Dementia News and Research

Latest Dementia News and Research

Lowering blood pressure protects stroke victims with chronic kidney disease from further strokes

New research, published in the Journal of American Society of Nephrology by The George Institute for International Health in Sydney, has found that lowering blood pressure protects stroke victims with Chronic Kidney Disease from further strokes or heart attacks.

8 Oct 2007

Medicare part B premiums to increase by 3.1% in 2008 to $96.40 per month

CMS on Monday announced that the standard monthly premium for Medicare Part B, which covers physician visits and outpatient hospital care, will increase by $2.90, or 3.1%, to $96.40 in 2008 -- the smallest increase since 2000, when the premium remained the same, the New York Times reports.

2 Oct 2007

Clean living conscientious types less prone to Alzheimer's

According to the latest research from the United states if you are a clean living conscientious person you are less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease.

2 Oct 2007

People who don't finish high school are at a higher risk of developing dementia

...and Alzheimer's disease compared to people with more education, regardless of lifestyle choices and characteristics such as income, occupation, physical activity and smoking, according to a study published in the October 2, 2007, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

2 Oct 2007

Conscientiousness and Alzheimer's disease

Individuals who are more conscientious - in other words, those with a tendency to be self-disciplined, scrupulous and purposeful - appear less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease, according to a report in the October issue of Archives of General Psychiatry.

2 Oct 2007

Loss of TDP-43 gene found to be related to age-related neurological disorders

Researchers at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville have discovered how loss of a gene can lead to accumulation of toxic proteins in the brain, resulting in a common dementia, and they say this mechanism may be important in a number of age-related neurological disorders.

27 Sep 2007

Discovery of new pathway causing cell death related to frontotemporal dementia and ALS

Scientists have discovered a link between a mutated gene and a protein found in dead brain cells of people who suffer from a form of dementia and other neurological disorders.

27 Sep 2007

Biologists link Huntington's disease to health benefits in young

For years researchers in neurology have believed that people with Huntington's disease have more children than the general population because of behavioral changes associated with the disease that lead to sexual promiscuity.

26 Sep 2007

A blood test for concussions - aim of new research

The University of Rochester Medical Center received $1.5 million to develop a blood test for concussions by isolating proteins that can predict memory loss, chronic headaches or other neurological problems.

26 Sep 2007

Research shows how genetic mutation causes epilepsy in infants

New research from the Howard Florey Institute in Melbourne has shown why mutation in a single gene can cause epilepsy in infants.

24 Sep 2007

Cell-surface sugar defects may trigger nerve damage in multiple sclerosis patients

Defects on cell-surface sugars may promote the short-term inflammation and long-term neurodegeneration that occurs in the central nervous system of multiple sclerosis patients, according to University of California, Irvine researchers.

21 Sep 2007

Being overweight in old age does not lead to memory problems

While obesity has been shown to contribute to high blood pressure, heart disease and diabetes, being overweight in old age does not lead to memory problems, according to a study published September 19, 2007, in the online edition of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

20 Sep 2007

Public opinion about Alzheimer's disease among Blacks, Hispanics, and Whites

Alzheimer's disease is still a mystery to people of different races and a large percentage of people across the board are unaware that treatments are available to reduce symptoms.

18 Sep 2007

Women generally unaware of landmark hormone therapy study

Despite the huge publicity generated by a 2002 study on the potential dangers of hormone therapy for postmenopausal women, new research from the Stanford University School of Medicine found that only 29 percent of women surveyed knew about the study two years later.

18 Sep 2007

New guidelines to diagnose Alzheimer's disease

Physicians may be able to detect and treat Alzheimer's Disease (AD) in its earliest stages, when patients are experiencing only mild degrees of cognitive impairment, thanks to new diagnostic criteria proposed by an international group of researchers.

18 Sep 2007

Cell death in sparrow brains may provide clues in age-related human diseases

A remarkable change takes place in the brains of tiny songbirds every year, and some day the mechanism controlling that change may help researchers develop treatments for age-related degenerative diseases of the brain such as Parkinson's and dementia.

18 Sep 2007

Antidepressant just as effective as antipsychotic in treating dementia

Research in Canada has revealed that when it comes to treating the aggressive behaviour seen in people with Alzheimer's disease, antidepressants work just as well as a commonly prescribed antipsychotic medication but without the severe side-effects.

11 Sep 2007

HIV patients with declining platelet counts appear to be at increased risk for HIV-associated dementia

Therapies leading to longer life for HIV patients have paradoxically increased the prevalence of this condition. Identifying biological markers for the development of HIV–associated dementia is critical both for diagnosing the disorder and for understanding its underlying mechanisms.

11 Sep 2007

Antidepressant citalopram shows promise in treating symptoms of dementia

Researchers have found surprising evidence that an antidepressant (citalopram) may perform as well as a commonly-prescribed antipsychotic (risperidone) in the alleviation of severe agitation and psychotic symptoms of dementia.

11 Sep 2007

Smoking ups Alzheimer's risk by 50%

According to a new Dutch study people over the age of 55 who are smokers put themselves at a far greater risk of developing dementia than people who do not smoke.

5 Sep 2007