How partisan politics influence government policies in response to ageing populations

Since old-age programmes mitigate life-course risks that are relevant to individuals across socio-economic groups in ageing societies, all parties have a political incentive to support these initiatives. Nevertheless, pre-existing partisan commitments bind the policy instruments that parties use. Cabinet-level analyses of OECD economies demonstrate that left incumbency relies more on public expenditure than right-wing governments. What is more important is that, in the context of large elderly populations, pension coverage is greater under right-leaning governments, while pension replacement rates are higher in left-leaning governments. This shows that party behaviour related to life course-related policies cannot be explained by the conventional pro-expansion versus the pro-retrenchment partisan politics. Rather, a focus on partisan variation in the use of policy instruments is required.

Depression-free life expectancy in elderly populations in Ceará, northeast and Brasil

This paper investigated depression-free life expectancy in the elderly population of Ceará, the Northeast and Brazil. We used data from the 2019 National Health Survey (PNS) and the projections of the Mortality Tables provided by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) in 2018. Sullivan's method was used to estimate depression-free life expectancy at age 60 years. The results show that, among the elderly in the analyzed regions, women are at a disadvantage in the number of years they will live with depression compared to men. Which suggests that women live longer with depression compared to men. Among the populations analyzed, it was also found that the one in the Northeast showed the smallest difference in the prevalence of depression in the elderly between the sexes, with 11.6% in women and 3.7% in men. In general, the Northeast has the lowest prevalence of depression among the elderly, when compared to the other two regions.

AGING & MUSCULAR FUNCTION: A SELECTED REVIEW OF LITERATURE WITH EMPHASIS ON CARDIORESPIRATORY ENDURANCE AND FUNCTIONAL PERFORMANCE RESPONSE TO RESISTANCE EXERCISE

This narrative review evaluates strength or resistance training on cardiorespiratory endurance, blood pressure, contractile function, contractile protein synthesis rate, bone turnover, gait and balance, and neuromuscular adaptations in elderly populations. Seventy-eight studies spanning from 1999 through 2020 were reviewed. Database sources including PubMed, Science Direct, Web of Knowledge and Google Scholar were searched in accordance with the purpose of the study. A majority of the studies reported that resistance training reduces blood pressure and increases contractile functions, contractile protein synthesis rate, bone turnover, gait and balance, cardiorespiratory endurance, and neuromuscular adaptations in the elderly. Furthermore, combined training (CT), also known as concurrent training (strength plus endurance training) may also be as effective as traditional endurance training or traditional strength/resistance training alone for improving cardiorespiratory endurance and functional performance. According to the evaluation of studies included in this review, we concluded that training modalities that involve low-load, high velocity strength training combined with endurance training might be the best training strategy in improving cardiovascular fitness, functional capacity and musculoskeletal health in the elderly populations. Elderly people should be encouraged to participate in a concurrent training or a combination of strength and endurance training to delay, or even reverse the negative effects of aging. <p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/edu_01/0875/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>

Determination of the Personal Nutritional Status of Elderly Populations Based on Basic Foodomics Elements

Nutritional status is a series of related parameters collected using different available methods. In order to determine the nutritional status of elderly populations and ensure nutritional support based on an individual approach, the implementation of the increasingly used foodomics approach is available; this approach plays a key role in personalized diets and in the optimization of diets for a population group, such as an elderly population. The Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) method and the Nottingham Screening Tool (NST) form were used on 50 users in a home for the elderly in northwest Croatia. A loss of body mass (BM) was statistically significantly higher for those who had the following: decreased food intake in the last week and users who had complete and partial feeding autonomy. Additionally, the obtained data on drug intake, fluid, individual nutrients, and physical activity are based on an individual approach. The available documentation provides insight into nutritional values and food preparation in an attempt to satisfy a holistic approach in the evaluation of exposure while trying to achieve as many elements of foodomics as possible.

EP.TU.440Managements of blood thinning medications in elderly populations presenting with rectal bleeding: Are we doing it right?

Purpose Rectal bleeding is a common adverse effect of blood thinners in elderly patients resulting in admission. Our aim is to review the management of bold thinning medications in populations. Methods A retrospective analysis of patients admitted with per-rectal bleed from 2018 to December 2020 was performed. All patients above the age of 60 years on blood-thinning medications were analyzed in terms of management and discharge. Results A total of 93 (54.71%) patients out of 170 were included in the study. The median age was 83 years. The majority of them were on Direct Oral-Anticoagulants (DOAC) (35.4%), Clopidogrel (26.8%) and Aspirin (32.5%) with remaining on warfarin (14%) and dual anti-platelets (3.2%). On admission DOAC and warfarin was stopped in all the patients and antiplatelets was stopped in 76% of them. Identical percentage of patients in all the groups required blood transfusion. At discharge, DOAC was restarted in 33% of the patients with similar percentage discontinued. 6% were switched to alternative and the rest were due to outpatient review. Warfarin and antiplatelets was restarted in 61% and 62% of the patients respectively. Alternative medications were initiated on 7.6% of patients on warfarin and 5.4% on antiplatelets. Readmissions were mainly seen in patients on antiplatelets (10%). No patients in the study developed thrombotic complications. Conclusion Individual patient circumstances lead to variations in the management of blood thinning medications with per-rectal bleed. Larger trials are needed to ensure uniformity. Readmissions were mostly seen in patients on antiplatelets.

The Association between the Self-Management of Mild Symptoms and Quality of Life of Elderly Populations in Rural Communities: A Cross-Sectional Study

Maintaining people’s health based on their help-seeking behavior (HSB) regarding mild symptoms is essential. An effective HSB, especially self-management, can facilitate the attainment of appropriate healthcare resources and affect health outcomes such as quality of life (QOL). However, clear evidence regarding the relationship between self-management, mild symptoms, and QOL is unavailable. Therefore, this cross-sectional study investigated this association in a rural elderly population. The participants, aged over 65 years, were living in rural communities. The primary outcome of QOL was examined using the EuroQol 5-Dimension 5-Level (EQ-5D-5L). After adjusting for propensity score matching, 298 participants in the self-management usage group were matched with 298 in the group not using self-management. The most frequent HSB trend was consulting with primary care physicians, followed by self-care, consulting with families, utilizing home medicines, and buying medicines. The EQ-5D-5L scores were statistically higher in the self-management usage group than in the other group. The HSBs with a trend of using self-management were related to a high QOL. Self-management of symptoms along with other HSBs can improve elderly HSBs in rural contexts. Educational interventions and system development for HSBs in rural contexts could be effective in enhancing the QOL of rural elderly populations.