Objective To provide characterization of Mexican Americans who meet criteria for Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) and Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI). Methods 1069 participants ages 40 and above who self-identified as either non-Hispanic white (n=633) or Mexican American (n=436); were recruited using a community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach. Global cognition was assessed via the Mini Mental State Exam (MMSE), dementia severity by the Clinical Dementia Rating Scale (CDR) and depression via the Geriatric Depression Scale 30-item version. Age, gender, education, ApoEε4 allele frequency and diabetic diagnoses were also analyzed. Results Mexican Americans (normal controls, MCI and AD) were younger, less highly educated, performed more poorly on the MMSE, endorsed more symptoms of depression, were more likely to be diagnosed with diabetes, and possessed the ApoEε4 allele less frequently. Age was the only significant risk factor for cognitive dysfunction (AD/MCI) among Mexican Americans (OR=1.06, 95% CI = 1.03–1.09). Age (B=0.07, std=0.02, p<0.001) and ApoEε4 presence (B=0.9, std=0.4, p=0.02) were significantly related to increased disease severity. Conclusions Given the rapidly growing and aging Mexican American population, there is a substantial need for research into cognitive aging, MCI and AD among this ethnic group. The current findings hold important implications for both clinic and research settings and point to additional research needs.

Aspiration is prevalent in the elderly but its association with impairment of oral intake and gastroesophageal reflux is often misunderstood. This paper describes the causes, pathophysiology, and consequences of aspiration and their unique features in aged persons. It also explains how videofluoroscopic evaluation can assess current function while limiting factors that result in misinformation. The management of aspiration is discussed, emphasizing the importance and difficulties in maintaining functional well-being and possible complications of therapy.

Dental care and oral hygiene are often neglected in nursing homes. This study examines the effect of an education program on the ability of nursing staff to conduct an oral health assessment for a population of persons with Alzheimer's disease and related disorders. The findings of this study showed that the CNA's are as capable as the Licensed Nurses in assessing oral health status. In future training of nursing staff, increased emphasis on identification of problems in specific areas may improve the overall assessments by nurses and nursing assistants.

This study demonstrated that a large scale training program is feasible for healthy older people, that physiologic improvements can be measured after 16 weeks of low-to-moderate-intensity training, and that mechanisms of adaptation to exercise may be different in elderly subjects from those in younger ones.

The purpose of our study was to prospectively determine pneumonia frequency and correlate it with prandial liquid aspiration and feeding status in frail elderly nursing home residents. Initially, 152 patients had video swallowing examinations (81 oropharyngeal dysphagia, 19 thoracic dysphagia, 52 without dysphagia). Those diagnosed with oropharyngeal impairment were subsequently managed with swallowing therapy or artificial feeding modalities. Patients were followed for 3 years (unless they expired earlier) and clinical courses were categorized according to the degree of prandial aspiration and feeding (PAF) status. Subjects with new lung infiltrates persisting for at least 5 days with appropriate clinical findings were diagnosed as having pneumonia and were classified according to the PAF status months in which these findings occurred. Fifty-six pneumonias were diagnosed during 4,280 months with the following frequencies: no aspiration months 0.6%; minor aspiration months 0.9%; major aspiration/oral feeding months 1.3%; major aspiration/artificial feeding months 4.4%, p < 0.001. Our results indicate that there is not a simple and obvious relation between prandial liquid aspiration and pneumonia. Artificial feeding does not seem to be a satisfactory solution for preventing pneumonia in elderly prandial aspirators.

The OMT protocol used in the present study improved the postural stability of healthy elderly patients, as measured by changes in sway values. (ClinicalTrials.gov number NCT01153412).

Nonoverlapping UPSIT items were identified that were individually associated with age and disease. Despite a modest predictive value of the AD-specific items for conversion to AD, the AD-specific items may be useful in enriching samples to better identify those at risk for AD. Further studies are needed with monomolecular and unilateral stimulation and orthogonal biomarker validation to further refine disease- and age-associated signals.

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