Everyone slips up and says the wrong thing from time to time. Perhaps your objective was to compliment a friend on her new haircut, but you came across sounding like you were criticizing her previous hairstyle. Selecting our words carefully is always important, but even more so when speaking with a person with dementia. The…
You’ve been taking care of Mom since her dementia diagnosis. You’ve been working through many of the challenging symptoms. However one day, she looks at you and calls you by a different name – that of her husband or younger brother or father. Do you correct her, reminding her that you are her son? Should…
Discovering a cure for Alzheimer’s disease has become as tangled as the tau threads that have long been considered to be the root cause of the disease. Yet now, research workers may be drawing one step nearer to untangling the mystery of Alzheimer’s disease by using another train of thought. The latest studies are leaning…
If 2021 will be recalled as the year for COVID-19 vaccines, perhaps 2022 will be marked with a different type of life-changing vaccine: one which may actually slow or prevent the further advancement of Alzheimer’s disease. The first human trial of Protollin, delivered by way of nasal spray, is underway in 16 seniors with-early stage…
With so much negative news in the forefront of 2020, it is worth reflecting on a number of the wonderful achievements the year brought – most notably the advancements in Alzheimer’s disease research. Katie McDonough, director of programs and services for the Alzheimer’s Association, shares, “There are many things that we’re learning and it’s an…
An individual who exhibits memory loss, confusion, poor judgment, repetition, and challenges with performing daily activities has the telltale symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, right? As a matter of fact, what seems to be an obvious case of Alzheimer’s may in fact be a recently discovered dementia. Known as LATE, or limbic-predominant age-related TDP-43 encephalopathy, this…
You may not recognize her by name, but you’ve probably heard her story. Joy Milne has an exceptionally unique talent: recognizing Parkinson’s disease by using her nose. Her gift came to light when she detected what she details as an “overpowering sort of nasty yeast smell” in her husband of ten years. Subsequently observing other…
After sixteen long years without having any truly viable treatment options for Alzheimer’s, there is some hope on the horizon, in a stunning reversal regarding the previously-rejected antibody therapy, aducanumab. The most recent research shows that large quantities of the medication do, actually, lessen cognitive decline at the beginning stages of Alzheimer’s. As stated by…
Researchers are finally beginning to get a grip on the imbalance between Alzheimer’s diagnoses in women and men. Currently, as many as 2/3 of those with Alzheimer’s in the U.S. are female, and as scientists begin to understand the particular nuances behind this trend, we can begin to address them. According to the Alzheimer’s Association’s…
They’re already known to cause a number of short-term side effects, such as memory loss and confusion, but new research links some of the stronger anticholinergic drugs (such as those prescribed for Parkinson’s disease, epilepsy, depression, and overactive bladder) to a markedly increased risk for dementia. The study involved two groups of seniors: 59,000 patients with…