Health News
by Robin K. Wilson, M.D., Ph.D.
Associate Director, Adult Hydrocephalus Center, Sandra and Malcolm Berman Brain & Spine Institute
Ever forget where you put your keys and worried for a moment that you?ve started to develop Alzheimer disease? A study presented at last week?s Alzheimer?s Association International Conference suggests that a noninvasive imaging procedure using a PET scan and a new radioactive tracer called AV-45 (Avid Radiopharmaceutical, Inc.) may eventually allow your physician to check for the presence of amyloid - a protein that is associated with AD - before true symptoms of dementia develop.
Though the buildup of amyloid does not guarantee that a person will become cognitively impaired, this new technique may allow the detection and - eventually - treatment of cognitive changes before irreversible damage occurs.
AD is just one of many causes of dementia, and amyloid buildup is just one factor related to the progression of AD. Nevertheless, if some researchers design noninvasive procedures for finding early cognitive changes and other researchers develop medications that can reduce the speed of these changes, eventually it?s possible that your physician will be able to prescribe a medication that could slow the process of cognitive decline before you lose your car keys as well as your car.
Though most neurologists and geriatricians do not expect a ?cure? for dementia in the near future, they recognize that slowing its progression and enabling patients to spend a few more years living independently can make a tremendous difference. The AV-45 tracer may help with this goal.
The Sandra and Malcolm Berman Brain & Spine Institute offers a full spectrum of specialty programs and provides comprehensive diagnostic and therapeutic care for those with cognitive impairment and other neurologic disorders. For more information or an appointment, call 410-601-WELL (410-601-9355).
- Study Says Loss Of Smell May Help Sniff Out Alzheimer's Disease
A small pilot study of patients displaying signs of cognitive decline found that peanut butter can help identify those with Alzheimer?s disease, which is often accompanied by a loss of smell. The results indicate that loss in sense of smell may help in...
- National Effort To Combat Alzheimer's Disease Begins; As Research Continues, There Are Preventive Steps You Can Take
Country singer Glen Campbell, who has Alzheimer's disease, stands with wife Kim during a national conference Tuesday. Associated Press photo by Charles Dharapak.With numbers expected to jump to 16 million Americans by 2050, research is being conducted...
- Alzheimer Disease By Any Other Name
by Majid Fotuhi, M.D., Ph.D Director, Center for Memory and Brain Health Sandra and Malcolm Berman Brain & Spine Institute Most recent studies show that elderly people over the age of 80 often have mixed pathologies in their brains that account for...
- Brain & Spine Institute Hosts International Hydrocephalus Conference
In mid-September, many of the top hydrocephalus experts from around the world will converge at the Hyatt Regency Hotel at the Baltimore Inner Harbor for three back-to-back scientific conferences concerned with hydrocephalus, also known as water on the...
- Maryland's Leading Brain And Spine Center Gets New Name
LifeBridge Health?s one-of-its-kind consortium of specialists in neurology, neurosurgery, orthopedics, physical medicine, rehabilitation and several other subspecialties has a new name: Sandra and Malcolm Berman Brain & Spine Institute. ?The comprehensive...
Health News
New Scanning Technique May Lead the Way to Alzheimer Treatment
by Robin K. Wilson, M.D., Ph.D.
Associate Director, Adult Hydrocephalus Center, Sandra and Malcolm Berman Brain & Spine Institute
Ever forget where you put your keys and worried for a moment that you?ve started to develop Alzheimer disease? A study presented at last week?s Alzheimer?s Association International Conference suggests that a noninvasive imaging procedure using a PET scan and a new radioactive tracer called AV-45 (Avid Radiopharmaceutical, Inc.) may eventually allow your physician to check for the presence of amyloid - a protein that is associated with AD - before true symptoms of dementia develop.
Though the buildup of amyloid does not guarantee that a person will become cognitively impaired, this new technique may allow the detection and - eventually - treatment of cognitive changes before irreversible damage occurs.
AD is just one of many causes of dementia, and amyloid buildup is just one factor related to the progression of AD. Nevertheless, if some researchers design noninvasive procedures for finding early cognitive changes and other researchers develop medications that can reduce the speed of these changes, eventually it?s possible that your physician will be able to prescribe a medication that could slow the process of cognitive decline before you lose your car keys as well as your car.
Though most neurologists and geriatricians do not expect a ?cure? for dementia in the near future, they recognize that slowing its progression and enabling patients to spend a few more years living independently can make a tremendous difference. The AV-45 tracer may help with this goal.
The Sandra and Malcolm Berman Brain & Spine Institute offers a full spectrum of specialty programs and provides comprehensive diagnostic and therapeutic care for those with cognitive impairment and other neurologic disorders. For more information or an appointment, call 410-601-WELL (410-601-9355).
- Study Says Loss Of Smell May Help Sniff Out Alzheimer's Disease
A small pilot study of patients displaying signs of cognitive decline found that peanut butter can help identify those with Alzheimer?s disease, which is often accompanied by a loss of smell. The results indicate that loss in sense of smell may help in...
- National Effort To Combat Alzheimer's Disease Begins; As Research Continues, There Are Preventive Steps You Can Take
Country singer Glen Campbell, who has Alzheimer's disease, stands with wife Kim during a national conference Tuesday. Associated Press photo by Charles Dharapak.With numbers expected to jump to 16 million Americans by 2050, research is being conducted...
- Alzheimer Disease By Any Other Name
by Majid Fotuhi, M.D., Ph.D Director, Center for Memory and Brain Health Sandra and Malcolm Berman Brain & Spine Institute Most recent studies show that elderly people over the age of 80 often have mixed pathologies in their brains that account for...
- Brain & Spine Institute Hosts International Hydrocephalus Conference
In mid-September, many of the top hydrocephalus experts from around the world will converge at the Hyatt Regency Hotel at the Baltimore Inner Harbor for three back-to-back scientific conferences concerned with hydrocephalus, also known as water on the...
- Maryland's Leading Brain And Spine Center Gets New Name
LifeBridge Health?s one-of-its-kind consortium of specialists in neurology, neurosurgery, orthopedics, physical medicine, rehabilitation and several other subspecialties has a new name: Sandra and Malcolm Berman Brain & Spine Institute. ?The comprehensive...