Objectives To understand changes during the COVID-19 pandemic in weekly contact with non-resident family and friends for US adults ages 70 and older in residential care and community settings. Methods Participants in the National Health and Aging Trends Study COVID-19 mail supplement (N=3,098) reported frequency of phone, electronic, video, and in-person contact with non-resident family and friends in a typical week before and during the pandemic. We examined less-than-weekly contact by mode for those in residential care settings and community residents with and without limitations. We estimated multinomial logit models to examine predictors of change to less-than-weekly contact (vs. maintaining weekly-or-more contact) by mode, overall and stratified by setting. Results Weekly in-person contact fell substantially (from 61% to 39%) and more so in residential care (56% to 22%), where nearly four in ten transitioned to less-than-weekly in-person contact (doubling to 8 out of 10). Weekly-or-more contact was largely stable for electronic and telephone modes across settings. Weekly-or-more video contact increased mainly for community residents without limitations. Compared to community residents without limitations, those in assisted living or nursing homes had more than five times the odds (AOR=5.3; p=.01) of changing to less-than-weekly in-person contact; those in independent living also had higher odds of changing to less-than-weekly in-person (AOR=2.6; p=.01) and video (AOR=3.4; p=.01) contact. Discussion The pandemic revealed the importance of ensuring that communication technologies to maintain social ties are available to and usable by older adults, particularly for those living in residential care settings.
ImportanceExisting estimates of the prevalence of vision impairment (VI) in the United States are based on self-reported survey data or measures of visual function that are at least 14 years old. Older adults are at high risk for VI and blindness. There is a need for up-to-date, objectively measured, national epidemiological estimates.ObjectiveTo present updated national epidemiological estimates of VI and blindness in older US adults based on objective visual function testing.Design, Setting, and ParticipantsThis survey study presents a secondary data analysis of the 2021 National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS), a population-based, nationally representative panel study of Medicare beneficiaries 65 years and older. NHATS includes community-dwelling older adults or their proxies who complete in-person interviews; annual follow-up interviews are conducted regardless of residential status. Round 11 NHATS data were collected from June to November 2021, and data were analyzed in August 2022.InterventionsIn 2021, NHATS incorporated tablet-based tests of distance and near visual acuity and contrast sensitivity with habitual correction.Main Outcomes and MeasuresNational prevalence of impairment in presenting distance visual acuity (>0.30 logMAR, Snellen equivalent worse than 20/40), presenting near visual acuity (>0.30 logMAR, Snellen equivalent worse than 20/40), and contrast sensitivity (>1 SD below the sample mean). Prevalence estimates stratified by age and socioeconomic and demographic data were calculated.ResultsIn the 2021 round 11 NHATS sample, there were 3817 respondents. After excluding respondents who did not complete the sample person interview (n = 429) and those with missing vision data (n = 362), there were 3026 participants. Of these, 29.5% (95% CI, 27.3%-31.8%) were 71 to 74 years old, and 55.2% (95% CI, 52.8%-57.6%) were female respondents. The prevalence of VI in US adults 71 years and older was 27.8% (95% CI, 25.5%-30.1%). Distance and near visual acuity and contrast sensitivity impairments were prevalent in 10.3% (95% CI, 8.9%-11.7%), 22.3% (95% CI, 20.3%-24.3%), and 10.0% (95% CI, 8.5%-11.4%), respectively. Older age, less education, and lower income were associated with all types of VI. A higher prevalence of near visual acuity and contrast sensitivity impairments was associated with non-White race and Hispanic ethnicity.Conclusions and RelevanceMore than 1 in 4 US adults 71 years and older had VI in 2021, higher than prior estimates. Differences in the prevalence of VI by socioeconomic and demographic factors were observed. These data could inform public health planning.
Kimura’s disease (KD) is a rare chronic inflammatory or allergic disease. Angiolymphoid hyperplasia with eosinophilia (ALHE) is a benign vascular neoplasm. Their relationship has always been debated. This article reports two rare cases, one of each disease. One patient was a 48-year-old female that presented with a mass on her right mandible. She also had oedema erythema and wheals on her lower limbs. She was diagnosed with Kimura’s disease complicated with chronic urticaria. The second patient was a 23-year-old female that presented with multiple nodules of unequal size on the scalp. She was diagnosed with angiolymphoid hyperplasia with eosinophilia. The first patient recovered after being treated with surgical resection, glucocorticosteroids, cyclophosphamide and radiotherapy. The second patient underwent the first stage of surgical excision and is currently being followed-up. Comparison of the clinical and histopathological features of these two cases supports the theory that KD and ALHE are two separate disease entities.
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