Statins Can Protect Against Alzheimer’s Disease, According To New Study
High cholesterol levels are considered to be a risk factor not only for cardiovascular disease including stroke, but also for the development of Alzheimer’s disease. Therefore, many cholesterol lowering drugs, including statins, have been developed in recent years.

Cerebrospinal Fluid Shows Alzheimer’s Disease Deterioration Much Earlier
It is possible to determine which patients run a high risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease and the dementia associated with it, even in patients with minimal memory impairment. This has been shown by recent research at the Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden. The results have been published in the most recent issue of the prestigious medical journal Lancet Neurology. “The earlier we can catch Alzheimer’s disease, the more we can do for the patient.

Blood Flow In Alzheimer’s Disease
Dr. Jennifer C Palmer and colleagues at the University of Bristol have discovered that endothelin converting enzyme-2 (ECE-2) may cause the decrease in cerebral blood flow seen in Alzheimer’s disease. These results are presented in the July 2009 issue of the American Journal of Pathology. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia.

Remembering What To Remember And What To Forget
People in very early stages of Alzheimer’s disease already have trouble focusing on what is important to remember, a UCLA psychologist and colleagues report. “One of the first telltale signs of Alzheimer’s disease may be not memory problems, but failure to control attention,” said Alan Castel, UCLA assistant professor of psychology and lead author of the study.

Alzheimer, Headache & Co.: Detecting Neurological Illnesses Better And Earlier
The rapid development of modern neuroimaging has made a decisive improvement in the diagnosis of neurological illnesses. As Professor Filippi notes: “Neuroimaging makes new diagnostic tools available with the potential to quantify the extent of CNS injury, to define the nature of the different pathological substrates of the various CNS affections and to assess the functional changes following tissue damage with the ability to limit the clinical consequences of injury.

Finding Raises Hope for Treating ALS
Title: Finding Raises Hope for Treating ALS
Category: Health News
Created: 6/16/2009 7:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 6/16/2009

Questionnaire May Help Spot Early Dementia
Title: Questionnaire May Help Spot Early Dementia
Category: Health News
Created: 6/11/2009 7:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 6/11/2009

Social Care Workforce Not Ready To Deliver Dementia Care - MPs
A report published revealed the social care workforce is unfit to deliver quality care for people with dementia. ‘Prepared to Care’ a report by the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Dementia found large variation in the dementia skills of the social care workforce. Barriers to delivering good care included low levels of training, ineffective regulation, lack of accreditation for trainers and a limited understanding of dementia by commissioners.

Alzheimer’s Society Puts Best Foot Forward With Dunwoody
This Friday 26 June, Alzheimer’s Society representatives and sports personality Micky Quinn will join Richard Dunwoody, in his quest to walk 1,000 miles in 1,000 hours. Turning his half-mile stretch into a ‘Memory Walk Catwalk’ they will be strutting their wellie-boot chic in Newmarket to raise awareness of Alzheimer’s Society’s annual fundraiser ‘Memory Walk’ and boost awareness of the Society’s work in the local area.

Drug Shows Promise Against Childhood Epilepsy
Title: Drug Shows Promise Against Childhood Epilepsy
Category: Health News
Created: 6/16/2009 7:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 6/16/2009

Discovery Of Neural Stem Cell Differentiation Factor
Neural stem cells represent the cellular backup of our brain. These cells are capable of self-renewal to form new stem cells or differentiate into neurons, astrocytes or oligodendrocytes. Astrocytes have supportive functions in the environment of neurons, while oligodendrocytes form the myelin layer around axons in order to accelerate neuronal signal transmission.

Caregivers May Benefit From Adult Day Care
Caring for an elderly family member can be stressful and can pose health threats to caregivers. Steven Zarit, professor and head, Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Penn State, received a $3 million grant from the National Institute on Aging to study the effects of caregiving on familial caregivers. He will look at people who care for family members with dementia and how adult day care impacts the stress levels of all individuals involved.

Another McGill/JGH Breakthrough Opens Door To Early Alzheimer’s Diagnosis
A new diagnostic technique which may greatly simplify the detection of Alzheimer’s disease has been discovered by researchers at McGill University and the affiliated Lady Davis Institute for Medical Research at Montreal’s Jewish General Hospital (JGH). Their results were published June 8 in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease.

Alzheimer’s and Even Mild Dementia Hasten Death
Title: Alzheimer’s and Even Mild Dementia Hasten Death
Category: Health News
Created: 6/10/2009 7:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 6/10/2009

Measuring Brain’s Memory Centers May Help Predict Alzheimer’s
Scientists at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have shown that a fully automated procedure called Volumetric MRI which measures the “memory centers” of the brain and compares them to expected size is effective in predicting the progression from mild cognitive impairment (MCI) to Alzheimer’s disease. The procedure can be readily used in clinics to measure brain atrophy, and may help physicians to predict decline in MCI patients.