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A range of choices may help you get a better night's sleep.

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When the doctor says you have obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), you'll likely hear about the gold standard in treatment: continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), which uses forced air, pushed through a tube connected to a face mask, to keep your airway unblocked. Yet many people have trouble adjusting to a bulky CPAP mask. "We often see people who say they tried CPAP and didn't like it, and now it's been years since they've had treatment," says Dr. Stuart Quan, the Gerald E. McGinnis professor of sleep medicine at Harvard Medical School.

You may be able to adjust to CPAP by trying relaxation exercises, practicing wearing the mask during the day, and gradually increasing CPAP pressure. But if it doesn't work out, you do have alternatives.

Poor blood flow in the brain can chip away at thinking skills.

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Just like in the rest of your body, advancing years can take a toll on your brain function. Much of this slowing down is predictable and can be chalked up to normal aging. However, when thinking skills become increasingly fuzzy and forgetfulness gets to be a way of life, an early form of dementia known as mild cognitive impairment may be setting in (see "Normal aging vs. mild cognitive impairment").

Often, the first reaction is to attribute these changes to the beginning of Alzheimer's disease. But blood flow problems may be to blame, as well. "An estimated one-third of all cases of dementia, including those identified as Alzheimer's, can be attributed to vascular factors," says Dr. Albert Hofman, chair of the department of epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

An app that detects an irregular heart rhythm could be reassuring for people worried about afib.

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Just over two years ago, the FDA approved the AliveCor Heart Monitor, which consists of a smartphone app plus a phone case with special sensors on the back. Touching the sensors with your fingers allows you to see a simple version of your heart's electrical activity on the phone screen. In the latest version, called Kardia, the sensors just need to be near (not necessarily on) your phone. The readout reveals if your heart rhythm looks normal or if you appear to have atrial fibrillation (afib)鈥攁 rapid, irregular heart rhythm that raises the risk of stroke.

Currently, several new smartphone apps to alert you about possible afib using just the phone itself鈥攏o special case required鈥攁re under development. Recent research suggests they're about as accurate as the Kardia system, although they haven't yet been cleared by the FDA and aren't on the market. If and when they are, could these apps help improve afib screening?

About one in three adults has nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, an often-silent condition closely linked to heart disease.

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The largest organ inside your body, your liver performs hundreds of vital functions. It converts food into fuel, processes cholesterol, clears harmful toxins from the blood, and makes proteins that help your blood clot, to name a few. But an alarming number of Americans have a potentially dangerous accumulation of fat inside their livers. Known as nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), this condition is a leading cause of chronic liver disease in the United States鈥攁nd an increasingly recognized contributor to heart disease.

"NAFLD increases the risk of heart disease independent of other traditional risk factors such as high blood pressure and cholesterol," says Dr. Kathleen Corey, director of the Fatty Liver Disease Clinic at Massachusetts General Hospital. Among people with NAFLD, heart disease is the top killer, accounting for more than 25% of deaths.

Droopy eyelids, known as ptosis, are often a normal occurrence of aging although some neurologic conditions also can cause the condition. Ptosis is not a serious problem unless it interferes with your vision. If this happens, or if your droopy eyelids are bothersome, you can opt for cosmetic surgery to repair your eyelids.

Long-term risks are associated with proton-pump inhibitors, but there are other options for treating acid reflux.

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Proton-pump inhibitors (PPIs), which reduce the amount of acid produced in the stomach, are so effective at treating heartburn and ulcers that they've been among the world's top-selling drugs for 25 years. Initially available only by prescription, PPIs, which include omeprazole (Prilosec), lansoprazole (Prevacid), and esomeprazole (Nexium), have been sold over the counter for several years. However, now that millions of people are taking PPIs, the drugs have been linked to an increasing number of health risks, such as fractures, kidney problems, vitamin B12 deficiency, low magnesium, and鈥攎ost recently鈥攄ementia and heart attack.

"These studies鈥攅specially those suggesting a relationship to dementia and heart attack鈥攁re concerning," says Dr. Jacqueline Wolf, a gastroenterologist and associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and author of A Woman's Guide to a Healthy Stomach: Taking Control of Your Digestive Health.

A pessary and pelvic floor exercises can improve symptoms of pelvic floor prolapse. 

The FDA is warning that over-the-counter antacids with aspirin in them can cause stomach bleeding in rare cases. 

Research has found that people with high levels of the oral bacteria Porphyromonas gingivalis had a 59% greater risk of developing pancreatic cancer. It is too early to say whether this specific bacterium directly contributes to the disease. However, one theory is that since inflammation is related to cancer, the bacteria could cause inflammation in the pancreas. Another possibility is the bacteria are simply a marker for cancer-causing inflammation. 

Often considered an ailment of only military veterans, this condition also can affect many older men.

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Mention post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and most people immediately think of military veterans. While this group is highly susceptible to PTSD, research has shown that older adults, specifically men, are also vulnerable.

PTSD is a potentially debilitating condition that can occur in people who have experienced a natural disaster, war, terrorism, serious accident, violent personal assault, or similar traumatic event.