Dementia News and Research

Latest Dementia News and Research

Study calls for overhaul in health care practices for elderly prisoners

Soaring numbers of older, sicker prisoners are causing an unprecedented health care challenge for the nation's criminal justice system, according to a new UCSF report.

15 Jun 2012

Research examines link between metabolic syndrome and cognitive disorders

No effective treatments are currently available for the prevention or cure of Alzheimer's disease (AD), the most frequent form of dementia in the elderly. The most recognized risk factors, advancing age and having the apolipoprotein E Ɛ4 gene, cannot be modified or treated. Increasingly, scientists are looking toward other risk factors to identify preventive and therapeutic strategies.

15 Jun 2012

Practical clinical tool reliable and valid in measuring severity of dementia symptoms

A new study shows that a practical clinical tool developed by researchers from the Regenstrief Institute and the Indiana University School of Medicine to measure severity of dementia symptoms is reliable and valid. The Healthy Aging Brain Care Monitor is simple, user-friendly and sensitive to change in symptoms.

15 Jun 2012

Single gene forms common link between diabetes and Alzheimer's

In recent years it became clear that people with diabetes face an ominous prospect - a far greater risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. Now researchers at The City College of New York (CCNY) have shed light on one reason why. Biology Professor Chris Li and her colleagues have discovered that a single gene forms a common link between the two diseases.

15 Jun 2012

IBMT linked with positive structural changes in brain connectivity

A Texas Tech University scientist studying the Chinese mindfulness meditation known as integrative body-mind training (IBMT) said he and other researchers have confirmed and expanded on changes in structural efficiency of white matter in the brain that can be related to positive behavioral changes in subjects practicing the technique for a month and a minimum of 11 hours total.

14 Jun 2012

State roundup: Mass. bill seeking Alzheimer's care standards moves forward

A proposal to create minimum standards for Alzheimer's and dementia care in Massachusetts nursing homes is one step closer to becoming law. The state Senate Tuesday unanimously passed legislation that would require the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, which regulates nursing homes, to establish minimum standards for facilities with dementia care units. The House approved the proposal last month.

14 Jun 2012

Hot weather increases death risk in psychosis patients

Hot weather is associated with increased mortality rates among patients with psychosis, dementia, or substance use disorder, UK research shows.

13 Jun 2012

Omega-3 probably does not reduce cognitive decline in older people

Older people who take omega-3 fish oil supplements are probably not reducing their chances of losing cognitive function, according to a new Cochrane systematic review.

13 Jun 2012

Changes in walking speed in late life may signal MCI

A new study shows that changes in walking speed in late life may signal the early stages of dementia known as mild cognitive impairment (MCI).

12 Jun 2012

FDA accepts Avanir IND for AVP-923 to treat agitation in patients with AD

Avanir Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) accepted the company's Investigational New Drug (IND) application for the study of AVP-923, an investigational drug for the treatment of agitation in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD).

11 Jun 2012

New liquid stable homocysteine kit from Randox

The new liquid stable homocysteine kit from Randox provides a convenient and accurate method for the determination of homocysteine in human serum and plasma. Homocysteine is a potential indicator of a number of disease markers and should therefore be an integral part of a laboratory’s testing menu.

From Randox Laboratories Ltd. 11 Jun 2012

LBDA launches nationwide October awareness movement

Today the Lewy Body Dementia Association (LBDA) launched its nationwide October awareness movement, "A Month To Remember." LBDA invites volunteers to join the movement by "Standing Strong with LBDA" to build awareness for Lewy body dementia in their communities.

8 Jun 2012

DiaGenic initiates [18F] Flutemetamol PET imaging clinical study in MCI

DiaGenic ASA today announced that the first patient with MCI (Mild Cognitive Impairment) was examined with [18F] Flutemetamol PET imaging at University of Lund Sweden in the DiaGenic and GE Healthcare Research Collaboration announced March 27th 2012.

8 Jun 2012

Clinical study shows positive effects of CAD106 vaccine against AD

A study led by Karolinska Institutet in Sweden reports for the first time the positive effects of an active vaccine against Alzheimer's disease. The new vaccine, CAD106, can prove a breakthrough in the search for a cure for this seriously debilitating dementia disease. The study is published in the distinguished scientific journal Lancet Neurology.

7 Jun 2012

GP care equals memory clinics

GPs are as effective at coordinating treatment and care for patients with mild-to-moderate dementia as specialist memory clinics, study findings suggest.

6 Jun 2012

New tool helps researchers to better understand Type 2 human diabetes

With Type 2 human diabetes climbing at alarming rates in the United States, researchers are seeking treatments for the disease, which has been linked to obesity and poor diet. Now biologists at Southern Methodist University, Dallas, report they have developed a new tool that will help researchers better understand this deadly disease.

6 Jun 2012

Caffeine/coffee intake associated with reduced risk of dementia or delayed onset

Those cups of coffee that you drink every day to keep alert appear to have an extra perk - especially if you're an older adult. A recent study monitoring the memory and thinking processes of people older than 65 found that all those with higher blood caffeine levels avoided the onset of Alzheimer's disease in the two-to-four years of study follow-up. Moreover, coffee appeared to be the major or only source of caffeine for these individuals.

5 Jun 2012

Cardinal Health to produce new AD diagnostic imaging agent, Amyvid

Cardinal Health today announced that it will manufacture and distribute Amyvid, Eli Lilly and Company's new diagnostic imaging agent that aids in the evaluation of adult patients with cognitive impairment who are being evaluated for Alzheimer's Disease and other causes of cognitive decline. The commercial launch of Amyvid is scheduled for June 1, 2012.

2 Jun 2012

Molecular structure of APP protein could lead to new therapeutics for AD

The molecular structure of a protein involved in Alzheimer's disease - and the surprising discovery that it binds cholesterol - could lead to new therapeutics for the disease, Vanderbilt University investigators report in the June 1 issue of the journal Science.

1 Jun 2012