About Alzheimers

Alice Stevens asked:


4.5 million Americans have the crippling disease of Alzheimer’s. 10 million baby boomers will develop Alzheimer’s. A new person is diagnoised with Alzheimer’s every 71 seconds, and Alzheimer’s is the seventh leading cause of death.

With these startling statistics, can anything be done to save our brains from this horrific deterioration? Will more seniors be able to avoid falling victim to Alzheimer’s as the elderly population increases? Are we finally getting close to a cure?

One of the biggest problems for an Alzheimer’s cure has been finding a way to stop deadly plaques from forming in the brains of patients. If the disease has progressed past an early diagnosis, drugs need to be safely delivered to the affected areas to destroy plaque build-up.

Here are three dramatic new discoveries which are now giving millions more hope for a future cure.

1. Gene Transfer Therapy: Dr. Zoe Arvanitakis of the Rush University Medical Center is currently working with gene transfer. By inserting tiny needles into the brain’s area affected by Alzheimer’s, he believes the drug CERE 110 can be delivered directly where is its needed.

CERE110’s purpose is to stimulate nerve growth, but not to spread the drug throughout the brain which could cause side effects.

Current trials are showing a great deal of promise. The very first patient in the trial, Ron Shellady, claims he is no longer losing his memory. It is still too early to gage long lasting results but CERE 110 shows promise.

2. Nutritional Combat: As more studies about Alzheimer’s and diet are coming in, more evidence seems to be pointing to diet as a deterrent to the disease.

The interesting discovery made by the Aberdeen University researchers is that people who eat diets rich in omega-3 oils do better on mental tests. This is strong indication the omega-3 oils may actually help slow down the early stages of Alzheimer’s.

Omega-3 oils are found in walnut oil, flaxseed oil, canola oil and fish such as Salmon. How do Omega-3 oils work? According to Greg Cole, professor of medicine and neurology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, these oils expand the productions of LR11, an important protein that runs low in Alzheimer’s patients.

LR11’s function is to destroy harmful proteins which form dangerous plaques which destroy nerve cells in the brain. Plaque build-up is one of the major problems caused by the disease.

3. Molecular Attacks: German scientists are researching ways to prevent harmful brain plaques from forming in the first place. The fact that an enzyme called beta-secretase causes plaque damage is nothing new, but how to deliver well targeted drugs to the damaged areas has been puzzling researchers for some time.

The Germans have discovered that by blocking beta-secretase via the blood, this harmful enzyme can be better targeted, without harming other brain cells. What is needed now is to find a way around the blood-brain barrier which guards the brain from most molecules entering it. If scientists can get past this natural wall they will be closer to delivering the beta secretase inhibitor to target only those areas where the therapy is needed.

Alzheimer’s is one of the most deadly diseases of old age because it robs the brain of its ability to function. This keeps many elderly people in nursing homes and away from their own homes and families. It is also very painful for their loved ones to watch their decline.

Although Alzheimer’s was first discovered over 100 years ago, most of what we now know about the disease has been learned within the last fifteen years. As world wide efforts continue in the fight against brain destruction due to Alzheimer’s, a cure may be possible as breakthroughs surge.

Connie

Steve Davidson asked:


When dementia is discussed, the first condition to enter minds is probably Alzheimer’s disease; it has become famous in recent years although it is not a new form of dementia. If you spent time with a person with Alzheimer’s disease, you will see a gradual decay in their ability to remember; diagnosis of the condition has improved dramatically and is now approximately 87%- 94% percent accurate.

Although the world has only focused its attention on this disease for jus over thirty years, it was actually discovered back in 1906 by the German physician, Alois Alzheimer; even though it has been scientifically studied for many years, knowledge surrounding this disease is minimal.

Studies have shown that the greatest known risk for developing Alzheimer’s is increasing age. Unfortunately, the person experiencing the early symptoms of Alzheimer’s will know something is wrong but won’t admit it to others or even to themselves; to make matters worse, this situation creates a delay in the person and family learning what is wrong.

As far as treatment is concerned, Alzheimer’s disease is treated in the same manner as other types of dementia. Some drugs can now slow down and sometimes improve the symptoms but so far no treatment has been discovered that can cure the disorder. Most Alzheimer’s disease sufferers will be prescribed one of the following drugs Donepezil, Tacrine, and Rivastigmine; these have helped many patients with improvements in their mental faculties although this is only in the short term.

Another drug, Memantine, a relative of the older anti-influenza drug Amantadine, is proving successful at slowing down the mental decline of sufferers; it is now normally given to those on Donepezil who are suffering moderate to severe Alzheimer’s. Memantine is the first medicine to show such positive results with sufferers with few problems associated with its use; most of the drug is passed out again when the patient urinates (about 80 percent), virtually without any change taking place.

Alzheimer’s disease is thought to be one of the largest public health problems, primarily due to an increase in the life expectancy of people in the world; it is already the fourth largest killer in the United States. It is not just the human cost of Alzheimer’s that has to be taken into consideration but also the monetary costs surrounding long term care; the annual cost of treatment and care for sufferers is in excess of 40 billion dollars and is expected to rise well beyond this in the future. Last year alone, the National Institute on Aging spent nearly one-half of its funding on research related to this insidious disease; currently there are over 300 different compounds at various stages of development for its treatment.

One way to help lower the risk of dementia and one that you can have responsibility for is to change how you live by eating healthily and taking regular exercise. Studies have also indicated that a number of Alzheimer’s patients have reduced their rate of decline by staying healthy and happy. At the time of writing this condition primarily affects men and women over sixty years of age; nevertheless, there have been occasional incidences of people contracting it before the age of 60.

Judith