Dementia News and Research

Latest Dementia News and Research

Study highlights predictors of cognitive decline in early Alzheimer's disease

Older age, female sex, irregular heart rhythms, and daily activity levels can help to predict how much Alzheimer's Disease patients' cognitive function will decline, and how much they will depend on their caregivers over the next two years.

14 Aug 2024

Menopause linked to increased risk of cognitive issues

With more than 24 million people globally living with dementia without a cure in sight, there is a lot of focus on ways to prevent and delay cognitive impairment. A new study suggests that severe menopause symptoms such as hot flashes and depression can negatively affect cognitive function in postmenopausal women. Results of the study are published online today in Menopause, the journal of The Menopause Society.

14 Aug 2024

Decline in psychological wellbeing may signal early mild cognitive impairment

Feeling that your life lacks purpose and that there are few opportunities for personal growth in older age may precede the development of mild cognitive impairment (MCI), a frequent precursor of dementia, suggests research published online in the Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery & Psychiatry.

13 Aug 2024

Beyond neurons: Glial cells identified as key players in Alzheimer's disease

Memory loss, confusion, speech problems – Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia, affecting about 35 million people worldwide, and the number is growing.

12 Aug 2024

Emory researchers offer a new perspective on the mechanism behind Alzheimer's disease

New findings out of Emory University are challenging existing theories about the origins of Alzheimer's, the leading cause of dementia in the elderly worldwide.

12 Aug 2024

New drug GSM-15606 may guard against Alzheimer's risk from air pollution

A new study led by the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology shows how feeding mice a drug called GSM-15606 provided protection against air pollution-related increases in proteins linked to Alzheimer's disease.

12 Aug 2024

Study reveals high undiagnosed rates of mild cognitive impairment in rural West Michigan

Corewell Health™ and Michigan State University researchers are the first in the state to use de-identified electronic health records of more than 1.5 million patients to analyze incidence rates and risk factors of mild cognitive impairment, or MCI, in rural and urban areas in West Michigan.

12 Aug 2024

New study links brain cell structures to memory loss in aging and dementia

Researchers assessed whether dendritic spine head diameter in the temporal cortex is a better predictor of episodic memory performance in older adults than synapse quantity, accounting for β amyloid plaques, neurofibrillary tangles, and sex.

12 Aug 2024

Enzyme blockade improves memory updating in older mice

Everyone has moments of forgetfulness from time to time, especially as we get older. But older adults don't just have difficulty remembering new information.

9 Aug 2024

Violent dementia patients leave nursing home staffers and residents ‘scared to death’

Dan Shively had been a bank president who built floats for July Fourth parades in Cody, Wyoming, and adored fly-fishing with his sons.

9 Aug 2024

NIH awards $3.5M grant to study link between traumatic brain injury and Alzheimer's

A traumatic brain injury, or TBI, is caused by a contusion to the head that may result in injury to the brain.

8 Aug 2024

Alcohol use disorders in parents linked to accelerated aging in children

Researchers at the Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences (VMBS) have discovered that parents who struggle with alcohol use disorders can pass along symptoms of early aging to their children, affecting them well into adulthood.

8 Aug 2024

New technique reveals abnormalities in motor neurone disease

Pathological abnormalities associated with motor neurone disease have been identified using a new technique developed at the University of Birmingham.

8 Aug 2024

Amyloid immunotherapy for early Alzheimer's: Promising but fraught with challenges

Researchers highlighted the complexities of using amyloid immunotherapy for early Alzheimer's disease, discussing its clinical benefits, challenges, and broader health implications. Despite some positive results, concerns over adverse effects, trial biases, and cost hinder widespread adoption.

7 Aug 2024

Recombinant shingles vaccine linked to lower dementia risk, especially in women

Study published in Nature Medicine found that the recombinant shingles vaccine is linked to a reduced risk of dementia. This protective effect was particularly notable in females, suggesting a potential advantage of the recombinant vaccine over the live vaccine.

7 Aug 2024

Research finds synaptic strength key to maintaining memory in old age

Over the course of life, memory fades with varying degrees, robbing older people of the ability to recollect personal experiences.

7 Aug 2024

Study suggests lower dementia risk for people with Parkinson's

There's some good news for people with Parkinson's disease: The risk of developing dementia may be lower than previously thought, or dementia may occur later in the course of the disease than previously reported, according to a study published in the August 7, 2024, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

7 Aug 2024