Dementia is now the leading cause of death for Australians, according to the latest report from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW). The Dementia in Australia report also predicts Australians living with the disease will surpass one million by 2065.
Older adults are concerned about mental functioning, but unsure what to do. Providers may be unsure how to assess and educate patients on brain health. This review illustrated several ways clinicians can help patients develop more brain healthy lifestyles. We provide an overview, a conceptual model, and suggestions for implementation. Read more...
Thirty clinicians from two dementia clinics participated in the workshops. Clinicians' self-efficacy improved from pre- to postintervention and again from postintervention to a follow-up 4 months later. Improvements in self-efficacy were especially notable in non-medical personnel. Clinicians identified finding ways to provide hope as the area in which their practice changed most. Read more...
Aerobic exercise (AE) + balance & flexibility (BF) training is likely the most effective multicomponent exercise combination for global cognition, while AE + resistance exercise (RE) showed the optimal effect on executive function in people with cognitive impairment. Read more...
Theresa Flavin was struck by how fragmented the aged care support system was. “In research, older people and those with dementia were kept at arm’s length,” she recalls. “It felt like the system was built around us, not for us.” Diagnosed with younger onset dementia, Ms Flavin is a Lived Experience Dementia Consultant on a UNSW project reshaping decision-making in aged care. Read more...
Aerobic-resistance exercise combined with sequential computerised cognitive training improved gait performance at 6 months and decreased the risk of falls and injuries at 12 months in older adults with MCI. The addition of vitamin D did not produce benefits. Read more...
The latest update to Cochrane’s landmark global review, Falls prevention for older people in care facilities, provides fresh evidence on strategies that work. “The latest evidence shows that ongoing exercise, a dairy-rich diet and vitamin D supplementation are among the most effective measures to reduce and prevent falls.” Read more...
The authors observed a dose–response relationship between antidepressants (ADs) use and falls and related injuries (FRI) risk, independent of benzodiazepine (BZD) use, highlighting the importance of initiating ADs at the lowest effective dose and closely monitoring to prevent FRI. Read more...
Multifactorial interventions implemented with facility staff engagement and tailored intervention delivery according to individual residents' circumstances probably reduce the rate of falls and risk of falling and may be cost‐effective. Regarding single interventions, exercise probably reduces the rate of falls and the risk of falling, but if exercise is not sustained it has no ongoing effect ... Read more...
The 12-week exercise and nutrition intervention yielded significant gains in physical performance, grip strength, quality of life and frailty reduction among community-dwelling older adults with sarcopenia. These findings support the value of community-based, multicomponent interventions for managing sarcopenia. Read more...
An overarching theme "Barriers and enablers related to the environment, personal adaptation, and emotional dilemmas influencing changes in physical activity" and three main categories and seven subcategories were identified. The main categories are "Perceiving how context influences physical activity", "Adapting physical activity to aging and health condition", and "Balancing emotional dilemmas."
Despite a relatively small and homogenous sample, this study was able to identify important beliefs and experiences held by this cohort to help shape advocacy, policy, procedures and education. Read more...
The Transitional Care Model guided the study. Several challenges were identified, namely establishing trust and continuity with older adults, balancing their wish to return home with ensuring their safety, the limited training of nurses to fulfill this role, the lack of communication across care levels, and the shortage of resources within primary care level. Read more...
These findings underscore the importance of distinguishing between types of social engagement and considering gender differences when designing interventions. Policies that support both prevention and re-engagement—particularly those that are gender-sensitive and address formal social roles—may be most effective in promoting mental health among older adults. Read more...
The End-of-Life Care Assessment Tool for Dementia (EoLC-ATD) was developed to help nurses recognise end-of-life signs in people with advanced dementia. Initial testing suggested that it accurately and reliably identified symptoms of advanced dementia. Read more...
Ensuring preparedness for dying and bereavement is a key focus for palliative care. Preparedness is thought to facilitate ‘good dying’ and mitigate bereavement risk. Retrospective accounts reveal the relational complexities of caring-in-anticipation. Anticipation fatigue draws attention to the pressures of preparedness at end of life. Holistic support is needed to sustain wellbeing when caring. Read more...
The concept of anticipation fatigue captures the cumulative (dis)stress of this sometimes prolonged, and often ambiguous, state of waiting for dying. It invites us to rethink simplistic ideas of preparedness and to acknowledge the messy, emotional, and relational terrain of caring at end of life. Read more...
This review shows that web-based and video decision aids can promote shared decision-making and increase preferences for comfort-focused care, offering a promising way to support complex choices in dementia care. Read more...
Despite clear benefits, palliative care remains underutilised for patients with heart failure. This review uncovers why - mapping 72 themes of barriers and facilitators to behaviour change theory - and reveals how gaps in knowledge, system resources, and collaboration continue to impede care. Read more...
The dynamic process of social prescribing was a central influencer for older people to engage in healthy ageing programs. Themes of supporting facilitators to be responsive to older members' needs by linking support with local resources triggered memberships and perpetuated a social network that bolstered resilience, reciprocity and intergenerational well-being. Read more...
02-09-2025 - European Review of Aging and Physical Activity
To investigate the effect of digital exercise interventions on muscle mechanical function in community-dwelling older adults aged 60 and above. Read more...
