AFA Urges Federal Officials to 'Reach Higher' with Final National Plan to Address Alzheimer's Disease        

 

The Alzheimer's Foundation of America (AFA) yesterday urged federal officials to "reach higher and farther" and to take additional, more aggressive actions to attack the Alzheimer's disease crisis, in a report that responds to the government's "Draft National Plan To Address Alzheimer's Disease."

    In its report, entitled "The Time to Act Is Now," AFA's suggestions include a new benefit for Medicare beneficiaries for diagnosis and care planning services specifically for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias, federal tax credits for family members who are primary caregivers for loved ones with the brain disorder, and incentives for employers to adopt family-friendly policies.

     The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued its draft national plan last month, which includes goals to prevent and effectively treat Alzheimer's disease by 2025, and educate and support people with Alzheimer's disease and their families. HHS is accepting comments until March 30 in preparation for its final national Alzheimer's plan this May.

     AFA praised the draft plan for marking a "solid first step in establishing a comprehensive policy to fight Alzheimer's disease and related dementias." It incorporates many of AFA's initial recommendations.

   "What it fails to do, however, is take bold and decisive action to achieve the ultimate objective of quelling this growing crisis. The final plan must and can do more. It must reach higher and farther," said Eric J. Hall, AFA's president and CEO, and a member of the Advisory Council on Research, Care and Services that is advising on the development of the national strategy.

    To read the entire "The Time to Act Is Now" report, click here.

Older Adults Face Faster Mental Decline After Hospitalization      

 

Older adults experienced cognitive decline at a 2.4 times faster rate on average after hospitalization compared to their previous rate of decline and compared to non-hospitalized peers, according to a study of 1,870 older adults enrolled in the Chicago Health and Aging Project.

   According to the lead author, the advanced decline was equivalent to being more than 10 years older, and occurred regardless of the severity of the individual's illness or their level of cognitive decline prior to hospitalization. The rate of cognitive decline was three times faster on long-term memory tests after the first hospitalization and 1.5 times faster on a complex attention test.

   More severe illnesses, longer hospital stays and older age compounded the cognitive decline for hospitalized older adults.

   Among the participants, 71 percent were admitted to a hospital at least once during the 12-year study.

Screening Study Reveals Continued Lack of Communication About Memory Concerns   

 

Americans who are concerned about memory problems are not raising their concerns with their healthcare providers, according to results of AFA's National Memory Screening Day that are being presented tomorrow at the American Society on Aging (ASA) conference.

   The results, culled from voluntary surveys of participants given memory screenings during the event in 2010, show that 74 percent of participants were worried about their memory, but only about 17 percent had discussed them with their healthcare providers. Nearly 20 percent had not discussed them with anyone.

   When asked why they had not raised the issue with a professional, 46 percent self-reported that their memory concerns were not severe enough. However, 20 percent said the professional never asked about their memory; others felt they were too young to have Alzheimer's disease or they did not want to think about having it.

   In addition, 92 percent never had a memory screening administered by their healthcare provider.

   The findings, which will be presented by AFA CEO Eric J. Hall at the ASA conference in Washington, DC, confirm results of previous studies of participants in National Memory Screening Day.

   The annual event provides free, confidential memory screenings at community sites across the country; the results do not represent a diagnosis. AFA's 10th National Memory Screening Day will be held on November 13, 2012. For more information, click here.

• As April 17, Tax Day, quickly approaches, the National Council on Aging has released "6 Tax-Time Tips for Seniors." Its tips include taking advantage of free tax preparation assistance from the IRS for people aged 60 or older, and exploring programs to reduce property tax bills or the like.
• Join AFA and other leading Alzheimer's disease and caregiving groups for #TalkAlz, a monthly Twitter discussion designed for family and professional caregivers to weigh in on various issues and share relevant experiences. The one-hour Twitter chat occurs the second Tuesday of every month at 12 p.m. (ET). The next chat on April 10 will discuss intergenerational activities. To submit questions beforehand, send them on Twitter to @alzfdn; to participate, follow the hashtag #TalkAlz.
• Call into Care Connection, a telephone support network, on April 12 at 1 p.m. (ET) for a discussion of "Young-Onset Alzheimer's Disease" with an expert from Rush University's Younger-Onset Alzheimer's Disease Program, Chicago. The free, one-hour teleconference is designed for family caregivers and healthcare professionals; members of AFA's Dementia Care Professionals of America (DCPA) can earn training credits toward renewal of their DCPA status. Call (toll-free) 877-232-2992 and enter the guest identification number 271004#.

• Chronic stress linked to build-up of Alzheimer's proteins... Repeated exposure and sensitivity to chronic stress was linked to the production and accumulation of tau proteins, physiological hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease, in the brain cells of a mouse model, according to a new study. Read More... 
• Antioxidants may not impact Alzheimer's disease biomarkers... According to a recent study of people with mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease, antioxidant supplements (vitamin E, vitamin C, and alpha-lipoic acid) did not lower the levels of the amyloid or tau pathology of the brain disorder. In fact, participants who took the antioxidants had an accelerated decline on scores on a cognitive assessment test. However, the antioxidants did decrease cerebrospinal fluid F2-isoprostane levels, an oxidative stress biomarker, by 19 percent during the course of the 16-week study.   Read More... 
• Obesity connected to reduced cognitive function in older adults... Obesity, especially having a lot of visceral or "belly fat," was linked to lower cognitive performance in adults aged 60 to 69, but not in those 70 and older, according to a recent study of 250 older adults. Measures included body mass index and waist circumference, as well as belly fat. Read More...
  
   

AFA recently announced the formation of a Legacy Society, which offers special recognition to individuals who have included AFA in their wills or estate plans. Information about AFA's new Legacy Society is available at

www.alzfdn.org or by contacting AFA at 866.232.8484 

To obtain more information about AFA, visit us at www.alzfdn.org or call us toll-free at     866-AFA-8484.