Scientists Reveal New Technique To Aid Earlier Alzheimer's Diagnosis

A new technology, combined with efforts to improve the diagnosis process, is set to bring significant and much-needed changes to the way Alzheimer's is treated.

Too little, too late

Far too often, Alzheimer's disease is diagnosed too late to employ early measures that would slow down the degenerative process considerably. In fact, in approximately 80% of Alzheimer's disease cases, general practitioners may be ignoring or simply not acting when their patients or the carers of patients report early stage symptoms of Alzheimer's disease.

That conclusion is just one that came out of the results of the Quality of Dementia Care Survey, conducted this past spring in five countries - the UK, Spain, France, Italy, and Australia - by Alzheimer's Disease International (ADI).

739 people who care for Alzheimer's patients participated in the survey, and on the subject of early stage diagnosis their responses were disturbing. On average, as much as a full year or more may elapse between the first reported early stage symptoms and the diagnosis.

Elizabeth Rimmer, the Executive Director of Alzheimer's Disease International (ADI), stresses how urgent it is for practitioners to recognise the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease so that patients can quickly receive special care. She points out that, 'Specialists then can diagnose and initiate treatment in the early stages of the disease, when slowing disease progression may have an impact and make a difference in patients' and their caregivers lives.'

Going inside the brain

A team of researchers from the University of Pittsburgh, recently attended the International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders, to present the first images from a high-resolution brain scan technique they developed to identify the onset of Alzheimer's disease.

Long before the first signs of Alzheimer's dementia, a protein called beta-amyloid begins to create plaque build-up in the brain. So the University of Pittsburgh team developed a molecule that sticks to beta-amyloid.

After a number of successful animal studies, a group of neurologists at the University of Sweden tested the technique by injecting the molecule into the brains of 14 human subjects; 9 had mild Alzheimer's disease, while 5 were healthy and had no signs of dementia.

The results caused something of a sensation among researchers at the Stockholm conference. Images from positron emission tomography (PET) scans clearly showed how the molecule travelled effortlessly through the healthy brains. But in the brains of the subjects with Alzheimer's, the molecule stuck in the frontal lobes and other regions that are typically damaged by plaque in Alzheimer's disease patients.

Because it's often difficult for doctors to be certain of the difference between dementia and full-fledged Alzheimer's, this new technique may prove to be the first reliable way to diagnose the early stages of Alzheimer's disease. When this screening might be widely available is hard to say, but I'll watch for further developments and will keep you updated through the e-Alert.

Prevention and treatment

As we've seen, the early diagnosis of Alzheimer's can have a profound positive impact on the quality of life for both Alzheimer's disease patients and their carers. All too often, however, it's the carers themselves who are responsible for delays in diagnosis, either from a lack of understanding, or a refusal to acknowledge the early symptoms.

You've probably heard that Alzheimer's involves disorientation, forgetfulness and irrationality, but true Alzheimer's symptoms take those symptoms to sometimes alarming extremes, such as putting common items in a terribly wrong place or wearing clothing that's entirely inappropriate for a given situation. Any observed behaviour such as this should be followed up with immediate medical attention.

When more people learn to recognise the warning signals of Alzheimer's disease and the importance of early stage diagnosis, the lives of Alzheimer's disease patients and their carers will be significantly improved.