Fairer weather is inviting fun in the sun, yet with brighter days comes the ever-present risk of skin damage from UVA/UVB rays.

As folks reach for their full-spectrum sunscreen, some may think the more expensive the product the better. But according to a study of consumer behavior, cheaper is the way to go.

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Dr. Maria Wei co-published the study titled “Sunscreen Costs in Association With Sun Protective Behaviors” that shows when consumers pay more, they use less and may get burned.​

Dr. Kenneth Covinsky and colleagues recently published a study in The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association, titled “Bedside cognitive screening to detect dementia and predict poor outcomes in hospitals”, demonstrating that two brief bedside cognitive screening tools can identify likely dementia in hospitalized older adults without delirium. The study also found that these screeners help stratify patients’ risk for incident delirium, hospital-associated disability, and 90-day mortality.

Dr. Michael Steinman has been a steadfast advocate for deprescribing medications that are no longer necessary of patient care or could otherwise cause harm, such as an increased risk of falls, strokes and death.

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Dr. Steinman was recently quoted in the Washington Post regarding antipsychotic overuse.

Drs. W. John Boscardin, Alexander K. Smith, Sei Lee and their geriatrics research colleagues sought to improve upon a multi-outcome prognostic model for older adults admitted to skilled nursing facilities (SNF) for short-term rehab that had Medicare data.

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In the updated model, the research team incorporated predictors from the Minimum Data Set (MDS), a mandated comprehensive assessment. This study sought to develop an updated model with MDS elements for use on day 7 of SNF admission when clinical trajectories are more established.

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The study was published in the Journal of the American Medical Directors Association.

White matter (WM) is a key substrate for interregional neural communication and cognitive function, yet the role of WM glucose metabolism in cognitive aging has been understudied.

Drs. Michael Weiner, Duygu Tosun-Turgut, and Rachel Nosheny with the NCIRE-supported NIH Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative contributed to the study titled "Divergent white matter metabolic signature patterns indicate impending cognitive decline in aging and dementia”.

Despite its safety and effectiveness, COVID-19 vaccine uptake declined later in the pandemic.

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In a study co-authored by Board Member Dr.  Karen Seal, and Drs. Jennifer K. Manuel; Natalie Purcell and Brian Borsari, researchers evaluated the effectiveness of a Motivational Interviewing (MI)-informed educational intervention for healthcare providers and staff on vaccination communication. They hypothesized that educating providers and staff about non-judgmental, collaborative discussions would enhance vaccine uptake in Veterans.

Heart failure and its main subtypes, heart failure with preserved ejection fraction and heart failure with reduced ejection fraction, impose an enormous health burden on elders. Assessment of the circulating proteins to illuminate the development of heart failure could open new opportunities for treatment.

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The researchers identified and replicated 55 novel protein markers of heart failure or its subtypes, and 7 new, possibly causal proteins. These proteins may enhance risk prediction, improve understanding of pathobiology, and help prioritize targets for therapeutic development of these foremost disorders in elders.

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Dr. Jorge Kizer co-published the study titled “Large-Scale Proteomic Profiling of Incident Heart Failure and Its Subtypes in Older Adults”.