Introduction: Many studies have examined self-rated health status, functional capacity, lifestyle and living arrangements of elderly people (ages 60+ years); but none emerged in a literature search on self-rated health status, health-care seeking behavior, medical expenditure and self-reported health conditions of elderly people 80+ years old. Aims: This research, aims to provide information on the typology of acute and chronic diseases affecting the 80+ year population in Jamaica; ascertain whether there are shifts in the typology of dysfunctions over a 6-year period (2002-2007); examine the likely association between self-rated health status and self-reported dysfunctions; determine demographic differences in self-rated health status; examine likely relationship between self-rated illnesses and health-care seeking behavior; evaluate shifts in self-reported health conditions over a 6-year period, and calculate the elasticity of health-care seeking behavior, with reference to income and health insurance coverage. Method: The current study extracted a sub-sample of 566 and 159 elderly people 80+ years from the dataset of the Jamaica Survey of Living Conditions for 2002 and 2007 respectively. Results: Forty-nine percent of the samples reported an illness in 2007 and of those whom indicated an illness; the majority reported having chronic non-communicable conditions. Generally, the typologies of self-reported health conditions have remained the same. Diabetes mellitus had the greatest percentage of increase (550%) among those with chronic health conditions. Comparatively, 17% reported at least good health status and 39% indicated at least poor health status. Conclusion: The findings for this work can be the framework for policy intervention, understanding of the aged cohort and meeting the needs of the 80+ elderly population.
Objectives: To investigate the prevalence and predictors of loneliness in older people (aged 78+) over a sixyear period. Method: The sample (n=828) was drawn from the Swedish National Study on Aging and Care and the respondents were followed up at three and six years. Data were collected by means of structural interviews with supplementary questionnaires. Results: Half of the respondents reported that they felt lonely sometimes or more often. Women, widows/-ers living alone were more prone to report loneliness. Both independent associated factors and predictors were identified showing that loneliness is associated with and predicted by both physical and psychosocial outcomes. Discussion: Loneliness is common among older people and seems to be a steady state affected mainly by psychological and psychosocial factors such as personality, satisfaction with life, risk of depression, lack of friends and loss of spouse. Psychosocial interventions targeting emotional loneliness and social isolation are suggested.
Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia in the elderly.Although -amyloid peptide (A ) has been considered major cause of Alzheimer pathology, molecular and cellular mechanisms of the disease development of Alzheimer have not been clarified yet.Presently A has been considered to induce neural cell death by direct penetration of aggregated form or indirect cell death by inflammatory responses induced by A -activated microglia.In order to understand A induced microglial activation, we searched the proteins which bind to A in activated microglial cell line.We stimulated Ra2 microglial cell line with A .Activated Ra2 cells were immunoprecipitated with anti-A and run the gel.Membrane was silver stained and bands were cut and digested with enzyme.They were analyzed by LC/MS/MS.We found that several proteins including myosin 9 and actin bound to A .By the addition of A , actin binding was enhanced and other proteins including IQGAP1, Plectin strongly bound to A .These results indicate that A binds to the proteins belonging to cellular cytoskeletal system.
The aim was to study the construct validity for the 13-item Sense of Coherence (SOC) scale among people aged 75+. This study comprised 1753 people aged 76-102 years. Construct validity was measured in terms of the instrument's factor structure as well as discriminant and convergent validity. The result revealed that the instrument failed to show acceptable construct validity in any of the tests or in any age group. The correlation analyses exhibited no clear pattern that could be interpreted as evidence of acceptable construct validity, and the result of the factor analyses did not support the factor structure proposed by Antonovsky. However, this does not necessarily mean that the theoretical concept is invalid, but that this version of the instrument may not be representative of the Sense of Coherence theory.
Objective: We aimed to investigate whether rRNA 28S/18S levels decrease with aging in Down Syndrome (DS) individuals and whether these decreased levels are tissue-specific.Methods: We investigated mature rRNA 28S/18S levels by Northern Blotting in blood cells from 21 younger and 21 older DS individuals in comparison to 42 age-sex-matched controls.We also investigated these levels in oral mucosa and in blood cells from the same DS individuals.Results: All DS subjects showed no clinical signs of dementia at the time of the study.We did not detect differences in rRNA 28S/18S levels among DS and control groups concerning either aging process or cell types.Conclusions: Aging process in DS individuals was not characterized by reduced rDNA transcriptional activity and did not indicate a preclinical marker of AD in older DS subjects.
