A new research carried out by the University of Flinders has discovered a potential marker that could provide valuable information on the general health of older adults living in long -term care centers.
Directed by the doctoral candidate, Sophie Miller, at the Faculty of Medicine and Public Health, the study found that a simple swab from the back of the throat, known as Oropafarynx, can offer clues about the health challenges faced by care residents.
“Our findings suggest that certain bacteria detected in the back of the throat could indicate a greater health vulnerability in older adults,” says Miller.
Identifying vulnerable individuals in later life has proven successful through physical robustness measures, such as grip force and other physical evaluations.
However, this study suggests the inclusion of a biological marker, which can provide additional information about the risk of poor health results in the care of the elderly.
“As we age, the community of bacteria and other microorganisms in our throat changes. Factors such as taking multiple medications and having more frequent medical care visits, which are common in later life, can affect this balance,” she says.
“These changes that occur with age can lead to physiological changes that increase vulnerability to diseases and fragility.
The investigation involved the collection of oropharyngeal swabs of 190 residents of aged care facilities in Australia Metropolitana del Sur, and followed its health results for 12 months.
A bacterium, Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus)An organism normally associated with infections, but not in the context of this study, was remarkably linked to the poorest health results.
It was found that residents who carry this bacterium had almost ten times more likely to die within a year compared to non -transporters.
“This discovery suggests the usability of microbiome as an additional marker to identify residents that may require additional care or monitoring,” Miller explains.
The presence of S. aureus It was discovered that it reflects broader health challenges, instead of being linked to any specific infection.
Residents who tested positive for S. aureus tended to have a greater number of health conditions, further supporting the theory that S. aureus Transportation can be indicative of poor general health.
“It is important to highlight the presence of S. aureus It was discovered that it was a stronger predictor of the risk of mortality than the number of comorbidities of an individual: health conditions that are commonly used to evaluate the general health of the elderly.
“Even after adjusting factors such as comorbid conditions, medicines and other health data, the link between S. aureus And the risk of mortality remained significantly high, “says Miller.
The main author, Professor Geraint Rogers, director of the Microbioma and Health Program for hosts at Sahmri and Matthew Flinders Fellow at the University of Flinders, emphasizes the potential importance of the findings.
“It is fascinating that we see this relationship with S. aureusEven in the absence of any clear evidence of infection, “says Professor Rogers.
“This underlines the idea that the presence of certain bacteria, such as S. aureusIt could be an indicator of general health decrease, instead of being directly associated with infection.
“This study marks an important step towards the use of simple microbial markers to inform medical care strategies and improve the results for greater care residents.
“While findings are convincing, more research is needed to confirm these results and explore long -term implications.
“When studying larger resident groups, we hope to discover more ways to improve attention and support for older adults,” adds Professor Rogers.
Additional research will be crucial to better understand how these microbial markers could be used together with traditional evaluations to improve the general health results for major Australians.
Expressions of gratitude: This investigation was supported by a subsidy of the Future Fund of Australian Medical Research (MRFF) of the Department of Health of Australia (GNT1152268). The Australian Health Department reviewed the study proposal, but did not play a role in the design of the study, data collection, analysis, interpretation or writing of manuscripts. GBR has the support of a senior research scholarship of the National Council for Medical and Medical Research (NHMRC) (GNT119378) and a Matthew Flinders teacher scholarship. SLT has the support of a NHMRC emerging leadership grant (GNT2008625).
#Throat #microbioma #clues #health #older #Australians
