Tuesday, January 31, 2006

PLoS Medicine: Using Search Engines to Find Online Medical Information

Google has changed medical info, access to it and the whole doctor patient relationship beyond my wildest dreams ( 5 years ago...) PLoS Medicine: Using Search Engines to Find Online Medical Information: "The Internet certainly provides a number of resources for finding medical evidence. The Cochrane Collaboration (www.cochrane.org), for example, posts freely available abstracts of systematic reviews of health interventions (access to the full text of the reviews requires a fee). PubMed (www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi), the United States National Library of Medicine's search service, provides access to abstracts of articles in MEDLINE, PreMEDLINE, and other related databases. PubMed's MyNCBI feature provides useful filters such as �free full-text,� which shows papers for which the full text is available through the Internet, free of charge. The �HINARI� filter (www.nlm.nih.gov/pubs/techbull/jf05/jf05_myncbi.html#filters) shows papers for which the text is freely available to residents of a small number of developing world countries�those with a Gross National Product per capita below $1,000�who are part of the HINARI agreement (www.healthinternetwork.org). PubMed Central (www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov) is the US National Institutes of Health's free digital archive of the full text of biomedical and life sciences journal articles.
Yet, as many a doctor will point out, the bigger problem with medical knowledge today is not its paucity, but the difficulty of navigating what there is. Finding the right answer quickly for a patient is difficult, and perhaps nothing will replace a good medical librarian in finding that information.
The rise of the search engine Google (www.google.com), along with other freely available search engines, has made it easier to find information, although the clinical uses of Google have not been as well documented as those of PubMed [1]. Google will "

Google

Sunday, January 29, 2006

Alzheimer's drug could make everyone brainier

Alzheimer's drugs side-effects stomach pains and sickness

Nootropics A generic term for "smart drugs" which claim to boost cognitive abilities. From noos for mind, and tropos for bend.

Alzheimer's drugs: Prescription-only pills such as donepezil designed to slow the effects of Alzheimer's, now sold illegally online to improve brain abilities in healthy adults

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Alzheimer's drug could make everyone brainier: "A new generation of 'smart pills' known as nootropics which could make people think sharper and remember things better could be available in chemists within a decade, education specialists at a Bristol University meeting heard this week.

The drugs include prescription-only medications normally used to treat Alzheimer's disease and dementia in older people which some studies have suggested also improve memory and thinking processes in fit adults...

The drugs are already available on the internet, circumventing prescription controls. Sites based in America advertise a range of prescription-only pills for sale including Hydergine, the treatment for Alzheimer's for as little as $15.10 (£8.48) for a month's supply and deprenyl, a Parkinson's disease drug, for $45 a month. One website, Offshore Pharmacy, is registered to an address in the Channel Islands, though it says that it does not ship drugs to the UK.

Roy Jones, an Alzheimer's medication specialist at Bath University, said: "The general thought is that these substances work by increasing brain metabolism, circulation and introduce antioxidants which protect from damage. Any compound used or considered in the treatment of Alzheimer's will have been considered as a smart pill."

Many Alzheimer's drugs have serious side-effects, including stomach pains and sickness, he warned. One participant in the German trials was forced to drop out after experiencing severe side-effects including dizzyness and nausea.


"

Google

Thursday, January 26, 2006

SOS Alzheimers Talisman

Well, Dad has been wandering again recently, turning up at his old house at 9am absolutly frozen and worn out, unable to get up the stairs to use the toilet and generally in a right state. He has been treated for a urine infection - 3 weeks after we suggested it as a cause for his increased agitation. Lets hope that things improve when he finishes the antibiotics.

All of this has reminded me to start my next marketing project. I think the SOS Talisman is a great medical ID tag product and will be using Adwords as the main form of advertising....

SOS Alzheimers Talisman: Sometimes it is impossible to stop the person with dementia or Alzheimers Disease wandering so it is imperative that they always carry some form of ID with medical and contact details in case of emergcency."

Google

Sunday, January 22, 2006

Alzheimer sufferers win 60m drug fight

The Observer | UK News | Alzheimer sufferers win �60m drug fight: "Alzheimer sufferers win �60m drug fight

� Family protests force policy U-turn
� Acute dementia patients left out

Hundreds of thousands of Britons who suffer from Alzheimer's disease are to be given a massive boost tomorrow when government experts finally conclude that the benefits of at least three breakthrough drug treatments outweigh the financial costs.

Following an outpouring of protest from thousands of families whose relatives have been helped by the drugs, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) will reverse its earlier plan to ban the treatments which cost the NHS £60m a year. Instead, it will conclude that Aricept and other similar drugs should be given to patients in the early stages of the disease, when they have mild or moderate dementia."

The article concludes:"Three of the drugs, rivastigmine (brand name Exelon), donepezil (Aricept) and galantamine (Reminyl), cost around £2.50 per day per patient, resulting in an NHS bill of £60m a year. They belong to a class known as cholinesterase inhibitors, and were approved for use on the NHS in 2001.

They are currently prescribed to some 54,000 patients, but that is only a small proportion of the number who should be on the drugs. The fourth drug is Ebixa, also known as memantine, which costs £69 a month. This is the first in a new class of drugs called NMDA receptor antagonists which appear to have a protective effect on the brain, slowing down progress at the later stages of the disease.

The latest evidence suggests that 20 per cent of Alzheimer's patients do very well on the drugs, and up to 68 per cent derive some benefit. Campaigners say that to withhold the only treatment available to sufferers is immoral."





Google

Saturday, January 21, 2006

Regular exercise reduces risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease -- Mayor 332 (7534): 137 -- BMJ

Exercise to lower your risk of Alzheimer's and dementia.Regular exercise reduces risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease -- Mayor 332 (7534): 137 -- BMJ: "Regular exercise reduces risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease...

More evidence for the "use it or lose it" approach to ageing has come from a study published this week showing that older adults who exercised three or more times a week had a significantly lower risk of developing dementia than adults who exercised less (Annals of Internal Medicine 2006;144: 73-81[Abstract]"

Google

Friday, January 20, 2006

SOS Alzheimers Talisman ID for wanderers

SOS Alzheimers Talisman: "SOS Alzheimer's Online Solutions

The problem: My father-in law has a form of dementia and it worries the family half to death when he decides to go for a wander as he does not remember where he lives or anyone's contact details. He is very unsteady and falls often. He and we have been lucky so far in that good samaritans have found him wandering and looking lost but end up taking him to where he used to live so I have been searching online for a discreet way of making sure he always has full details of who he is, where he lives, medical condition, medication and contact details in case of emergency. This site seems to have an answer to the id problem Why he wanders is another toopic altogether."

Google

Monday, January 16, 2006

Technology enables more dementia patients to stay out of care

Tunstall

Key Facts
There are 750,000 people with dementia in the UK
That's 5% of the total population aged 65 and over, rising to 20% aged 80 and over
154,000 people with dementia live alone
By 2026 there will be 840,000 people with dementia in the UK

There has previously been little alternative to residential care for many people living with the effects of dementia, as the risks of remaining at home often become too great as the condition progresses.This change of environment in itself can often prove distressing and detrimental to older people with dementia. Carers for those with dementia can experience prolonged periods of emotional and physical strain, and respite from their role is made difficult by the adverse effect
it can have on the person they are caring for.

Technology which can allow a carer to have a good night's sleep, safe in the knowledge that should their loved one wander out of the house, cause the bath to overflow or even leave their bed for a prolonged period of time, they will be alerted immediately can make an enormous difference to the quality of everyday life.

Telecare can monitor the environment for people living with dementia and their carers, and a variety of sensors can be employed as appropriate to the situation, such as the wandering client sensor.Wandering can be a particular issue for people with dementia, particularly at night time. A simple solution, based around a door contact and PIR (Passive Infra Red) can ensure that people with dementia do not need to be prisoners in their own homes in order to live safely in the community. This technology will raise an alert if it detects a presence leaving the house but not returning within a short space of time, thus enabling them to be guided safely home.

Google

Alzheimers, wanderers and personal electronic tag

I am trying to find some kind of electronic solutions to finding alzheimer & dementia patients who wander. Parts of the US have databases which link to search and rescue with some also using GPS tags. Such aids do not seem to be available on the UK market so I may have to search wider.

Example; UK-Wire: "One of the features that make HomeFree's systems so attractive is the new watch style personal electronic tag, which was developed on the basis of specific market feedback. This new 'Personal Watcher', which will also be offered to HomeFree's existing clients, is much lighter and more comfortable to wear than the previous version and acts as a conventional watch, making it far more acceptable to patients."

"I have asked officials in the Department of Health to develop a strategy for telecare and
other electronic assistive technology and for the development of other equipment services,
and to consider what enabling action government might now need to take. I am putting my
personal support behind the efforts to bring about the technological, service and cultural
developments that our ageing population deserves. "
Speech by Stephen Ladyman MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Community Care:
Integration of Community Equipment Service (ICES) Conference, Homing In, 9 March 2004

Pull cords and personal alarms are not suited to Alzheimers and dementia patients because of the nature of their condition and frequent lack of awareness of the dangers of wandering.

Google

Sunday, January 15, 2006

First people injected with ID chips, sales drive kicks off | The Register

First people injected with ID chips, sales drive kicks off | The Register: "It works like this. For a $200 fee and $10 a month for data storage you get your own personal chip, said to be about the size of the tip of a ballpoint pen, inserted. A handheld VeriChip scanner can then be used to read the information on the chip, and naturally the positive medical aspects of the system are being majored on at the moment. The Jacobs family suffers from various ailments, so if one of them is taken ill near a medical centre equipped with a VeriChip scanner.... Ah yes, you see the problem, and the need to achieve critical mass. Nate Isaacson, also in the first wave of chipping, is however a more plausible example at this juncture.
He has Alzheimer's, and so long as VeriChip achieves a reasonable uptake in this area then there seems some likelihood of confused people found wandering around being scanned and identified. It'd be something the police and/or medics would probably reckon would be worth a shot.
What VeriChip doesn't do at this juncture is allow any kind of remote tracking."

Google

OAPS to be tagged in care homes

Scotsman.com News - OAPS to be tagged in care homes: "THOUSANDS of elderly Scots are set to be electronically tagged in a controversial bid to stop dementia patients disappearing from hospital wards and care homes, Scotland on Sunday can reveal.
The nation�s mental health watchdog has given the green light for electronic tagging of confused and vulnerable elderly people, despite widespread concern about the ethics of the move and the possibility that it might be abused.
The Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland (MWCS) believes electronic tags - which are commonly used as an alternative to jail for criminals - can save lives by preventing patients with dementia and other mental disorders straying into danger."

Google

Applied Digital SolutiAlzheimer's Disease, GPS Technology and Alzheimer's Disease, Applied Digital Solutions sells a device Digital Angel

Alzheimer's Disease, GPS Technology and Alzheimer's Disease, UPMC | University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA:
"Personal locator devices using GPS technology can be used to pinpoint the location of lost Alzheimer�s patients. For example, Applied Digital Solutions sells a device called the Digital Angel, which is worn as a watch, plus has a separate clip-on pager. Using GPS mapping software and cell phone networks, the Digital Angel alerts caretakers by e-mail (sent to a cell phone, personal computer, personal digital assistant (PDA), or text pager) when an Alzheimer�s patient has wandered out of a pre-designated area. Two other companies selling similar devices are SIDSA, based in Spain, and Secom, based in Japan.

The advantages of using a GPS locator device over more traditional personal alert systems is that the user doesn�t have to activate it and the technology works over a larger geographic area. The main disadvantage is cost.

The Bottom Line
Wandering is a serious problem for Alzheimer�s patients and their caretakers. There are a few simple measures that caretakers can follow, however, to help prevent wandering:
Conceal or camouflage doors.
Install locks, alarm systems, and wandering monitoring devices.
Label doors to explain the purpose of each room and to discourage exit/entry. Use warning signs or symbols that say 'Do Not Enter' or 'No!'
Try to identify when the patient is likely to wander and distract him or her with another activity at that time.
Encourage activity that will relieve the patient�s anxiety.
Reassure the patient that he or she is in the right place.
If you are a caretaker for an Alzheimer�s patient, registering him or her in the Safe Return program may be a great option for your peace of mind. But if you�d feel better being able to find exactly w"

Google

Alzheimer's Disease, database and finding wanderers and Alzheimer's Disease, UPMC | University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

Alzheimer's Disease, GPS Technology and Alzheimer's Disease, UPMC | University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA: "What can be done for wanderers?

In 1994, the U.S. Department of Justice partnered with the National Alzheimer�s Association to create Safe Return, an identification program that unites Alzheimer�s disease wanderers with their loved ones. For a fee, families can register a patient with Alzheimer�s. The patient�s name, photo, identifying characteristics, and emergency contacts are placed in a database.

The patients wear an accessory � a pin, necklace, or bracelet � indicating that they are memory impaired. Then, if the patient is found wandering, a call can be placed to the 24-hour toll-free hotline listed on the Safe Return accessory. Local law enforcement agencies can then use this information to return the wanderers to their homes.

Another option available to keep a watchful eye on wandering Alzheimer�s patients is to use personal locator devices that integrate GPS technology with mapping programs and digital wireless gadgets. Still in the early phases of use, such devices receive signals from satellites to tell users where on earth they are. "

Google

Alzheimer's Disease, GPS Technology and Alzheimer's Disease, UPMC | University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

Dad has started wandering again - possible he has a urine infection given that he has had trouble controlling his weeing, unable to get to the toilet in time etc....lets hope sis in law gets the doctor to him asap even though this was mentioned at least two weeks ago!

That apart I am reconsidering starting a new website to mAlzheimer's Disease, GPS Technology and Alzheimer's Disease, UPMC | University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA: "GPS Technology and Alzheimer's Disease: Novel Use for an Existing Technology
Experts predict the number of Americans diagnosed with Alzheimer�s disease, a disorder that robs victims of their memory, cognitive abilities, and personality, will triple in the next 50 years. As the disease progresses, people with Alzheimer�s may lose track of time and become increasingly disoriented. As a result, for many Alzheimer�s sufferers (and those who take care of them) wandering is a huge problem. Safe Return, a national, government-funded identification program, helps locate lost Alzheimer�s patients in a safe and timely manner. Also coming onto the scene are new tracking systems using Global Positioning System (GPS) technology that may help keep track of Alzheimer�s disease sufferers."

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