Medicare Provides Few Respite Coverage Options For Caregivers
Medicare generally covers respite care only when a beneficiary is in hospice, although some special needs Medicare Advantage plans may be of help.
dementia
Sharing Art Helps Medical Students Connect With Dementia Patients
It's easy to spot what Alzheimer's patients have lost — memory, communication skills and more. But a study that sent medical students and dementia patients to art classes opened new vistas for all.
When Alzheimer's Steals Your Appetite, Remember To Laugh
Fresh grilled swordfish now tastes like rolled newspapers to Greg O'Brien, an unexpected effect of his Alzheimer's. And shopping without a grocery list is futile. But summer barbecues are still sweet.
Younger Adults With Alzheimer's Are Key To Drug Search
A very rare genetic mutation causes some people to develop Alzheimer's in their 30s. It also makes these people the ideal candidates for tests of potential Alzheimer's drugs.
Alzheimer's Drugs In The Works Might Treat Other Diseases, Too
By targeting the process that creates toxic clumps of protein in brain cells, scientists hope to help not just Alzheimer's patients, but perhaps also people with Lewy body dementia and Parkinson's.
Can Technology Ease The Burden Of Caring For People With Dementia?
Things like activity trackers and sensors might make it easier to keep people with dementia safe and help caregivers. Researchers are going to test that idea in the real world.
Seeing What Isn't There: Inside Alzheimer's Hallucinations
Sometimes Greg O'Brien gets a tingling in the back of his brain that tells him a hallucination is coming. Lions. Spiders. Birds. Sometimes the creatures are friendly. Too often, they're not.
Your Tough Job Might Help Keep You Sharp
In an eight-year study of older people, those who had held mentally demanding, stimulating jobs tended to retain their mental agility better than people whose work was less stimulating.
Can A Person With Dementia Consent To Sex?
A jury in Iowa acquitted a man who had been criminally charged for having sex with his wife, who had Alzheimer's. Very few care facilities have policies on dementia, sex and consent.
Many Doctors Who Diagnose Alzheimer's Fail To Tell The Patient
Only about half of Medicare patients are told of the diagnosis by their doctor, a study finds. That compares to 90 percent of patients diagnosed with cancer.