WZZM 13 reports that the state of Michigan is hosting the latest virtual community town hall on the COVID-19 vaccine for older adults on Thursday. The event builds on earlier town halls with faith-based leaders and communities of color, concerning the safety, effectiveness, and importance of the vaccines for safely reopening the state. "Even as the COVID-19 vaccine eligibility expands, it's important that older adults understand the safety and efficacy of the authorized vaccines, so that they can get scheduled as soon as possible if they haven't already received the vaccine," said Alexis Travis with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services' Aging and Adult Services Agency. "Michigan's older residents have a higher risk of severe illness and death associated with COVID, so increasing their immunity will help protect our communities overall." The town halls seek to answer queries within vulnerable communities, and older adults are prioritized for vaccination as the risk of severe illness from COVID-19 increases with age.

WPRI 12 reports that the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH) is calling on the state's long-term care communities to again permit visitations. RIDOH spokesperson Joseph Wendelken cited complaints from the families and friends of residents regarding visitation, including one where a resident was only allowed one visit within a three-week period. "Now that the COVID-19 vaccine and spring have arrived, RIDOH's expectation is that visitation will increase and communities will begin to achieve pre-COVID-19 visitation levels," he noted. Scott Fraser at the Rhode Island Health Care Association denied knowledge of any long-term care communities that are refusing visitation, unless directed to do so by RIDOH. "We still must follow strict, and sometimes conflicting, guidelines," he explained. "We are doing our best to meet all the requirements." Wendelken emphasized the latest state visitation guidelines for facilities to review, which include providing "reasonable visiting hours" of at least four hours per day and allowing "immediate access to residents by properly identified appropriate government personnel, family members, physicians, and relatives."

The Sheridan Press reports that encore careers can offer opportunities for seniors that were impractical earlier in life. Employment during retirement can provide additional income and mitigate the pain of dipping deeply into one's savings. "We find it a benefit to have employees that are in the same age range as our clients," said Sheree Childers-Cossel, human resource manager for The Hub on Smith. "They understand the challenges that older adults face and they have so much wisdom to share with other staff members." The ideal encore career provides the senior with a flexible schedule to accommodate other retirement activities.

An Alzheimer's Association report suggests minorities are experiencing racial healthcare discrimination, which is a barrier to Alzheimer's and dementia care, according to the Gainesville Sun . The study found 50 percent of African Americans, 42 percent of Native Americans, 34 percent of Asians, and 33 percent of Hispanics have suffered healthcare discrimination, and feel they are receiving unequal treatment. Moreover, Alzheimer's and dementia disproportionately impacts African Americans and Hispanics. Samantha Logue with the Alzheimer's Association Florida Region said African Americans are twice as likely and older Hispanics are 1.5 times as likely to develop Alzheimer's. She added that 36 percent of African Americans, 18 percent of Hispanic Americans, and 19 percent of Asian Americans believe discrimination would be an obstacle to Alzheimer's care. At least half of non-white caregivers also claim to have experienced discrimination when navigating healthcare settings for their care recipient. Non-white racial/ethnic persons also expect and contend with more barriers when accessing dementia care, are less trustful of medical research, and are less confident that they have access to health professionals who understand their ethnic and racial background and experiences.

Ruth Langevin, a music therapist with over 30 years experience, has provided comfort to senior communities in British Columbia during the pandemic, reports the Terrace Standard . In group classes with residents, Langevin encourages participants to sing, clap, use rhythmic instruments like chimes, and move as best they can. Many of Langevin's patients are in various stages of dementia, and she says even those in the grip of advanced dementia can still sing songs word-for-word. "It's in their long-term memory, whereas they won't know what day it is or their phone number or whatever, but they do remember things from their youth," she explains. Langevin's work is funded by the Friends of Nelson Elders in Care through the Osprey Community Foundation, and president of the organization George Millar says studies have proved that music therapy can benefit the mental health of residents. "Seniors who don't really seem to show any alertness even about the general situation going on around them will perk up and pay attention and even get involved some when there's music happening," he notes.

Medical Xpress reports that older adults may have more contributing factors for hyponatremia (low blood sodium), including age-related alterations, taking certain drugs, and a higher probability of developing a chronic disease that affects sodium balance. One or more variables cause the sodium levels to dilute. This induces a rise in the body's water levels, and cells begin to swell. This inflammation can cause many health problems, ranging from mild to life-threatening.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced Monday that the state is again relaxing coronavirus restrictions on visits to nursing and assisted-living communities, allowing residents to have visitors in their private rooms and physically touch each other provided masks are worn, according to Cleveland.com . Communities will also be required to permit at least half hour-long visits so long as coronavirus rules are followed. The governor's announcement comes 11 days after a previous declaration that, in compliance with revised federal health guidelines, Ohio nursing communities can again allow indoor visits at all times — if most residents are vaccinated and coronavirus cases in the surrounding area are limited. DeWine also said he is expanding the number of conditions under which loved ones can schedule indoor "compassionate care" visits at nursing communities that are not yet allowed under COVID-19 rules to generally receive visitors. Meanwhile, new state rules mandate that nursing communities must be tested for the coronavirus once weekly if they are vaccinated, and twice weekly if they are not.

In a surprising move, officials with the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) urged AstraZeneca to make sure it is providing the most recent data on the effectiveness of its coronavirus vaccine, reports the Wall Street Journal . This followed AstraZeneca's release of interim data from its U.S. trials, indicating the vaccine was 79 percent effective in preventing symptomatic infection. But NIAID said an independent monitoring board warned that the company's disclosures of the study results may have been founded on outdated evidence. The agency's response revives doubts about the vaccine's effectiveness, undermining newfound confidence in the product after issues were raised about associated blood clotting. It also further complicates AstraZeneca's timeline for emergency use authorization in the United States. NIAID did not in fact dispute the trial findings over the complication, but rather focused on unspecified information related to efficacy. Nevertheless, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Professor Stephen Evans called the decision by an independent trial-safety monitor to publicly challenge a company running a clinical trial "unprecedented."

Research by the National Poll on Healthy Aging estimated that 10 percent of all people between the ages of 50 and 80 got a new pet during the COVID pandemic between March 2020 and January 2021, reports News-Medical . Most respondents do not live with someone under age 18, and almost 9 percent of them also got a pet during the pandemic. Overall, 59 percent of people age 50 to 80 who completed the survey are pet owners, and 17 percent of those who said in January that they are pet owners had acquired at least one pet since the pandemic began. Pet ownership was more frequent among those age 50 to 64, women, and whites. The percentage of older adults living with a pet climbed 12 points between the sample reported in 2019 and the January 2021 sample. "Of particular interest during this isolating pandemic, companion animals certainly stave off the silent killer: loneliness," said Wendy Welch with the Humane Society of Huron Valley.

Researchers at Britain's University of Manchester have employed cutting-edge nanotechnology to extract blood signal of neurodegeneration, in the hope of developing a screening test for early Alzheimer's, reports Health Europa . "The technology developed opens up new possibilities for the development of novel multi-analyte blood tests to predict the onset and development of a wide range of neurodegenerative disorders," said Manchester Professor Nigel Hooper. An analysis in ACS Nano involved the extraction of blood signals of neurodegeneration in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease. Nanoparticles called liposomes were injected into the mice to detect disease-specific proteins from blood; their surfaces spontaneously accumulated hundreds of neurodegeneration-associated proteins. Following the nanoparticles' retrieval, the researchers analyzed the molecular signatures on their surfaces. Manchester Professor Kostas Kostarelos said, "The nano-tool we developed allowed us to see deeper into the blood proteome, identifying proteins of interest that are directly associated with neurodegeneration processes in the brain, among thousands of other blood-circulating molecules. We hope that these early warning signs of Alzheimer's disease could one day be developed into a blood test and we are actively seeking validation of these signatures in human blood."