The Tangled Neuron

Biomarkers: Some Thoughts from Richard Taylor

2011-08-05T14:04:26-04:00

Richard Taylor, PhD Note: as a person with dementia and a retired psychologist, Richard is uniquely positioned to think about Alzheimer's and dementia. Here are some of his thoughts about what the headlines on biomarkers mean for people with dementia...

Dementia Beyond Drugs: A Book by Al Power

2011-03-18T16:55:52-04:00

Al Power, MD Along with St. John’s Home, Al Power hosted the informal gathering in Rochester, New York earlier this month. He is an Eden Mentor at St. John’s, a long term care community in Rochester. He’s a geriatrician, author,...

Lakeview Ranch: Reducing "Challenging Behaviors" in Dementia

2011-03-07T18:05:30-05:00

Lakeview Ranch residents Bernie (left) and Sheila-Roo the wallaby with Judy Berry Summary: Lakeview Ranch provides specialized dementia care for people who are at high risk of repeated hospitalizations because of behavioral issues. With careful attention to residents’ emotional and...

2011-02-24T21:11:20-05:00

Interesting study suggesting half of people diagnosed with Alzheimer's may instead have dementia due to other problems in the brain. http://bit.ly/eeE26E

New Ideas in Dementia Care

2011-02-20T10:09:12-05:00

From left: Jim Rohl (St. John's resident), Al Power, Mona Johnson, Sarah Rowan, Richard Taylor (seated), Judy Berry, Julius Keya In a previous post, I wrote about the alphabet soup of organizations working to find new treatments for Alzheimer’s. Much...

Can Lifting Weights Improve Your Attention and Thinking?

2011-02-07T17:06:58-05:00

Summary: Lifting weights as little as once per week may improve your attention and thinking. Teresa Liu-Ambrose, Ph.D., PT Several studies have shown that exercise might reduce your risk of memory loss, or even improve your memory and thinking. Most...

Alzheimer's Drugs in Trial, Part 2

2011-02-02T16:15:24-05:00

Summary: There is a new emphasis on cooperative efforts to speed the development and approval of Alzheimer’s drugs. The difficulties in bringing new Alzheimer’s drugs to market, along with doubts about a cure, highlight the continued need for research on...

Are There Alzheimer's Survivors?

2011-01-31T18:49:38-05:00

There’s been quite a bit of discussion on the Dementia Advocacy and Support Network (DASN) message board about a sentence in the Alzheimer’s Association's generation alzheimer’s report: Today, there are no Alzheimer survivors — none. Several DASN members objected to...

Alzheimer's Drugs in Trial, Part 1

2011-01-26T09:38:06-05:00

One of my friends diagnosed with Alzheimer’s recently talked with his counselor about how depressing his cognitive problems are. He is losing hope that new Alzheimer’s drugs will be available in time to help him. Based on media reports, his...

The Emperor of All Maladies: Book Review

2011-01-11T15:46:20-05:00

Dedicated scientists and suffering patients. Passionate advocates and expert study groups. Media reports of impending cures, calls for increased funding, and coordinated national efforts to fight disease. These are the ingredients of The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of...

Should You Ask for One of the New Alzheimer's Diagnostic Tests?

2011-01-04T17:45:23-05:00

Summary: A Swedish study questioned the accuracy of the proposed “Dubois criteria” for diagnosing Alzheimer’s. Professor Dubois says the criteria are very specific, and so will miss some cases, but will result in few false positive diagnoses. Researchers are still...

New Alzheimer's Diagnostic Techniques: Not Ready for Widespread Use?

2010-12-15T11:25:42-05:00

Summary: A recent study questions the accuracy of proposed biomarkers for diagnosing Alzheimer’s. Doctors currently make a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s based on symptoms and by ruling out other medical causes for those symptoms. Two groups of researchers have proposed new...

Television coverage of Alzheimer's

2010-12-14T11:13:13-05:00

Summary: Television coverage of Alzheimer’s has increased dramatically, but tends to emphasize treatments and personal and celebrity stories over less sensational facts. However, increased use of celebrities, along with expanding coverage in entertainment programs, may help publicize fact-based awareness and...

Education and Employment: Nondrug Ways to Prevent Alzheimer's and Dementia?

2010-12-07T14:56:49-05:00

Summary: The prevalence of dementia in older Americans seems to be decreasing. Whether or not researchers find new medicines to prevent dementia, higher levels of education and late-life activity might reduce dementia rates. Ken Langa, MD, Ph.D. Much has been...

Alzheimer's and Dementia Screening

2010-12-02T17:38:04-05:00

Summary: As part of the new health care reform law in the U.S., Medicare will begin covering dementia screening next year. Researchers who developed a new screening questionnaire called AD8 at Washington University in St. Louis believe it is the...