The Business of Aging

Predicting Alzheimer's - A Glimpse into the Future

A Miami Herald article titled New exams, treatments for Alzheimer's in the pipeline gives an encouraging glimpse into the future when test can predict Alzheimer's "much like cholesterol now serves as a biomarker for heart disease" and "treatment will come in the form of a vaccine".

"A ton of work is being done in the field,'' says Dr. Maria Carrillo, director of Medical and Scientific Relations for the Alzheimer's Association. ``We are on the hunt for early detection tests that can be done in a general practitioner's office. And as far as medicines are concerned, we're looking at a very robust pipeline."

What kind of tests may be used to predict AD?

Blood. The Alzheimer's Association singles out test that they believe is farther along in clinical research trials. It targets lymphocytes, or white blood cells. The test measures CD-69, a protein involved in white blood cell growth and production and was accurate 91 percent of the time in identifying Alzheimer's patients. 

Other test include Positron emission tomography (PET scans) and Spinal fluid.

As far as what to do once early AD is determined?  The article gives a decent overview of the state-of-the-state of current research and therapies. Check it out.

SeniorCareMarketer eNewsletter April 21st Issue

The latest edition of the SeniorCareMarketer eNewsletter is now available.  SeniorCareMarketer Newsletter is a weekly eNewsletter covering the latest stories relating to the business of aging. It's free. Articles covered in this issue are listed below. Archives can be viewed at SeniorCareMarketer.com.  If you wish to subscribe and receive the latest newsletter via email the day it is issued, please visit SeniorCareMarketer.

Enjoy.

This week's eNews;etter topics: (subscribe here)

• Top 10 US Assisted Living Providers
• China Begins to Address a Coming Wave of Elderly
• Retirees going back to work, older workers delaying retirement
• Reform of Long-Term Care System Could Save Billions
• Wireless body sensors to help prevent falls in seniors
• New Employee Engagement Study Defines How Employers Can Harness
• Healthcare Gathering Addresses Increasing Need Of Caring For The Nation's Elderly Population
• Gilbert Guide Launches Comprehensive Senior Care and Health Education Resource Roadmap
• Home Healthcare Industry: Systemic Breakdown
• Crisis in long-term health: Boomers caring for elderly parents, but who will care for them?
• LexisNexis Technology Survey Finds Technology Generation Gap
• New exams, treatments for Alzheimer's in the pipeline

Enjoy.

New Article. SEO and Marketing Web Sites: Internet Best Practices for Senior Care Vendors.

Company web sites have become the leading source of sales leads—yet many sites in the senior care marketplace offer little more than online “brochures.” A new article from SeniorCareMarketer.com explains how vendors can use search-optimized web sites and marketing activities to attract and engage customers.

The first in a three part series, the article is titled “SEO and Marketing Web Sites: Internet Best Practices for Senior Care Vendors.” You can download the free article at the link provided.   

The article walks suppliers through the basic steps of search-optimizing a Web site, as well as effective branding and messaging, the elements of a strong “marketing” site and how to choose the right keywords. Also included is a checklist of common missteps to avoid and an overview of keyword research and ranking tools. Together, the information will help senior care vendors increase their Internet visibility, Web traffic and search engine rankings—all of which translate to increased sales leads.

Other highlights include:
-    Selecting the right keywords
-    Updating page titles and Meta tags
-    Using keywords in URLs
-    Page and site content
-    Proper use of internal links
-    Best practices for image use and the dangers of all-Flash sites
-    “Black Hat SEO”: What not to do

Future articles will include how to use original content to generate visibility, traffic and leads, as well as strategies to maximize online visibility.

Enjoy.

Again, download it here: http://www.seniorcaremarketer.com/downloads.htm

Alzheimer's Update - Two Findings This Week

Couple of interesting announcements this week:

One: UK drug shows early promise against Alzheimer's

A new drug against Alzheimer's disease called CPHPC, a protein known as serum amyloid P component (SAP) developed by British researchers (I believe in collaboration with Roche), has shown promise in tests on a handful of patients. Researchers found CPHPC caused the disappearance of the protein SAP which is thought to be involved in the disease, from the brains of five Alzheimer's patients who took it for three months. CPHPC targets SAP and removes it from the blood.

The results were published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Science. Larger scale clinical studies are now planned. Details on the research can be found here.

Two: No benefit from tube feeding in advanced dementia

Despite the fact that up to one third of patients with severe dementia are tube fed, there is no evidence that this practice prolongs survival or improves quality of life, according to a report in the online issue of the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. In fact, some data suggest that tube feeding may actually increase the death rate and the number of new illnesses, and decrease the quality of life.

By searching through multiple healthcare databases, Sampson and associates at the Royal Free & University College Medical School, London, identified seven observational studies that compared groups of patients with dementia who did and those who did not undergo tube feeding.  Of the 1821 subjects, ages 63 to 107 years, 409 were tube fed. Reasons for tube placement included inadequate food consumption, weight loss, refusal to eat and trouble swallowing.  None of the studies found a significant association between tube feeding and decreased risk of death, improved nutrition, or incidence of bed sores, the review indicates, and none of the studies evaluated quality of life or physical function.

 

SeniorCareMarketer eNewsletter April 14th Issue

The latest edition of the SeniorCareMarketer eNewsletter is now available.  SeniorCareMarketer Newsletter is a weekly eNewsletter covering the latest stories relating to the business of aging. It's free. Articles covered in this issue are listed below. In about one week it will be available to everyone on the Internet at our public archives page on SeniorCareMarketer.com.  If you wish to subscribe and receive the latest newsletter via email the day it is issued, please visit SeniorCareMarketer.

Enjoy.

This week's eNews;etter topics: (subscribe here)

• LifeCare Partners with PPC Worldwide To Deliver Global Workplace Support Services
• Why Retirement is Getting Tougher  
• Facing Up to the Truth About Social Security   
• Golden Gateway Financial: Reverse Mortgages on the Rise as Economy Continues Decline   
• Seniors' drug use five times the average  
• Generation-X Retirement Savings at Risk: 52% Are Unprepared for Long-Term Costs of Health Care Repor
• Pharmacists get paid more for consultations
• UK drug shows early promise against Alzheimer's (Reuters)  
• Homecare Associations Nationwide Urge Policymakers to Rescind Controversial Medicare...   
• Senior home care companies boom amid tough economic times   
• Mediators Help Families With Tough Choices Of Aging  
• Aging in America...who, me?  
• New NQF Endorsed Standards Focus On Quality And Patient Experience In Home Health Care   
• Humana Encourages Baby Boomers to Get REAL  
• A realistic look at elder care   
• New age of enlightenment  
• Make Way for the Baby Boomers - Again   
• GE and Intel Invest $250 million in New Market Op.

Growing Aging Population a Myth? Yes According to This Analyst.

An article Home Healthcare Industry: Ghosts in the Demographic Machine written by a stock analyst argues that the aging population "has not played—nor will play for a while—a meaningful role in the incredible growth by home healthcare agencies (HHAs)."

The article was written from an investment perspective and the author suggests not to invest in this industry because in his opinion the growing aging population is a myth and does not support the dramatic growth of HHAs.

I don't fully understand how he comes to that conclusion and I cannot completely grasp his number crunching which leaves me a little suspicious of his predictions. But the article is certainly interesting and worth a short read.

But I do disagree with the logic he uses to show that the number of people using home health care is not really increasing.

His data for the growth of HHA comes from "Admissions" and Medicare filings. However, a significant number of home health care purchases never involve medicare (not always covered) and there are no formal admissions that can be tracked with any level of accuracy.

If I purchase the services of a home care company (one of the fastest growing segments of the home health market) to visit the home of my aging loved one for a day, a week or even as a full time live-in, medicare or any other national reporting entity will never know about it. So, it is difficult to measure the growth in these companies except by  what we see in the market and what we see is major growth.

Does the author of the article not include home care companies as a significant component to "home health"?  It wasn't clear in his analysis.

Another fact that the author may have overlooked is the dramatic shift in attitudes amongst Boomers about residential care (Assisted Living, Nursing homes) versus home health care. Increasing number of people shun the former in favor of the latter and this will result in more older people choosing home health in coming years so even if the author's numbers are correct about the number of older American's not really increasing the percentage choosing home care will increase.  

Anyway, give the article a read - it's worth it.