Blog Layout
Symptoms Of Common Chronic Health Conditions In The Elderly
Lisa Reisman • Aug 29, 2019
How can we help you today?
Symptoms Of Common Chronic Health Conditions In The Elderly
When you are able to visit with your loved one and you hear coughing and complaints of sore joints or blurred vision, you want to reach out and want to help. Unfortunately, millions of elderly Americans suffer from ongoing health problems, with roughly 80 percent of them having at least one type of chronic health condition. At least 68 percent of older Americans have two or more chronic health issues. Chronic health conditions don’t just hurt your elderly loved one; those health issues also make your loved one’s care more difficult for everyone involved.
Although adult children may think that the only solution is having their aging parents go to an assisted-living facility or a nursing home, there is another option.
Thanks to companies that offer care in the home, elderly parents can live out their remaining years more comfortably in the surroundings they are used to. If you are concerned that your elderly loved one may be suffering from chronic health conditions, review our list of the most common symptoms:
1. Type-2 Diabetes Symptoms
About one out of every four older Americans has Type-2 diabetes, and many are not even aware that they have it. Common symptoms include feeling hungry, fatigued, or thirsty. Your aging parent may have lost weight without even trying to do. Other symptoms include not healing quickly from bruises and cuts, blurred vision, or contracting skin infections.
If your elderly parents have one or more of these symptoms, it’s critical that you take them to a doctor for diagnosis and treatment. There are several ways that healthcare professionals can assist in diabetes management.
For example, healthcare professionals can help your parent with glycemic control, which helps reduce the likelihood of delayed healing, infection, and complications related to diabetes. Besides glucose testing, services may also include meal planning, eye tests, specialized shoes, and foot exams.
2. Osteoarthritis Symptoms
Osteoarthritis, also known as OA, begins when a person’s joint cartilage starts to deteriorate, which causes bones to rub against each other. The primary symptom of OA involves joint stiffness, along with pain from walking, stooping, or bending. Most people suffer from OA in the neck, hands, lower back, knees, and hips.
Healthcare professionals can help patients in their homes to improve OA symptoms by recommending muscle-building or cardio exercises that are designed to strengthen their body and help them lose weight. As a result, their physical and emotional health is improved.
Occupational therapies can minimize arthritic pain and protect joints so that your aging loved ones are able to carry about their normal activities, such as safely and painlessly getting out of a chair.
3. Hypertension Symptoms
Because high blood pressure can be easily hidden, you need to have your loved one’s blood pressure regularly checked by a doctor. Doctors typically take blood-pressure readings with an elderly person either lying or sitting down so that he or she can relax. Most doctors check the blood pressure of their aging patients on different days at various times before they determine if there is a problem with hypertension.
Nurses can come to your parent's home to monitor blood pressure to see if medications are effective. If hypertension medicines are not working, they can alert a patient's physician to prevent complications from occurring. They can also advise patients on diets that help reduce high blood pressure.
4. Chronic Lung Disease Symptoms
Chronic lung disease, also called chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, refers to a group of lung diseases that includes chronic bronchitis, chronic obstructive-airway disease, emphysema, and bronchitis. Some of the main symptoms associated with these diseases are the feelings of increased breathlessness when active, a constant cough with phlegm, and chest infections.
Healthcare professionals can help patients monitor symptoms and can teach the family what the COPD triggers are, and how to control them. They will work to prevent flare-ups, reducing the need for your parent to be hospitalized.
General Considerations And Warnings
• Being obese, or even overweight, can cause osteoarthritis in the knees. Overuse or injuries can also result in OA in hip, knee, and hand joints.
• Be sure that your parent has not consumed any coffee or smoked cigarettes within half an hour of having a blood pressure reading. Make sure that she uses the restroom before she has a reading, as a full bladder can affect the test.
While some elderly people need around-the-clock care, others only require a few hours of weekly care. Regardless of your aging loved one’s needs, Complete Care At Home of Dunwoody can assist you. Please contact
us today for more information.
Learn about the common symptoms of COVID-19, reasons why older people have a wide variety of symptoms & how to spot early signs of COVID-19 in the elderly.
Learn about the symptoms of COVID-19 & how it spreads. Know the difference between asymptomatic & symptomatic.
Learn why the elderly have a higher risk for severe illness from COVID-19 & why the risks are higher when they have underlying health conditions.
Learn about the signs when your loved one faces comprehension difficulties. Know how a cognitive impairment disease can affect you & your loved ones.
You’ve heard the name many times by now— Coronavirus (or COVID-19) is a disease that’s become so deadly it’s spiraled us into a global pandemic. For those unfamiliar with how it got its name, in COVID-19, 'CO' stands for 'corona,' 'VI' for 'virus,' and 'D' for the disease. According to the CDC, “coronavirus” is actually an umbrella term for a family of viruses that can cause illness in animals or humans.
No matter what age, we all have moments of confusion. But when your elderly loved one is consistently exhibiting these signs, it might be because s/he is undergoing cognitive impairment. Having difficulty comprehending is a common sign these problems; however, it is often brushed aside as "old age." The person experiencing these difficulties may make excuses: the TV shows today are too complicated, their family members talk too fast, the lights are too dim to read. Ignoring the signs of comprehension difficulties, though, just make life harder for everyone involved. Comprehension and Confusion Comprehension is the opposite of confusion. Comprehension is a complex process in the brain through a system of nerves and chemicals, and it involves language, recognition, and function processes. Cognitive impairment disorders like dementia and Alzheimer's disrupt those complex processes. It can manifest as sudden memory loss, impaired motor coordination, and other more subtle thought processes that we will discuss. When someone has difficulty with comprehension, s/he has trouble putting together the various actions needed to perform a task. For example, your mom might need a cup from the cupboard. In order to do so, she must first decide she wants the cup. Then she might need to get out of her chair, walk across the kitchen, raise her hand, open the cupboard, and take the cup out of the cupboard. If she has difficulty with comprehension, she will have a hard time putting all of these elements to work to achieve her goal, which might result in several different outcomes: she could fall, break the cup, or just forget what she was doing before she reaches the cupboard. She knows what she wants to do but has trouble making all the connections necessary to get there. How Cognitive Impairment Affects Your Loved One Difficulty comprehending is frustrating for your elderly loved one and for you, but the first step toward helping your loved one is understanding what s/he is experiencing. Here are some examples of how someone with dementia or Alzheimer's disease might have trouble comprehending everyday situations. TV/books: Someone with dementia might not be able to follow a basic storyline and could not tell somebody else what is going on in the TV show or book. Social situations: Someone with dementia might see two children playing and interpret that they are fighting or vice versa. The person with dementia may step in and try to resolve the situation without realizing what is actually happening. Conversations: As with the TV/book example, someone with dementia can't follow an everyday conversation . S/he doesn't know who or what is being discussed and especially cannot tell when the subject matter has changed. Time: Someone with trouble comprehending will have difficulty telling time and might not know whether it is day or night. How Cognitive Impairment Affects You Because of these comprehension difficulties, the person experiencing dementia or Alzheimer's disease will rely on the people around him/her to tell him/her what is going on. For instance, your loved one may constantly ask you to repeat yourself. S/he may also have trouble following instructions. These situations can be aggravating for you, particularly if they are new, however it is important to understand that your loved one is not trying to bother you by failing to follow directions or asking you to repeat information over and over. These are symptoms of cognitive impairment , and neither you nor they can control it. If your family member begins to exhibit any of these signs, take him or her to your physician with a description of the comprehension difficulties you've noticed so that s/he has plenty of information for a cognitive function assessment. If the doctor diagnoses dementia or Alzheimer's, ask specific questions about treatment so that you can do your part to serve your loved one despite mild cognitive impairment. It is important to get help for your loved one, and there is no reason for you to care for your loved one alone. Caring for an aging relative requires time, patience, and expert care. Complete Care At Home can help you create a customized plan to meet the unique needs of your loved one with dementia or Alzheimer's disease. Contact us today for an expert assessment.
Learn about aggression, dementia & how you can cope with people experiencing those illnesses through home health care services by Complete Care At Home.
Alzheimer's and dementia are debilitating diseases. Learn more about the differences and signs of dementia and Alzheimer's disease from normal forgetfulness.
Learn about the Elderly Loved One Being RepetitiveComplete Care At Home has a team of experts to take care of elderly family members.
Learn about the signs your loved ones might need home care services & how complete care at home services can help your loved ones to live safely.