An Experian report estimated that baby boomers carried an average of 4.8 credit cards in the second quarter of 2019, more than any other generation, according to the Daily Progress . Yet several factors may add to seniors' difficulty in securing approval for credit cards. For example, retirees who are living on less income could have less chances of approval — although they can rely on more income than just a traditional salary, when Social Security benefits, income from investments and retirement, and dividends and interest come into play. Credit scores also could affect an older adult's chances of getting credit card approval, as being debt-free may not be enough to rate a score that eases approval. Equifax said 91.5 million consumers in the United States either have no credit file or have insufficient information in their files to generate a traditional credit score. Moreover, having only credit card accounts in a credit file but no installment accounts like mortgages or car loans can be counted against approval, since credit scoring models like to see a mix of credit. Seniors can improve their chances of being approved for credit cards by checking their credit reports, becoming authorized users, building credit with a secured credit card, mulling a credit-building installment loan, and keeping long-held accounts open.

A study in the International Journal of Audiology says patients might suffer two different hearing-related issues after COVID-19 — hearing loss or tinnitus, a ringing in one's ears, reports BGR . The researchers examined 121 adults who experienced severe coronavirus symptoms, with 13 percent reporting hearing impairments eight weeks after they left the hospital. The authors note that hearing loss and tinnitus can result from other activities, including treatments for COVID-19. "We already know that viruses such as measles, mumps, and meningitis can cause hearing loss, and coronaviruses can damage the nerves that carry information to and from the brain," said University of Manchester Professor Kevin Munro. "It is possible, in theory, that COVID-19 could cause problems with parts of the auditory system, including the middle ear or cochlea." Although a separate study in JAMA Otolaryngology found the virus was detected in the inner ear, it is not sufficient to prove it caused hearing loss or tinnitus. Munro admits that other factors "might include stress and anxiety, including the use of face masks that make communication more difficult, medications used to treat COVID-19 that could damage the ear, or other factors related to being critically ill."

A multi-institutional study in JAMA Neurology suggests that deaths attributed to dementia and other cognitive impairment may be vastly undercounted in the United States, reports the University of Southern California Leonard Davis School of Gerontology . Doctors and medical examiners noted dementia as a contributing factor on approximately 5 percent of death certificates posted from 2000 to 2009, but earlier comparisons of vital statistics to other sources indicated that dementia is significantly underreported as a cause of death. The researchers tracked more than 7,300 participants in the Health and Retirement Study of older adults between the ages of 70 and 99 during the study period. "In the case of dementia, there are numerous challenges to obtaining accurate death counts, including stigma and lack of routine testing for dementia in primary care," said Boston University School of Public Health Professor Andrew Stokes. "Our results indicate that the mortality burden of dementia may be greater than recognized, highlighting the importance of expanding dementia prevention and care." In analyzing health histories of study participants who died, 13.6 percent of deaths were attributable to dementia — more than 2.7 times the rate posted on death certificates from 2000 to 2009. Possible reasons for underreporting include individuals with Alzheimer's or another form of dementia often having multiple health conditions, and medical certifiers' unawareness of dementia diagnosis. Furthermore, cognitive impairment may impede the person's ability to report symptoms and receive a diagnosis to begin with.

The Alzheimer's Society in the Netherlands has created an application that promotes social interaction between people with dementia and their loved ones and caregivers, reports Computer Weekly . Proxcellence user experience designer Robin van Otterdijk conceived of a digital life album backed by Alzheimer Nederland. "Together with Proxcellence, we were able to develop the idea at the Mobile Innovation Lab at SAP," said Alzheimer Nederland Deputy Director Marco Blom. SAP contributed the platform on which the app runs, and developed the underlying technology to ensure that user information is secure and accessible. The app has multiple use cases, for example as a conversation starter because it features a number of standard events with images. The album also can be filled with personal stories, preferences, and background. "In this way, a grandchild, for example, can catch up more quickly on things he didn't know before," Blom said. "As a visitor, you can choose which topics appeal to you to talk about and see what those conversations evoke in dementia patients." Blom, Proxcellence, and SAP will soon address the app's deployment in the Dutch market.

Oracle organizational development consultant Jessica Kriegel writes in Business Insider that recommendations based on generational stereotypes lead to bias that carries human consequences, including misunderstanding between millennial employees and their older managers. She offers five strategies to manage intergenerational offices, with the first being to avoid assumptions based on trends. "Just because the baby boomer generation might statistically tend to stay at their jobs longer than millennials according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, that does not mean your baby boomer employee is not a flight risk," Kriegel notes. Her second suggestion is to stop using generational labels, and the third is for people to always be checking their own prejudices. Kriegel's fourth piece of advice is to ignore trends and focus on people. "Instead, talk to your colleagues and team members," she recommends. Kriegel's fifth and final tip is to welcome the diversity in each generation. "Working effectively with different generations in the workplace means giving each individual — not his or her label — due respect," she concludes.

A mouse study by University of Florida researchers published in the Journal of Physiology found that nitrate enhances function in the diaphragm, which if reproduced in humans could help older adults clear their lungs more effectively and avoid infection, reports Medical Xpress . This finding is especially significant in the COVID-19 era, as the diaphragm is the primary inspiratory muscle for breathing and coughing. The researchers determined that the contractile function — or power — of the diaphragm improved in aged mice administered sodium nitrate in their drinking water each day for two weeks. Dietary nitrate is readily available for humans and could be used, under appropriate supervision, to improve respiratory muscle dysfunction. However, dietary nitrate appears to be more effective on the contractile function of fast muscle cells, which mice have in greater volume than humans. Therefore, the benefits to the human diaphragm may not be as significant, while the benefits for female mice have not yet been investigated. "Our findings are especially important in light of the current COVID-19 pandemic as they suggest that, if replicated in humans, dietary nitrate is useful to improve respiratory muscle dysfunction that contributes to difficulty in weaning patients from mechanical ventilation," said the University of Florida's Leonardo Ferreira.

A study published in Hypertension found that taking blood pressure medication as prescribed helped even the most frail seniors live longer, reports Pharmacy Times . Researchers examined data on nearly 1.3 million people aged 65 and older in Italy's Lombardy region, who had three or more blood pressure medication prescriptions between 2011 and 2012. They analyzed the public healthcare database to estimate the amount of time over the next seven years, or until death, that each person continued to receive those drugs. Analysis of roughly 255,000 deaths over the follow-up period further categorized subjects' health status as good, medium, poor, or very poor. The likelihood of death over the seven-year period was 16 percent for those in good health, which rose to 64 percent for those in very poor health. Compared with those with very low compliance with medications, persons with high adherence were 44 percent less likely to die if they began the study in good health and 33 percent less likely to die if they started in very poor health. In addition, the greatest survival benefit was observed among those who started in good health, and the most modest benefit was in those who began in very poor health. The biggest benefits were seen in those who received blood pressure medication to cover more than 75 percent of the follow-up period, versus those with intermediate or low levels of coverage.

A study published in Scientific Reports indicates a strong association between handgrip strength, walking speed, and cognition, suggesting how improved physical health could improve cognitive health in older adults, reports Medical Xpress . Researchers in Australia are searching for the risk factors for sarcopenia across one's lifespan through the Geelong Osteoporosis Study. Recent follow-up testing involved measuring cognitive function through a computer-based program, in conjunction with physical health assessments. Results from a cohort of men older than 60 showed a strong relationship between hand grip strength and cognition, especially psychomotor function. Meanwhile, usual walking speed was tied to psychomotor function, attention, and overall cognition — but no connection was noted between muscle mass and cognitive function. "The work . . . shows that loss of muscle strength is not only important for overall physical function, but for cognitive health as well," said Institute for Physical and Mental Health and Clinical Translation Professor Julie Pasco. "All this research . . . can be used as an evidence-based way of refining the relatively new definition of sarcopenia."

A study published in JAMA Internal Medicine looked at Medicare insurance claims and found a correlation between respiratory emergency room (ER) visits by people 65 and older and thunderstorms, reports the Seattle Times . During days prior to thunderstorms, Medicare beneficiaries' visits to the ER for respiratory ailments rose, especially among those with both asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. There were 5.3 additional visits per million Medicare enrollees in the three days surrounding major thunderstorms, comprising some 52,000 additional ER visits in all. Although others have theorized that asthma can coincide with thunderstorms because rainfall could cause pollen particles to burst and become easier to breathe in, the current study does not suggest this possibility because most of the ER visits happened before storms. Instead, "rises in particulate matter concentration and temperature may be the dominant mechanism of thunderstorm-associated acute respiratory disease in older Americans," the authors wrote.

Gov. Henry McMaster has issued a statement to South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) Chairman Mark Elam requesting that his agency release up-to-date visitation guidelines providing all direction and information deemed necessary to resume in-person visitation with residents in nursing and assisted living communities, reports ABC News 4 . "Restricting visitation to our state's nursing . . . and assisted living communities in March was a heartbreaking necessity," McMaster said. "It was the most effective way to contain the spread of COVID-19 and to save the lives of our state's senior and at-risk residents." McMaster on June 26 asked DHEC to develop guidelines to allow limited visitation to these communities, but then asked to delay those guidelines after spiking infection rates and hospitalizations in July. With new daily case totals declining and the state posting less than 1,000 new cases in six consecutive days as of Aug. 20, McMaster is requesting visitation resumption. "Although no policy or procedure can eliminate all possibility of risk, it is clear that the time has come to expand current rules to allow in-person visitation by immediate family members, loved ones, or caregivers," the governor declared.