Dementia News and Research

Latest Dementia News and Research

Genetic variation linked to earlier onset of Alzheimer's symptoms

Investigators at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have identified a genetic variation associated with an earlier age of onset in Alzheimer's disease.

9 Jun 2008

World's oldest woman had normal brain

A 115-year-old woman who remained mentally alert throughout her life had an essentially normal brain, with little or no evidence of Alzheimer's disease, according to a study in the August issue of Neurobiology of Aging.

9 Jun 2008

Human stem cells show promise against fatal children's diseases

Scientists have used human stem cells to dramatically improve the condition of mice with a neurological condition similar to a set of diseases in children that are invariably fatal, according to an article in the June issue of the journal Cell Stem Cell.

4 Jun 2008

Socializing can help elderly women stay sharp

Socializing with friends and family can do more than lift the spirits of elderly women - it can improve cognition and might help prevent dementia, according to a new study.

3 Jun 2008

Conversation helps people with dementia

Researchers in Britain conducting a study of people with dementia living in residential and nursing homes, say talking helps patients with dementia.

3 Jun 2008

Aggression between nursing-home residents more common than widely believed

When people hear about elder abuse in nursing homes, they usually think of staff members victimizing residents. However, research by Cornell University faculty members suggests that a more prevalent and serious problem may be aggression and violence that occurs between residents themselves.

2 Jun 2008

Australian dementia sufferers may wear tracking devices

The Australian Federal Government is said to be considering using electronic wrist tags on people with dementia; the tracking bracelets would be a way of monitoring those suffering from Alzheimer's disease.

2 Jun 2008

Yale researchers block transforming growth factor to clear up amyloid plaques in mice

Blocking a common immune system response cleared up plaques associated with Alzheimer's Disease and enabled treated mice to recover some lost memory, Yale University researchers report Friday in the journal Nature Medicine.

1 Jun 2008

More aggressive hospital care does not lead to improved patient outcomes in all cases, study finds

More aggressive hospital care -- such as higher numbers of tests and procedures and longer stays -- does not lead to improved patient outcomes in all cases, according to a study released on Thursday, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports.

30 May 2008

Antipsychotic drugs dangerous for the elderly

A Canadian study has found that prescribing antipsychotic drugs for elderly people may be dangerous.

27 May 2008

New guideline for the treatment of vertigo

A new guideline developed by the American Academy of Neurology found that the best treatment for vertigo is the easiest and quickest one. The guideline on benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV), an inner ear disorder that is a common cause of dizziness, is published in the May 27, 2008, issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

26 May 2008

The emerging role of infection in Alzheimer’s

A number of chronic diseases are in fact caused by one or more infectious agents. For example, stomach ulcers are caused by Helicobacter pylori, chronic lung disease in newborns and chronic asthma in adults are both caused by Mycoplasmas and Chlamydia pneumonia, while some other pathogens have been associated with atherosclerosis. The realization that pathogens can produce slowly progressive chronic diseases has opened new lines of research into Alzheimer's disease.

25 May 2008

New clinical research and imaging centre for Bristol

The University and United Bristol Healthcare Trust (UBHT) are joining forces to establish a new state-of-the-art Clinical Research and Imaging Centre (CRIC) at St Michael's Hospital on St Michael's Hill

21 May 2008

Rochester vaccine triggers immune response, prevents Alzheimer's

A vaccine created by University of Rochester Medical Center scientists prevents the development of Alzheimer's disease-like pathology in mice without causing inflammation or significant side effects.

19 May 2008

End-stage dementia patients deserve the same access to palliative care as people with cancer

There is an urgent need to improve end-of-life care for older people in the final stages of dementia, according to an international review published in the May issue of Journal of Clinical Nursing.

12 May 2008

Discovery of mechanism of action of antibiotic able to reduce neuronal cell death in brain

Virginia Commonwealth University researchers have discovered how an antibiotic works to modulate the activity of a neurotransmitter that regulates brain functions, which eventually could lead to therapies to treat Alzheimer's disease, Huntington's disease, epilepsy, stroke, dementia and malignant gliomas.

11 May 2008

Obesity may increase adults' risk for having dementia

Their analysis of published obesity and dementia prospective follow-up studies over the past two decades shows a consistent relationship between the two diseases. The results are published by The International Association for the Study of Obesity in the May, 2008 issue of Obesity Reviews.

7 May 2008

Obesity can increase dementia risk by up to 80 per cent - people who are underweight also face an elevated risk

Being obese can increase the risk of Alzheimer's Disease by as much as 80 per cent, according to a study in the May issue of the UK-based journal Obesity Reviews.

7 May 2008

Location technologies are improving NHS care

Some of the UK's leading experts in location technologies confirmed this week that applications such as RFID in hospitals are already improving the efficiency and quality of patient care. But they also warn that compatibility problems between hardware and software applications, and a lack of joined up thinking from technology companies mean that the NHS is not benefiting as much as it could.

6 May 2008

Ibuprofen found to reduce the risk of Alzheimer's

A large study by scientists in the U.S. has revealed that the long-term use of ibuprofen may reduce the risk of a person developing Alzheimer's disease.

6 May 2008