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Mark D Grant

Publications and source records attributed to Mark D Grant.

3 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2004

Musical experience and dementia. Hypothesis.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Cognitively stimulating activities appear to protect against the development of dementing illness--playing a musical instrument may be one of these activities. Consistent with this notion, the aim of this study was to explore the hypothesis that dementia might be less common among orchestral musicians. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey of 23 older orchestral musicians who were former members of a single orchestra was carried out. Prior musical background, family history, and health history were obtained. A cognitive screen was administered in person or by telephone. Musicians were also queried regarding their awareness of living former orchestral colleagues with dementia. RESULTS: The mean age of participants was 76.9 +/- 6.8 (SD). No participant was aware of a living former or current orchestral member with either reported or suspected dementia. CONCLUSIONS: The results are consistent with the hypothesis that dementing illness may be less among orchestral musicians--possibly from a lifetime engaged in a cognitively stimulating endeavor.

Aged↗
PubMed2004

Ethnic and geographic variation in gastrostomy placement among hospitalized older patients.

While whites may receive more healthcare services than African Americans, gastrostomies are more commonly placed in older African Americans. The purpose of this study was to explore geographic and ethnic variations in gastrostomy placement among older individuals. Data from National Hospital Discharge Surveys conducted between 1996 and 1999 were analyzed. The overall gastrostomy placement rate (per 1,000 discharges) in individuals aged 65 years or older during the four years was 10.9 (95% Confidence Interval [CI]: 10.3-11.5)--among African Americans 20.0 (95% CI: 17.8-22.2) and among whites 10.2 (95% CI: 9.5-10.9). According to region, placement rates per 1000 discharges were 8.9 (95% CI: 7.6-10.2) in the west and 8.5 (95% CI: 7.8-9.2) in the midwest; but 11.8 (95% CI: 10.8-12.8) in the northeast and 12.9 (95% CI: 12.0-13.9) in the south. In multivariate analyses, including sex, age, any stroke diagnosis, ethnicity (African-American and white), and region, the ethnic and regional differences persisted. The substantially higher gastrostomy placement rate among older hospitalized African Americans in the United States appears to be independent of geographical variation.

Black or African American↗