Showing papers by "Beaumont Health published in 2004"

Prescribing exercise for the elderly: Current research and recommendations

Abstract: The potential for regular exercise to offset the deleterious effects of aging is well established. In fact, the pronounced health benefits attributed to regular exercise, including improvements in resting blood pressure, cholesterol profile, osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, diabetes mellitus, and cognitive functioning, can be achieved even in those individuals who start physical conditioning programs later in life. Yet, despite these impressive data, approximately 70% of elderly Americans are physically inactive. This hypokinetic state negatively affects not only the health status of the elderly but significantly influences healthcare costs as more Americans are attaining octogenarian status. As such, it is vitally important for all healthcare workers to actively encourage elderly individuals to maintain or, in the case of nonexercisers, start an exercise program. Such recommendations may help to decrease comorbid conditions associated with the aging process, increase functional independence, and attenuate skyrocketing healthcare costs associated with treating the growing elderly population.

Training principles for elite senior athletes.

Abstract: Despite the passage of time, masters athletes are still capable of incredible performances. Nevertheless, overuse injuries are the most common challenge in this escalating cohort. The incidence of exertion-related cardiovascular events is also greater among older athletes, especially men, highlighting the importance of a thorough preparticipation medical evaluation before entry into senior athletic training programs and competition. Accordingly, masters athletes with a moderate to high risk for coronary artery disease, who desire to enter vigorous competitive events, should undergo peak or symptom-limited exercise testing. Training programs for senior athletes should be individually tailored and focus on the predominant energy pathways and performance requirements for a given sport. Although competition and "personal bests" are important, protection against sickness and disability are increasingly listed as the primary participative motives of older athletes.

Clinecal Applications of PET in Lung Cancer

Abstract: Lung cancer is responsible for 32% of all cancer deaths in men and 25% in women in the United States It also ranked first in women(17.3%)and ranked second in men(23.2%)of cancer death here in Taiwan. The incidence of lung cancer is still increasing globally. In United States, despite the curative intention to treat the disease, about 6% of patients are unresectable at surgery and 14% die in one year. Improvement of the diagnostic strategy in lung cancer is thus needed. Positron emission tomography(PET)imaging can reflect the biochemical processes in cancers. Due to the high cancer-to-background ratio in lung parenchyma, 2-[18F]fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose(FDG)has become the most commonly used radiopharmaceutical in the clinical oncology. The clinical applications of FDG PET imaging has moved beyond the clinical diagnosis and initial staging for lung cancer. The current applications of PET and especially PET-CT focus on the treatment planning for lung cancer. Continued advances in computer, electronic and crystal technology and development of new biotracers have resulted in improved management of lung cancer by functional PET imaging in the diagnosis, staging, treatment planning and evaluation of therapeutic responses. PET and PET-CT has moved into the main stream of clinical applications, which may prove to impact greatly on the patient survival in the years to come.