Strike A Chord: Family Caregiving and Stress
Dr. Jessica Zwerling with the Montefiore Center for the Aging Brain was interviewed in this piece by WFUV.
Montefiore and Bloomberg Intelligence Partner to Host Alzheimer’s Panel
Montefiore and Bloomberg Intelligence co-hosted a panel titled “Clinical and Care Policy Developments in Alzheimer’s and Related Dementias” on Monday, September 21 in the Tishman Learning Center of the Moses Campus. As a leading academic medical center and the University Hospital for Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Montefiore has long been on the frontlines of pioneering medical treatments, drawing upon the combination of exceptional scientists and clinicians. Montefiore centralized much of these efforts to treat aging-related disorders with the creation of the Montefiore Einstein Center for the Aging Brain. The Center for the Aging Brain—a collaborative effort between Montefiore and Albert Einstein College of Medicine—provides personalized and comprehensive treatment for a range of conditions facing older adults, and their caregivers, ranging from depression and dementia to pain and failure to thrive.
The recent panel explored timely pre-clinical, clinical and policy developments in care for Alzheimer’s and related dementias. Mark F. Mehler, MD, Alpern Professor and University Chair, The Saul R. Korey Department of Neurology, Professor, Neuroscience and Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Director, Institute for Brain Disorders and Neural Regeneration, Montefiore and Einstein, kicked off the event on the pre-clinical panel. He discussed the exciting research being done by Neurology to gain increased understanding into the causes of nervous-system diseases, as well as to devise novel strategies to promote nerve-cell regeneration. Luciano D’Adamio, MD, PhD, Molecular Mechanisms of Neurodegeneration and Memory Loss Researcher, Montefiore, and Professor, Microbiology & Immunology, Einstein, discussed his pioneering work regarding the role of novel animal models in advancing scientific understanding of Alzheimer’s and dementia.
Joe Verghese, MD, MBBS, Director, Montefiore Einstein Center for the Aging Brain; Chief, Integrated Divisions of Cognitive & Motor Aging (Neurology) and Geriatrics (Medicine), and Professor, Neurology and Medicine, Montefiore and Einstein, spoke on the importance of patient screening in the primary care setting, as well as the need for more specialized care centers. Dr. Verghese and Jessica Leigh Zwerling, MD, MS, Director, Memory Disorders Center and Associate Director, Montefiore Einstein Center for the Aging Brain, explained in their clinical panel how the Center for the Aging Brain employs a multidisciplinary approach to care, with geriatricians, neurologists and neuropsychologists all involved in the creation and execution of patient care plans. Dr. Zwerling also emphasized the need to focus on the caregiver-patient dyad, in order to screen the caregivers with a validated caregiver stress questionnaire and offer group or one-on-one counseling at the Center for those caregivers.
Tia Powell, MD, Director, Montefiore Einstein Center for Bioethics, and Professor of Clinical Epidemiology and Clinical Psychiatry, Einstein, spoke on the policy panel. Dr. Powell noted, “A number of factors, including the aging population, longer survival with more disability, and the lack of treatments likely to rapidly reduce the numbers of those with dementia, mean that we need to find better ways to care for the increasing number of patients with dementia in the years to come.”
Multiple Chronic Conditions Up Risk For Memory Decline
Jessica Leigh Zwerling, M.D., M.S., director, Memory Disorders Center, and associate director, Montefiore Einstein Center for the Aging Brain, comments on a study that found having multiple chronic conditions increases the risk for mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementia in older adults, and adds that a multidisciplinary team with coordinated care is needed to make sure that patients age well.
Read the Medscape Article
|
Coping With Dementia: Best Caregiver Strategies
Alzheimer's suffers aren't the only victims of the disorder. For many patients, care is provided by a spouse or relative — for whom the disease also exacts a significant toll. But several key strategies can help baby boomer caregivers cope.
Read more...
|
FoxNews.com, Health.com, TIME.com, January 27, January 23
17 Ways to Age-Proof Your Brain
Joe Verghese, M.B., B.S., chief, Division of Geriatrics, Department of Medicine and director, Montefiore Einstein Center for the Aging Brain, is featured discussing a study his team conducted on how dancing has been shown to improve blood flow to the brain and keep it young.
Read the FoxNews.com Article
Read the Health.com Article
Read the TIME.com Article
Reuters, Fox News, January 21
More Older Adults Are Reporting Falls
Jessica Zwerling, M.D., M.S., director, Memory Disorders Center and associate director, Montefiore Einstein Center for the Aging Brain discusses a recent study published in JAMA which reveals that there is no age, demographic or disease correlation with falling. Dr. Zwerling also highlights why we should be checked by a doctor after a fall and how fear of falling is a risk factor for future falls.
Read the Reuters Article
Read the Fox News Article
NewsmaxTV, December 16
Meet The Doctors
Jessica Zwerling, M.D., M.S., director, Memory Disorders Center and assistant director, Montefiore Einstein Center for the Aging Brain discusses our research and resources associated with the stress of taking care of loved ones with dementia. While treating patients for dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, Montefiore screened 100 caregivers for stress. More than half were found to have moderate depression. Dr. Zwerling also outlines how to recognize depression and the resources we provide. Separately, Dr. Zwerling notes our research into elderly falls and gait, as well as Montefiore Einstein Center for the Aging Brain’s multidisciplinary care teams.
View the NewsmaxTV Segment
Health Progress Magazine, November/December Issue
What We Do and Don't Know About Dementia
Joe Verghese, M.B.B.S., chief, Division of Geriatrics, Department of Medicine and director, Montefiore Einstein Center for the Aging Brain, is featured discussing our multidisciplinary approach to helping patients with cognitive impairments. Dr. Verghese notes how the Center for Aging Brain helps with advanced care planning and offers services to provide caregiver support. His team’s research on how to help diagnose dementia is also highlighted.
Read the Health Progress Magazine Article
New York Daily News, October 31
Joe Verghese, M.B.B.S., chief, Division of Geriatrics, Department of Medicine and director, Montefiore Einstein Center for the Aging Brain, is featured discussing research his team conducted which found that more than 25 percent of people over 60 years-old have Motoric Cognitive Risk Syndrome, an early warning sign for dementia defined by a combination of cognitive and gait problems.
Read the New York Daily News Article
NewsMaxHealth.com, October 2
Way You Walk Can Reveal If You're Getting Alzheimer's
Joe Verghese, M.B., B.S., chief, Division of Geriatrics, Department of Medicine and director, Montefiore Einstein Center for the Aging Brain, is featured discussing his team’s research, which was published in the journal Neurology, and found that a slow gait and certain cognitive complaints can predict the likelihood of developing dementia.
Read the NewsMaxHealth.com Article
WFAS-AM, August 9
Elder Care on the Air
Joe Verghese, M.B., B.S., division chief, Department of Geriatrics and director, Montefiore Einstein Center for the Aging Brain, is featured discussing the defining features of dementia, including memory interfering with quality of life. He also discusses a new study his team conducted, which found that measuring gait and certain cognitive complaints can predict the likelihood of developing dementia. Lastly, he walks through the multidisciplinary approach to care that occurs at the Montefiore Einstein Center for the Aging Brain.
Listen to the WFAS-AM Segment
PsychCentral, Medical News Today, July 27, July 29
Slow Walking Speed and Memory Complaints Early Predictors of Dementia
Joe Verghese, M.B.B.S., chief, Department of Geriatrics, is highlighted for a study published in Neurology that found measuring how fast people walk combined with certain cognitive complaints can predict the likelihood of developing dementia.
Read the PsychCentral Article
Read the Medical News Today Article
MD News, August 26
Local News
Joe Verghese, M.B.B.S., chief, Department of Geriatrics and director, Montefiore Einstein Center for the Aging Brain is mentioned in this piece, which discusses the opening of the Center. The Center is featured as a state-of-the-art facility where a clinical team collaborates with primary care physicians, subspecialists and caregivers to provide comprehensive care plans and resources for geriatric patients and their families.
Read the MD News Article
Medscape, Huffington Post Canada, Senior Journal, July 30/July 31/July 25
Slow Gait, Cognitive Complaints Predict Cognitive Decline
Joe Verghese, M.B.B.S., chief, Department of Geriatrics, is featured discussing new research focused on motoric cognitive risk syndrome, a diagnosis that incorporates cognitive symptoms and slow walking speed, to determine risk factors for cognitive decline.
Read the Medscape Article
Read the Huffington Post Canada Article
Read the Senior Journal Article