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Getting Technical
Home / Critical illness cover / - Dementia
Definition
Dementia having progressed to the extent that continual supervision and the assistance of another person is required. The diagnosis must be supported by evidence of progressive loss of the ability to:
- remember;
- reason; and
- perceive, understand, express and give effect to ideas.
The condition must be irreversible with no reasonable prospect of there ever being any improvement.
What does this mean?
Dementia is a disorder of the mental process and results in loss of memory and impairment of behaviour and recognition. There is no cure and the cause is unknown. Definite diagnosis must be established via accepted standard medical tests and questionnaires.
NEWS
High risk CVD cases to be given cholesterol drug
29 May 2008 13:07:11
The NHS must identify high-risk patients and prescribe statin drugs to prevent cardiovascular disease (CVD), according to guidance published today (28th May).
CVD, which includes heart disease and strokes, is the leading cause of ill health and death in the United Kingdom accounting for one in three deaths in 2005.
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) and the National Collaborating Centre for Primary Care (NCC PC) say health care providers should use risk equations updated for ethnicity and family history to assess CVD risk.
Dr John Robson, chair of the Guideline Development Group, said: "Systematic review of CVD risk could involve more than 3 million people in assessment and treatment decisions with the potential to prevent around 15,000 heart attacks and strokes every year."
Health professionals welcomed the initiative but the British Heart Foundation (BHF) warned many at risk may still miss out on treatment.
Medical director for the BHF, Professor Peter Weissberg, said the guidelines are too focused on "generic statins" and the government needs to address the fact that those from deprived or ethnically diverse communities may not come forward for assessment.
Professor Weissberg said: "This fire and forget approach is likely to result in many patients being inadequately treated."
Good health for life cover helpdesk
10 September 2007 13:53:54
Top UK life insurance firm Norwich Union is celebrating a successful first year for its new underwriting helpdesk.
The life cover firm launched the pre-sales service in September 2006 and has handled around 300 calls every week from IFAs in need of underwriting advice.
Michael Whyte, chief underwriter for Norwich Union, said that the helpdesk was launched as part of the Norwich Union Protection Service Promise.
"The helpdesk is designed to provide up-front underwriting advice to our financial advisers in order that they have a clear picture of what requirements, if any, we may request when they submit an application for one of their customers," he explained.
"This can save time and expense for both advisers and applicants."
He went on: "The service also aims to eliminate frustrations for both applicants and advisers, particularly if a client is seen to be posing a particular risk.
"For example, if terms could not be offered, by answering questions up-front, rather than waiting for an application to be submitted and later declined, the process is made smoother and quicker for all parties."
Norwich Union recently cancelled a plan to transfer some 1,100 staff to new offices.
Direct Life and Pensions Services Ltd are one of the UK's leading providers of life insurance, term life assurance, mortgage protection, and critical illnesslife insurance policies online.
'Lack of sunlight increases breast cancer risk'
16 May 2008 12:06:12
Life insurance policies may be affected by the news that scientists in America claim to have found links between breast cancer and a lack of exposure vitamin D from sunlight.
Researchers at the University of California used information from a database of cancer incidence and mortality rates in 175 countries, set up by the World Health Organisation for their study.
After creating a graph with a vertical axis for breast cancer incidence rates and a horizontal axis for latitude, they plotted age-standardised incidence rates for the 175 countries according to latitude.
"In general, breast cancer incidence was highest at the highest latitudes in both hemispheres," said Dr Cedric Garland.
"Even after controlling for known variables such as meat, vegetable and alcohol intake, cigarette consumption, weight, fertility and others, the inverse association of modelled vitamin D status with breast cancer incidence remained strong."
However, the researchers emphasise that as the study was of countries, the findings may not apply to individuals.
Further research on the effect of vitamin D from sunlight, diet and supplements on the risk of breast cancer is needed for individuals, they said.
According to Cancer Research UK, the disease is now the most common cancer in the UK, with more than 44,000 women are diagnosed with it each year.
29 May 2008 13:07:11
The NHS must identify high-risk patients and prescribe statin drugs to prevent cardiovascular disease (CVD), according to guidance published today (28th May).
CVD, which includes heart disease and strokes, is the leading cause of ill health and death in the United Kingdom accounting for one in three deaths in 2005.
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) and the National Collaborating Centre for Primary Care (NCC PC) say health care providers should use risk equations updated for ethnicity and family history to assess CVD risk.
Dr John Robson, chair of the Guideline Development Group, said: "Systematic review of CVD risk could involve more than 3 million people in assessment and treatment decisions with the potential to prevent around 15,000 heart attacks and strokes every year."
Health professionals welcomed the initiative but the British Heart Foundation (BHF) warned many at risk may still miss out on treatment.
Medical director for the BHF, Professor Peter Weissberg, said the guidelines are too focused on "generic statins" and the government needs to address the fact that those from deprived or ethnically diverse communities may not come forward for assessment.
Professor Weissberg said: "This fire and forget approach is likely to result in many patients being inadequately treated."
10 September 2007 13:53:54
Top UK life insurance firm Norwich Union is celebrating a successful first year for its new underwriting helpdesk.
The life cover firm launched the pre-sales service in September 2006 and has handled around 300 calls every week from IFAs in need of underwriting advice.
Michael Whyte, chief underwriter for Norwich Union, said that the helpdesk was launched as part of the Norwich Union Protection Service Promise.
"The helpdesk is designed to provide up-front underwriting advice to our financial advisers in order that they have a clear picture of what requirements, if any, we may request when they submit an application for one of their customers," he explained.
"This can save time and expense for both advisers and applicants."
He went on: "The service also aims to eliminate frustrations for both applicants and advisers, particularly if a client is seen to be posing a particular risk.
"For example, if terms could not be offered, by answering questions up-front, rather than waiting for an application to be submitted and later declined, the process is made smoother and quicker for all parties."
Norwich Union recently cancelled a plan to transfer some 1,100 staff to new offices.
Direct Life and Pensions Services Ltd are one of the UK's leading providers of life insurance, term life assurance, mortgage protection, and critical illnesslife insurance policies online.
16 May 2008 12:06:12
Life insurance policies may be affected by the news that scientists in America claim to have found links between breast cancer and a lack of exposure vitamin D from sunlight.
Researchers at the University of California used information from a database of cancer incidence and mortality rates in 175 countries, set up by the World Health Organisation for their study.
After creating a graph with a vertical axis for breast cancer incidence rates and a horizontal axis for latitude, they plotted age-standardised incidence rates for the 175 countries according to latitude.
"In general, breast cancer incidence was highest at the highest latitudes in both hemispheres," said Dr Cedric Garland.
"Even after controlling for known variables such as meat, vegetable and alcohol intake, cigarette consumption, weight, fertility and others, the inverse association of modelled vitamin D status with breast cancer incidence remained strong."
However, the researchers emphasise that as the study was of countries, the findings may not apply to individuals.
Further research on the effect of vitamin D from sunlight, diet and supplements on the risk of breast cancer is needed for individuals, they said.
According to Cancer Research UK, the disease is now the most common cancer in the UK, with more than 44,000 women are diagnosed with it each year.