Dementia News and Research

Latest Dementia News and Research

FDA grants clearance for HPβCD treatment for Niemann Pick Type C disease

Children's Hospital & Research Center Oakland announced today that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted clearance of an Investigational New Drug (IND) application to introduce Trappsol Cyclo (Hydroxypropyl Beta Cyclodextrin or HPβCD) into the brains of six year old identical twin girls dying of a rare brain-destroying cholesterol disease called Niemann Pick Type C (NPC).

24 Sep 2010

Negative childhood experiences impacting in the brains of Indigenous kids

Australia will not Close the Gap on Aboriginal health unless more is done to reverse the early life stress and trauma experienced by Indigenous children, new research suggests.

23 Sep 2010

Career choice may influence where dementia takes root in the brain: Study

In an international study of patients with a devastating type of dementia that often strikes in middle age, researchers have found intriguing evidence that career choice may influence where the disease takes root in the brain.

23 Sep 2010

People's Care ranks #2140 on Inc. 5000 list of fastest growing private companies

Inc. Magazine included Southern California-based People's Care in its fourth annual Inc. 5000, an exclusive ranking of the country's fastest growing private companies. The list represents a comprehensive look at an important segment of the United States' economy: independent entrepreneurs. People's Care joins other prominent brands on the list, including music website Pandora, 7-Eleven and Radio Flyer.

23 Sep 2010

Rush University researchers identify potential new way to prevent Alzheimer's disease progression

Neurological researchers at Rush University Medical Center have found a new therapeutic target that can potentially lead to a new way to prevent the progression of Alzheimer's disease. The target called neutral sphingomyelinase (N-SMase) is a protein that when activated, can cause a chain of reactions in the cell leading to neuronal death and memory loss.

22 Sep 2010

ADI releases World Alzheimer Report 2010

The World Alzheimer Report 2010 was released today to mark World Alzheimer's Day and heighten awareness of the global economic impact of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias.

21 Sep 2010

Ginkgo-special extract improves mental performance of dementia patients

In a systematic review, known as a meta-analysis, a group of scientists at the University of Shanghai has demonstrated yet again that Ginkgo-special extract EGb 761 significantly improves the mental performance of dementia patients (Wang et al., 2010). A particular feature of this review was that, for the first time, researchers incorporated the risk of further deterioration of mental performance due to the natural progress of the disease into their assessment.

21 Sep 2010

Global dementia costs hit $604 billion: World Alzheimer Report 2010

The total estimated worldwide costs of dementia are $604 billion in 2010, according to the newly released World Alzheimer Report 2010, The Global Economic Impact of Dementia from Alzheimer's Disease International (ADI), a London based, nonprofit, international federation of 73 national Alzheimer organizations, including the Alzheimer's Association (U.S.).

21 Sep 2010

Alzheimer's disaster is no longer 'emerging'

Tomorrow on World Alzheimer's Day, the Alzheimer's Association recognizes the efforts of the Obama Administration for bringing stakeholders to the table to begin an important dialogue on how best to address the Alzheimer epidemic. The meeting will include representatives of the Alzheimer community, policymakers from across the federal government, Alzheimer researchers, people with Alzheimer's and care providers to exchange objectives and strategies on how to overcome the growing Alzheimer epidemic.

21 Sep 2010

Global action needed to address 'most significant health crisis of the 21st century'

A landmark report on the Global Economic Impact of Dementia finds that Alzheimer's disease and other dementias are exacting a massive toll on the global economy, with the problem set to accelerate in coming years. The World Alzheimer Report 2010 - issued on World Alzheimer's Day by Alzheimer's Disease International (ADI) - provides the most current and comprehensive global picture of the economic and social costs of the illness.

21 Sep 2010

URB937 drug boosts natural painkiller level: Study

A new study has shown how a novel compound boosts levels of a natural painkiller at the site of an injury. The ground-breaking study published today in Nature Neuroscience shows how the potential drug URB937 acts in peripheral tissue and may have the potential to relieve pain without the side effects associated with many current painkillers that act centrally on the nervous system.

20 Sep 2010

Gene deletion may make you smarter: Study

A new study has shown that switching off a single gene in mice unlocks a part of their brain that is otherwise inactive, boosting learning and memory. Considering the fact that humans have a similar gene, this sparks hope for many especially those who suffer from dementia and Alzheimer’s.

20 Sep 2010

New findings in brain plasticity and development

Brain plasticity – the brain’s ability to reorganise neural pathways – will be discussed at a major symposium this week at the University of New South Wales (Friday 24 September).

19 Sep 2010

$ONS trial results show promise for treating medically refractory chronic migraines: ONSTIM study$

ONS trial results show promise for treating medically refractory chronic migraines: ONSTIM study

Medtronic, Inc. announced that data from a multicenter, prospective, randomized, blinded, feasibility trial published today show promise for occipital nerve stimulation for treating medically refractory chronic migraines and support the need for further controlled study of the treatment. The study, called Occipital Nerve Stimulation for the Treatment of Intractable Migraine, included severely debilitated patients who had regularly experienced 15 or more headache days per month that were not responsive to currently available medical therapies.

18 Sep 2010

Caregiver Expo2010 to be held in November in conjunction with National Family Caregiver Month

The Caregiver Expo2010, presented by Alternatives for Seniors, will be held 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, November 13, 2010 at the Doubletree Hotel, in Oak Brook, Illinois. The free event is being held in conjunction with the National Family Caregiver Month observed every November. National Family Caregiver Month is a nationally recognized time to focus attention on the more than 65 million family caregivers who provide 80% of our nation's long term care services.

18 Sep 2010

WHO urges development programs to include mental and psychosocial disabled patients

People with mental and psychosocial disabilities are among the most marginalized groups in developing countries. Even though development actors have pledged to focus their work on the most vulnerable in a community, many programmes continue to ignore and exclude this vulnerable group.

17 Sep 2010

Study identifies venous thromboembolism risk factors after THR surgery

Risk factors for venous thromboembolism after total hip replacement (THR) surgery were identified in a new study published in the September 2010 issue of The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (JBJS). While the rate of thromboembolism has been significantly reduced through medication, understanding the risk factors could further reduce the likelihood of patients developing this potentially fatal complication.

17 Sep 2010

Common Alzheimer's disease drug enhances learning of new skills

Research on a drug commonly prescribed to Alzheimer's disease patients is helping neuroscientists at the University of California, Berkeley, better understand perceptual learning in healthy adults.

17 Sep 2010

Survey reveals 72% of people over age of 65 do not feel old

There is a sharp contrast between people's positive attitudes towards growing old and their preparedness according to the results of a new international survey, Bupa Health Pulse 2010, published today by Bupa Health Dialog.

17 Sep 2010

Alzheimer Society, Coffee Break commits to support Canadians living with Alzheimer's disease

Today, hundreds of people across the nation have made the commitment to make their "coffee count" and are drinking a cup of coffee to raise funds in support of Canadians living with Alzheimer's disease or a related dementia. This marks 15 years' of successful grassroots fundraising by the Alzheimer Society, raising over $12 million in support of essential programs and services for people with dementia, their families and caregivers.

16 Sep 2010