Birthday cake with candles spelling Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday, Risks!

Angie SzumlinskiHealth, Studies

Happy birthday to you but before you celebrate you might want to read a study published in JAMA Network! The question raised: is there an association between household birthdays, which likely correspond to informal social gatherings and COVID-19 infection? Large gatherings of people and small social gatherings are thought to be an important source of SARS-CoV-2 transmission. Although it is …

Transmission of Pan-Resistant and Echinocandin-Resistant Candida auris in Health Care Facilities

Angie SzumlinskiHealth, Studies

Candida auris is an emerging, often multidrug-resistant yeast that is highly transmissible, resulting in health care-associated outbreaks, especially in long-term care facilities. Skin colonization with C. auris allows spread and leads to invasive infections, including bloodstream infections, in 5%–10% of colonized patients. Pan-resistant C. auris isolates have been reported previously, although rarely, from the United States (4) and other countries (5). Three pan-resistant C. auris cases reported in …

SARS-CoV-2 Transmission

Angie SzumlinskiStudies

There is still much to be understood about the factors influencing the ecology and epidemiology of COVID-19. In particular, whether environmental variation is likely to drive seasonal changes in SARS-CoV-2 transmission dynamics is largely unknown. In a study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS), the effects of the environment on …

Persistent COVID-19 Symptoms

Angie SzumlinskiStudies

We have read and written many articles and blogs regarding this topic but it continues to fascinate everyone including researchers. The frequency and variety of persistent symptoms after COVID-19 are definitely stumping the medical community! In a study published in JAMA Open, a systematic review of 45 studies including 9,751 participants with COVID-19, the median proportion of individuals who experienced …

Natural Immunity

Angie SzumlinskiStudies

According to a study published in the Journal of Infectious Disease, naturally acquired SARS-CoV-2 immunity persists for up to 11 months following infection. The study was a prospective, longitudinal analysis of COVID-19 convalescent plasma (CCP) donors at multiple time points over an 11-month period in order to determine how circulating antibody levels change over time following natural infection. 228 donors …

Lack of Sleep

Angie SzumlinskiStudies

In a study published in Science Daily, having trouble falling asleep was associated with cognitive impairment. More frequent trouble falling asleep predicted poorer episodic memory, executive function, language, processing speed, and visuospatial performance. Insomnia involves difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep, or regularly waking up earlier than desired, despite allowing enough time in bed. This study analyzed data from the …

Elderly Patient in Hospital

Isolation and Mortality

Angie SzumlinskiStudies

Social isolation, generally defined as having few social network ties or infrequent social contact, is an important public health concern that affects many older adults. By age 85, 39% of older adults live alone, and socially isolated adults experience high rates of negative health outcomes, including premature mortality and a 5% increase in the risk of dementia. In the LTC …

Xray image of hip fracture

Fracture Hospitalization Trends

Angie SzumlinskiStudies

Fractures in late life are highly consequential for health, services use, and spending, however, little is known about trends in extremity fracture hospitalizations among older adults in the United States. Although trauma-related death and disability is most common among young and working-age Americans, older adults comprise approximately 30% of trauma hospitalizations. While both injurious falls and osteoporotic hip fractures have …

Excess COVID-19 Mortality Assisted Living

Angie SzumlinskiStudies

In a study published in JAMA Network Open, they examined the excess mortality among assisted living residents in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic. After adjusting for facility fixed effects, assisted living residents experienced 17% higher overall mortality in 2020 compared with the prior year. These results suggest that assisted living residents experienced increased mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic …

Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM)

Angie SzumlinskiStudies

Per an article published in JAMA Network, adults with poorly controlled type 2 diabetes had better outcomes using continuous glucose monitoring versus blood glucose meter monitoring. The trend in geriatric care has been to step away from using sliding scale insulin, opting for long-acting insulins such as Lantus instead. This recent study indicates that continuous monitoring using a medical device …