New tools against Alzheimer's bring hope to patients

From the brain pacemaker, to the possible diagnosis by bio-markers through a simple blood test. Expert neurologists explain the scope of these advances and the care to prevent this terrible disease

_{Source: New advances in Alzheimer's disease provide hope for patients}

Expert neurologists agree that the big problem with Alzheimer's is that the neuro-degenerative disease, caused by the progressive destruction of brain neurons, begins up to two decades before the symptoms appear, usually in a person's 60s.

And we are not just talking about memory. It also affects the ability to pay attention, solve problems or make the right decisions.

It is a set of essential capacities for daily life and independence, whose deterioration can not be reversed. And with the growth of the average age of the population in the world, that problem becomes bigger and more evident.

In the current market there are very few drugs that can slow down the progress of the memory loss that accompanies Alzheimer's, but what is generally seen is that when the disease is diagnosed, it is already too late: there has been irreversible damage in the brain and the progress of deterioration leads to death inexorably.

That's why most trials with Alzheimer's drugs have failed in part, because it is very difficult to find people with the early stages of the disease.

All that could change, according to the latest study by Alzheimer published this week in the journal Nature, which highlights the research of a group of Japanese and Australian doctors who identified through a blood test, certain fragments of amyloid proteins and protein knots. tau, which are those that accumulate in the brain, degrades it and causes this terrible disease.

_{Exercise the brain and have a good diet, helps prevent Alzheimer's disease (iStock)}

"Blood bio-markers are a breakthrough," he enthused about the new study, Dr. Ron Petersen, director of Alzheimer's research at the Mayo Clinic.

Specifically, the blood biomarker was discovered by researchers at the National Center of Geriatrics and Gerontology of Japan, in a study involving 400 participants. These people were cognitively normal, had mild cognitive impairment, or had a diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease.

The scientists took blood samples and catalogued the hundreds of fragments of "amyloid precursor proteins" they found in each sample. After comparing the levels of these protein fragments with the levels of amyloid in the brain that are found with PET scans, the experts discovered that certain partners were 90% accurate in predicting whether there was amyloid accumulation in the brain or not.

"There is still a long way to go before this type of test can be used in a clinical setting," says Petersen, who pointed out that researchers at the University of Washington in Saint Louis will challenge the data on a larger scale. They are developing methods to diagnose the disease using fragments of amyloid protein and tau bio-markers.

_{In the blood could be the key to diagnose this disease early}

Since the 80s, Alzheimer's could only be diagnosed post-mortem through autopsies of the brain. In recent years, scientists have discovered how to identify the signs of Alzheimer's disease through lumbar puncture and spinal cord sampling or also based on PET scans, but because these tests are invasive and expensive, usually only they are administered to patients who already show clear signs of the disease.

In other words, they are only used in patients for whom the treatment will be too short or too late. The hope of this finding is that a simple blood test can be done to anyone, at any age, and fight Alzheimer's in its early stages.

"Even if these proteins do not turn out to be good enough to be used as a definitive test for Alzheimer's, they could still be used to improve the way we diagnose the disease." If a blood test was good enough to indicate a greater chance of accumulations Abnormal amyloid in the brain, could help doctors know which patients should undergo a PET scan or a lumbar puncture to confirm the diagnosis of Alzheimer's," - concluded Petersen.

_{At the last world congress on the disease, advances were announced on the possibility of carrying out a blood test to detect people at risk of having Alzheimer's disease (istock)}

Juan Manuel Baldovino, neurosurgeon of Medihome Group, explained to Infobae the other hopeful news about Alzheimer that emerged this week: the brain pacemaker.

"Not all dementia are Alzheimer's We speak of dementia when there is loss of operative memory It begins with the affectation of the early memory by the continuous deposit of amyloid beta protein in the hippocampal region of the brain This deposit of material interferes in the connections neuronal, so the greater the deposit, the greater the brain deterioration, affecting, among other aspects, the immediate, mediate and delayed memory, and generating a loss of brain mass of around 140 grams," - Baldovino said.

"The study on the cerebral pacemaker, which is a preliminary investigation, consists of introducing electrodes in the brain, which through a technique called stimulation, through current waves in the frontal lobe, generate a fundamental improvement in the attention of patients, and in decision-making, which is affected early in patients with this disease," - he explained.

It is not yet approved in the USA. But the stimulation with brain implants for other diseases is already used, for example for Parkinson's and pain.

The disease of oblivion

Alzheimer's is the most frequent cause of dementia and is characterised by a gradual deterioration of patients' cognitive, behavioural and functional capacities. Its frequency increases with the ageing of the population.

_{The new brain pacemaker allows to slow down the neurodegenerative disease (istock)}

"Dementia is a syndrome characterised by a progressive cognitive deterioration that affects higher brain functions such as memory, language, perception, attention, thought and behaviour, altering the ability of the person to function independently in their usual activities, " - explained Dr. Julian Bustin, head of the INECO Memory Clinic, to Infobae .

In medical terms, "dementia" is not synonymous with "madness", but the consequence of diseases or neuro-degenerative processes that progressively affect cognitive functions such as memory, language or reasoning, as well as behaviour and emotion, generating inability to independently develop those daily activities to which the person was accustomed.

According to numbers provided by the World Health Organisation, there are 48 million people suffering from dementia in the world, and every year almost 8 million new cases are registered.

The International Association of Alzheimer's counted in 2015 some 503,000 people with dementia in Argentina with an annual incidence of 74,061 new cases (in people over 65 years of age, with a frequency of dementia of 12.18%, Alzheimer's type of 5.85% and vascular dementia of 3.86%). It is projected that this number will increase to 1,181,000 people in 2050.

_{Alzheimer's is the first cause of dementia in the world (Shutterstock)}

"It is estimated that every 3 seconds a new person is diagnosed with dementia, and although there are many types, Alzheimer's disease is the most frequent, with about 70% of cases." It is an age-dependent disease, whose Frequency significantly increases after age 65, "Bustin added.

As reported by the expert, the commission on "Prevention, intervention and care in dementia", created by the prestigious journal The Lancet, published the control of certain risk factors that could have the potential to delay or protect a third of the cases of dementia.

The 7 risk factors are: sedentary lifestyle, smoking, hypertension, obesity in adulthood, diabetes, depression and low formal education. In all cases, these are modifiable factors, which is why, through different initiatives, the risk of Alzheimer's could be reduced.

"Through the adoption of certain habits such as physical exercise, cognitive stimulation, a healthy diet, adequate sleep, decreased stress and the maintenance of social activity can be achieved a protective shield for the brain," - concluded Bustin.

Dr. Ricardo Allegri, Head of Cognitive Neurology, Neuropsychiatry and Neuropsychology of Fleni highlighted the importance of exercising the brain to prevent dementias.

"Exercising our brain influences the development, maintenance and enhancement of the cognitive reserve, and art allows a training that goes through our capacity of thought, memory and language." Individuals with greater cognitive reserve are predisposed to prevent, stay better and longer in the face of diseases that cause cognitive impairment, it was previously thought that this had to be encouraged in the elderly, but now it is known that it must be maintained throughout life, "Allegri said.

Dr. Maria Alejandra Amengual, a Neurologist at Sanatorio Los Arcos explained to Infobae that "the symptoms usually referred to (memory loss, difficulty finding words, mood swings, loss of initiative) can also be observed in other situations such as depression or ageing. normal, but they differ above all in the degree of interference they generate for the development of habitual activities ".

Care to prevent Alzheimer's

There are many things that can be done to prevent cognitive deterioration (causative of dementia), in general activities and simple habits that can be incorporated into everyday life:

1. Caring for the heart: Cigarette smoking, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, obesity and sedentary lifestyle are the main "vascular risk factors" and cause damage to the arteries increasing the risk of an accident cerebrovascular or a cardiac infarction, and also increasing the risk of developing cognitive impairment. These problems can be prevented through healthy habits and proper treatment.

2. Follow a healthy diet: Food is the fuel of the brain and the body. Numerous studies showed the benefits of following a Mediterranean diet (rich in cereals, fruits, fish, vegetables and greens); On the contrary, feeding with excess saturated fats, sugar or salt increases the risk of cerebrovascular and cardiovascular disease.

3. Participate in social activities: Group activities involve interaction with other people, exchange of ideas and concepts, opportunity to exercise language, adaptation, empathy; they also increase brain reserve and help reduce the risk of depression.

4. Perform physical activity: Physical exercise helps control blood pressure and overweight, reduces the risk of diabetes and some types of cancer. It also generates well-being and is an excellent opportunity to share activities with friends and family.

5. Challenge the brain: Through new activities that involve learning (such as learning a language or developing a new hobby) the brain can build new networks and connections, which helps counteract the symptoms caused by Alzheimer's disease and other dementia. It is never too late to start developing them and they generate another opportunity to carry out shared activities.

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