Dementia News and Research

Latest Dementia News and Research

Hospitalization of a spouse can harm the wellbeing of his or her partner

In the largest study ever to quantify caregiver burden and the widower effect, researchers found that for people aged 65 and older, hospitalization of a spouse can harm the wellbeing of his or her partner and significantly contribute to that partner's death.

17 Feb 2006

Brain scans may detect neurological decline in normal people

Brain scans may detect neurological changes in people who exhibit no outward signs of cognitive decline but who later develop dementia or mental impairment, according to the results of a new study led by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley.

16 Feb 2006

A high level of education means Alzheimer's hits later, but harder and faster

According to researchers at the Columbia University Medical Center in New York, high levels of education may help ward off Alzheimer’s disease, but they also speed up its progression once the disease has developed.

16 Feb 2006

Risk of Alzheimer's 80% genetic

In the largest twin study to date, researchers in the U.S. looked at the Swedish Twin Registry to see which factors lead to Alzheimer's disease (AD).

14 Feb 2006

NogoReceptor reduces Alzheimer's plaque

Increasing the level of a protein that plays a key role in traumatic spinal cord injuries and multiple sclerosis reduces the concentration of disease-causing plaque in Alzheimer's disease, Yale School of Medicine researchers report in the Journal of Neuroscience.

12 Feb 2006

Alzheimer's disease appears to be highly heritable

In a large study of twins, Alzheimer's disease appears to be highly heritable and genetic factors may also influence timing of the disease, according to an article in the February Archives of General Psychiatry.

9 Feb 2006

Depression linked to Alzheimer's

A lifetime history of depression is associated with increased plaques and tangles in the brains of those with Alzheimer's disease and more rapid cognitive decline, according to a study by researchers at the Alzheimer's Disease Research Center at Mount Sinai School of Medicine.

9 Feb 2006

Anticholinergic drugs may lead to mild mental impairment in elderly

Anticholinergic drugs may lead to mild cognitive (mental) impairment in elderly people, finds a study published online by the British Medical Journal.

7 Feb 2006

Alzheimer disease has a genetic cause in up to 80 percent of cases

"Our finding confirms the higher estimates that have been suggested previously. The important thing is that no one has had this large a sample before," Gatz said, adding the size was 10 times that of any previous study.

7 Feb 2006

Link between dementia and cancer

By expressing a protein associated with Alzheimer's disease in the brain of the fruit fly, researchers have demonstrated an intriguing link between neuronal death and proteins previously associated with cancer.

7 Feb 2006

Memory loss and menopause

Women who feel that they become more forgetful as menopause approaches shouldn't just ignore it, there may be something to their own widespread reports that they're more likely to forget things as menopause approaches

5 Feb 2006

Research shows brain's ability to overcome pain and thirst

Researchers at Melbourne's Howard Florey Institute have discovered how the brain prioritises pain and thirst in order to survive - a mechanism that helps elite athletes to 'push through the pain barrier'.

30 Jan 2006

Statins cut the risk of serious infection

According to scientists Cholesterol-lowering drugs, known as statins, can reduce the risk of severe infection in patients suffering from heart disease or stroke.

26 Jan 2006

Working your brain hard reduces risk of dementia

Research from the University of New South Wales (UNSW), Australia, provides the most convincing evidence to date that complex mental activity across people's lives significantly reduces the risk of dementia. The researchers found that such activity almost halves the incidence of dementia.

25 Jan 2006

Donepezil for dementia due to Alzheimer's disease

Trials lasting up to 12 months show that taking daily doses of either 5mg or 10mg donepezil improves cognition and global clinical state in patients with Alzheimer's disease.

25 Jan 2006

Alzheimer's disease may be more common than previously recognized

A study published in the January issue of the Annals of Neurology found that neurofibrillary tangles in the substantia nigra, a part of the brain that is subject to cell loss in Parkinson's disease, are associated with gait impairment in older persons with and without dementia.

25 Jan 2006

Aricept, Razadyne and Exelon can help people with mild Alzheimer's

The Alzheimer's drugs Aricept, Razadyne and Exelon can lead to small improvements in mental functioning and the ability to carry out everyday activities in people with mild to moderate forms of the disease, according to a new review of recent studies.

25 Jan 2006