier Institute Data Mart, which contains clinical and billing data on patients aged 65 years and older (N=98,970) seen within our clinics and hospital, was created.

Dementia Care: Confronting Myths in Clinical Management.

Every day, patients with dementia, their families, and their physicians face the enormous challenges of this pervasive life-changing condition. Seeking help, often grasping at straws, victims, and their care providers are confronted with misinformation and myths when they search the internet or other sources. When Persons with Dementia (PWD) and their caregivers believe and/or act on false information, proper treatment may be delayed, and ultimately damage can be done.

Identification of the PS1 Thr147Ile Variant in a Family with Very Early Onset Dementia and Expressive Aphasia.

Background: Early onset dementias have variable clinical presentations and are often difficult to diagnose. We established a family pedigree that demonstrated consistent recurrence of very early onset dementia in successive generations.

Objective And Method: In order to refine the diagnosis in this family, we sequenced the exomes of two affected family members and relied on discrete filtering to identify disease genes and the corresponding causal variants.

West Virginia nursing homes: are they up to the standard?

Quality measurement and performance monitoring are under continuous assessment in Nursing Homes (NH). Through this research project we assess the quality of care provided in the NH in the state of West Virginia by publicly accessible quality measurements. The methodology for this research study was through the retrieval of data from the Nursing Home Compare website in which a total of 80 NH were located and analyzed.

Barriers to vaccinating the elderly with H1N1 vaccine.

Introduction: The development of a monovalent 2009 H1N1 influenza (swine flu) vaccine for the 2009-2010 season prompted a nationwide campaign of vaccination. The authors assessed the frequency of influenza vaccine usage among 3858 elderly patients with their practice and the most common barriers to receiving vaccine.

Methods: The authors calculated the usage of seasonal and 2009 H1N1 vaccines among seniors with their university practice and surveyed a cohort of 64 patients to determine whether they had received the 2009 H1N1 vaccine and their reasons for not receiving it.

Standing orders in an ambulatory setting increases influenza vaccine usage in older people.

Objectives: To determine whether standing orders for influenza vaccine increase its usage in an ambulatory setting in elderly patients.

Design: Retrospective analysis of influenza vaccine usage over 4 years (1999-2002).

Setting: University ambulatory setting.