Aging

Miller examines Donald Lacross, 48, who has had multiple sclerosis for almost 20 years. Miller has been his home care physician for three years.

Doctor Treats Homebound Patients, Often Unseen Even By Neighbors

8:11am November 08, 2015

by Misha Friedman

"You can evaluate the person as a whole," says Dr. Roberta Miller, who has been a home care physician for more than 20 years. The traditional house call may be the future of medicine.

Dance, Sing, Just 'Keep Moving,' Dick Van Dyke Tells Seniors

6:20pm October 15, 2015

by NPR Staff

As he approaches his 90th birthday, the energetic, award-winning actor shares his tips on how to enjoy aging — and has a new book to prove it. It's all about attitude and staying active, he says.

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Health & Safety

Pruning Back Prescriptions For Better Health

11:27am September 30, 2015

by John Henning Schumann

There comes a time when a drug that once helped a patient may be unnecessary or even harmful. Figuring out when to cut back is difficult, but the potential benefits are substantial.

Belle Likover, a 95-year-old retired social worker, told Case Western Reserve medical students that growing old gracefully is all about being able to adapt to one's changing life situation, including health challenges.

To Sell Medical Students On Joys Of Geriatrics, Send In 90-Year-Olds

5:44pm September 24, 2015

by Susan Jaffe

As the number of older Americans grows, so does the need for geriatricians to care for them. But few medical students are interested in the specialty, which isn't particularly glamorous or lucrative.

Tablets of Lipitor and its generic equivalent, atorvastatin, are among the drugs commonly prescribed to prevent heart attacks and strokes among people at risk.

Health & Safety

Doubts Rise About Surge In Statin Prescriptions For Oldest Americans

3:16pm September 21, 2015

by Lisa Gillespie

About a third of people over the age of 79 are taking a cholesterol-lowering statin to prevent the first occurrence of a heart attack or stroke. Proof is scant that the benefits outweigh the risks.

Vitamin D supplements may or may not help slow cognitive decline. But studies hint at a connection.

Cognitive Decline May Move Faster In People With Low Vitamin D

5:18pm September 15, 2015

by Nancy Shute

Older people with low levels of vitamin D are likely to lose memory and executive function more quickly, a study finds. But it didn't look into whether taking supplements could help.

Treatment From Brain Tissue May Have Spread Alzheimer's Protein

4:07pm September 10, 2015

by Jon Hamilton

Eight people who received growth hormone treatments made from human brains died decades later from a rare disease. Some also had brain damage similar to that seen in Alzheimer's, autopsies reveal.

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Text messages helped remind diabetes patients to check their blood sugar and report in.

Texting Helps Low-Income Diabetes Patients Manage Insulin Dosing

10:10am August 27, 2015

by Rina Shaikh-Lesko

Many low-income patients can't make multiple visits to the doctor, which is a problem if you're a diabetic trying to get insulin dosing just right. A text-based system made remote reports possible.

Peter Lee, executive director of Covered California, (left) poses with his uncle, Philip Lee, and father Peter Lee (seated) at the younger Peter Lee's home in Pasadena, Calif., in 2013.

Meet The California Family That Has Made Health Policy Its Business

6:24pm July 30, 2015

by Stephanie O'Neill

On Medicare's 50th birthday, two brothers who helped get it off the ground tell their stories. A younger member of the Lee family is at the helm of Covered California, the state insurance exchange.

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Hospitals can call people who stay overnight outpatients, a classification that can have surprising financial consequences.

Health & Safety

Progress For Bill To Bolster Medicare Patients' Hospital Rights

10:58am July 29, 2015

by Susan Jaffe

Even when some Medicare patients stay overnight in the hospital, they are are being classified as outpatients under something called observation status. It sounds innocuous but can trigger big bills.