Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy improves functional capacity and quality of life in patients with persistent class III and IV heart failure despite optimal medical therapy, and there is also evidence that Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy may reverse structural remodeling in selected patients. Although individual trials of Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy were underpowered to assess survival, a meta-analysis of outcomes from four randomized trials involving more than 800 patients found that Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy reduces mortality from heart failure. (more…)

Carotid sinus hypersensitivity ( more than 3-second pause or a decrease in systolic blood pressure = 50 mm Hg during carotid sinus massage) predominantly affects elderly patients, although the prevalence in the general population has not been precisely defined. In elderly patients with recurrent syncope, carotid sinus hypersensitivity has been reported in up to 35% of cases. Permanent pacing in patients with carotid sinus syndrome (carotid sinus hypersensitivity associated with syncope) is indicated. Observational and randomized studies have shown that recurrent symptoms are significantly reduced after permanent pacemaker implantation in patients with carotid sinus syndrome. (more…)

Supraventricular Tachyarrhythmia

The principles of drug and non-drug management of supraventricular tachyarrhythmia (SVT) are similar to those outlined for stroke Atrial Fibrillation. However, for most supraventricular tachyarrhythmia, the arrhythmogenic substrate is isolated and well defined. AV nodal reentrant tachycardia (localized to the region of AVN) and atrioventricular reentrant tachycardia (with use of an accessory pathway) are the two most common types of supraventricular tachyarrhythmia. Atrial tachycardia can be reentrant or non-reentrant in mechanism, can be right or left atrial in origin, and can occur more frequently in the elderly population than in younger patients. (more…)

Obesity in the elderly is a major health crisis facing our population that may predispose the elderly to the same adverse health outcomes facing the younger, obese population. However, several studies have suggested that the risk of obesity on life span is less in the elderly and may even become insignificant. However, these studies have found an increase in disability in older subjects with obesity. (more…)

Because it expresses my own orientation, I carry in my wallet a membership card to the Society for the Right to Die, which has imprinted on the back a signed statement of my living will.

When the aging process accelerates inexorably, you usually don’t just fail to wake up one morning because of old age. One of the many illnesses that afflict the elderly with increasing frequency will likely be the cause of death and dying. Here is where I feel a living will is important. (more…)

The majority of older adults who suffer from depression experience lower-level symptoms that do not meet diagnostic criteria for major depressive disorder. The DSM recognizes several well-defined disorders that are considered minor depressive states. Dysthymia is defined as presence of one of the two defining symptoms plus at least two other symptoms of depression continuously for a period of at least 2 years. This chronic, low-level depression typically manifests relatively early in life and is in fact less prevalent in older than in younger persons. (more…)

You must understand that getting old is not an easy phase that our loved ones or the people that we know go through. Actually, everybody will age as time passes but each one will accept such a fate in different ways. But one thing that is the same, caring for older people should always be implemented and acted out. (more…)

It has been proven over the years that strength training exercises have been used by athletes and sports enthusiasts to improve their overall performance. This can hold true for anyone, regardless of their fitness level or age. Strength training can be a tremendous benefit to help improve overall health, wellness, strength, and build up your body to fight disease. (more…)

The interpretation of physical health complaints due to anxiety or hypochondria is often a form of physical symptoms dismiss persons who are not familiar with a medical facility, which in May this allows for the accounting and ‘medical insurance, scouring, which does not benefit of patients. These authors also discuss diseases are often associated with depression, such as heart failure, Parkinson’s disease and hypothyroidism, and medications, the cause of depression to side effects such as antihypertensive drugs and barbiturates. Emphasize the importance of distinguishing between the true symptoms of depression caused by illness or medication. (more…)

Caring for Seniors and People with Disabilities in Their Own Home
Summary: Home care service providers assist elderly and disabled individuals with activities of daily living. This assistance often allows individuals to remain in their own home rather than needing to move to an assisted living facility. (more…)