1747 results for “health span”

Mental confusion and trouble with daily activities often trigger alarms: Is my loved one suffering from Alzheimer’s? It could be some kind of dementia or it could be some other treatable illness that’s causing mental cloudiness. The only way to know for sure is to have a physician check it…

Most of us can easily recognize the discomfort: burning, pain, annoyance. Let’s face it: urinary tract infections (UTIs) are no fun. If you are older, a UTI may be less easy to detect but possibly life-threatening. Millions of seniors wind up in hospitals each year due to UTIs and many…

Most of us have a basic sense of what Medicare is: health insurance for older people. But the components of Medicare, and the expanse of its coverage, are often more complicated than beginners realize.  Different parts, different enrollment options, some things covered, some things not- an array of terms that…

You tune in to Terry Gross on NPR to hear her insightful interviews with celebrities, intellectuals, policy makers and pundits- overall, an array of fascinating characters who reveal themselves in intimate conversations. In one of her most recent interviews, Terry introduces you to Kerry Egan: a young hospice chaplain, aware…

In a new study just published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, researchers have determined that 1/2 of older people who undergo hip fracture surgery never fully recover nor return to their previous levels of independence. Most hip fractures result from falls. This study, however, underscores that once you…

For many of us, it’s our worst nightmare: to be desperately ill with no end in sight and no way to relieve the suffering. While a few states are wrestling with the concept of physician-assisted death, that involves a complex legal system of checks and balances to ensure that only…