Health

Newsweek - Alzheimer's disease affects roughly 6.7 million Americans today over the age of 65, according to a 2023 report by the American Alzheimer's Association. Barring the discovery of medical breakthroughs in Alzheimer's treatment, this number is expected to double by 2060. But despite the absolute numbers of Alzheimer's cases rising, in line with America's aging population, the percentage of the population affected by the dementia disease is actually decreasing. In a 2016 report by the National Institute of Aging, researchers found that, since the 1970s, Alzheimer's incidence in the United States has actually decreased by 20 percent. And now, researchers from UC Davis Health may know why. In a new study published in the journal JAMA Neurology, the team led by neurologist Charles DeCarli analyzed brain MRI data from a community-based study that has been collecting data since 1948 called the Framingham Heart Study. ... By comparing scans from those born in the 1930s to those born in the 1970s, the team saw a gradual but consistent increase in several brain structures. For example, participants born in the 1970s showed a 6.6 percent greater brain volume on average and a 15 percent increase in surface area.  "Larger brain structures like those observed in our study may reflect improved brain development and improved brain health," DeCarli said in a statement. "A larger brain structure represents a larger brain reserve and may buffer the late-life effects of age-related brain diseases like Alzheimer's and related dementias.

PBS - As recently as the early 80s, about three of every four doctors in the U.S. worked for themselves, owning small clinics. Today, some 75 percent of physicians are employees of hospital systems or large corporate entities

Roll Call -  Community health centers and organizations that primarily serve low-income people are being disproportionately hurt by the biggest hack in health care history, which has disrupted payments for thousands of health care providers for a month now. Read more...