A report on Scotland’s Stv shows the impact of dementia on both caregivers and the patients themselves. A patient in the report feels that dementia research is where cancer research was 20 years ago. He is calling it “an absolute plague.”

An earlier report on the studies being done at the caregiver level in Europe depicts a visible effort in the UK to combat what many health experts see as a rising tide of health care difficulties.

photo credit: steveb_ohio

The debate facing the Nuffield Council is that of ethical dilemma in the treatment of dementia. Is it right to restrain a patient? Is it right to disguise medication in their food? The Council suggests in their study that there might be something unique about dementia which overrides right and wrong. They are hoping to come up with new widespread guidelines for families, care givers and health care professionals.

The councils 12-week consultation on these issues ends on July 31st, 2008. Results are to be published by the fall of 2009.

Please post your comments below. Is it right to disguise medications in food? Is it right to restrain someone who might wander?

The ad spoke directly to senators Clinton, McCain and Obama, asking them for their stand on a disease which is currently affecting 1 in 8 baby boomers and is contracted by someone in America every 71 seconds.

This full page ad addressing these presidential candidates is on page 9 of the news section of this morning’s national edition of the paper. March 18, 2008.

See the full page ad here New York Times Full Page Ad by the Alzheimer’s Association

This alternative treatment for dementia involves a testosterone spray applied twice a day. Doctors hope the testosterone to then be absorbed by the brain. Testosterone treatment has been used in the pass to treat memory loss and low sex drive although the results have been inconclusive.

Testosterone, often thought of as a male sex hormone, is present in females. It accounts in large part for the growth of female public hair and the strength of bones and muscles. However women produce only 5 percent of the testosterone that men do.

Testosterone spray as a treatment for dementia is still in it’s early stages though doctors are keeping their fingers crossed. Women over 45 contract dementia and other forms of memory loss at a rate of twice that of men.

A article released today, by ScienceDaily, states that early diagnosis is getting easier. The use of Positron Emission Tomography has increased the medical professions ability to determine and detect an early loss of the brain’s glucose utilization. Glucose is what the brain uses to fuel it’s activities.

This will be extremely important in the effort to time correct intervention techniques. Alzheimer’s Disease, which can result in a form of dementia, currently effects 5 million people. That number is looking to triple by 2050.

[Science Daily]

While these drugs may be effective in treating these conditions, using these drugs to help reduce agitation in Alzheimer’s patients has proved less effective than once thought by the medical community. A black-box warning has been issued by the FDA on some anti psychotics after a slight increase in the risk of death by those people suffering from dementia.

See the story and more from this on MayoClinic.com

photo credit: Zeusandhera

Lead author of the report on the study, Dora Dias-Santagata, was quoted as saying, “This is exciting because antioxidants may prove to be a good therapeutic approach to [prevent] Alzheimer’s disease and ameliorate human neurodegeneration.”
The report provides more evidence that Alzheimer’s is caused by a build-up of plaque resulting from protein deposits in the brain, causing cell damage and death through oxidative stress.

So where do the fruit flies come in?

Researchers reported that through genetic manipulation in the brains of fruit flies, they were able to monitor the activity of anti-oxidant proteins, basically increasing and then reducing the neurodegeneration effects with administration of Vitamin E.

Through this research, scientists were able to say that oxidative stress, or the cell degeneration that causes apples to brown and iron to rust, is probably a factor in Alzheimer’s disease and brain degeneration. The potent anti-oxidant, Vitamin E, reduced the effects of oxidative stress in the brains of the fruit flies.

Researchers’ next steps will include determining whether these findings translate from fruit fly brains to human brains. To read more takes on this study, titled “Oxidative stress mediates tau-induced neurodegeneration in Drosophila,” search The Journal of Clinical Investigation, visit the following links:

Daily BioMed

Genetics.org

The University of South Florida’s Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute performed a study looking at the Medicaid program’s records. They studied individuals that were over the age of 60 that suffered from dementia. Some where taking the drug already (a drug called ChE-Is) and others were not. It found that those patients that were taking the drug already tended to be older and there were more women then men doing so. After the study was completed, they found that the average patient remained out of nursing homes for about three months longer than those patients that did not take the medication.

It further considers the costs. It seems that the cost of therapy for a patient taking ChE-Is is less than that of placing them in a nursing home and footing that bill. Of course, from a personal standpoint, individuals will want to remain at home as long as possible because of the quality of life benefits they receive.

In either case, the important consideration is that this medication can offer an increased time period of being able to function outside the nursing home and without constant care. Not only is that a more affordable option, but this medication may be a way of delaying the inevitable.

To read more, visit http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=53153&nfid=rssfeeds

Specifically, the antiphsychotic medication risperidone has found its way into the spotlight. Risperidone is marketed for use with patients suffering from schizophrenia and bi-polar disorders, as well as irritability in autistic children. Many doctors also use it, off-label, to treat other psychiatric disorders like depression and dementia.

HHS’ Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has put out a new report saying that this might not be a good idea, as there is no evidence that risperidone is effectively treating the other diseases it is being used for, and the health risks might outweigh any potential benefits. HHS is also calling for urgent research into new, disease-specific treatment alternatives for patients displaying severe agitation with dementia.

In the article, AHRQ Director Carolyn M. Clancy, M.D., said “This report emphasizes the importance of understanding the risks and benefits of different medicines,” and called for the use of caution when prescribing medicines like risperadone to dementia patients.

Many doctors believe that risperadone helps patients suffering from obsessive-compulsive disorder, depression, and sleep problems associated with some forms of dementia, but researchers don’t believe this treatment to be effective. Risperadone can increase the patient’s chance of have a stroke, experiencing tremors, and gaining significant weight, among others, and without further study, benefits just don’t seem to outweigh the risks.

To read the full report, go to http://www.effectivehealthcare.ahrq.gov.