Wednesday, January 30, 2019

Can the Alzheimer's gene be neutralized

Caregivers, and healthcare professionals,here is some great information

Here is a great dementia resource for caregivers and healthcare professionals,

Follow alzheimersideas on twitter

The Dementia Caregiver's Little Book of Hope [Kindle Edition]

Your residents will love the Amazon Kindle Fire

Here is information on being the best caregiver you can be

Here is a way for nurses administrators, social workers and other health care  professionals to get an easyceu or two


:
Apoe4 genes increase Alzheimer's risk by 10 times. UT Southwestern researchers succeeded in neutralizing important gene effects. The breakthrough opens doors to developing a pill to lower risk in 50% to 80% of gene carriers. 




DALLAS – UT Southwestern researchers have succeeded in neutralizing what they believe is a primary factor in late-onset Alzheimer’s disease, opening the door to development of a drug that could be administered before age 40, and taken for life, to potentially lower risk of the disease in 50 to 80 percent of at-risk adults


Apolipoprotein E (ApoE) is a protein that carries fatty substances called lipids and cholesterol around the brain and plays an important role in repair mechanisms. There are three major forms of ApoE (i.e., ApoE2, ApoE3, and ApoE4); individuals who carry ApoE4 are up to 10 times more likely to develop Alzheimer’s than those with ApoE2 and ApoE3 forms. ApoE4 promotes accumulation of the b-amyloid protein that causes the characteristic plaques seen in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients.

Prevent Alzheimer's from Manifesting

UT Southwestern molecular biologist and Alzheimer’s expert Dr. Joachim Herz, lead author of the study, which was published in the November issue of eLife, said the goal of his team is to prevent the disease from ever manifesting. Late-onset Alzheimer’s generally is diagnosed about age 65 and is the most common cause of dementia in the elderly. “If we can negate the ApoE4 process early, we may be able to prevent late-onset Alzheimer’s altogether for many people so that they will never get sick,” Dr. Herz said. 

ApoE4 has been shown to suppress and trap synaptic receptors within intracellular vesicles. However, how the ApoE4 gets trapped has remained a mystery until now. 

According to Dr. Herz, ApoE4 is the root cause of a “traffic jam” inside the cells that take up ApoE4 and this is associated with reduced recycling of intracellular endosomal transport vesicles. UTSW researchers found that lowering the pH of these endosomes, i.e., by making them more acidic, cleared the traffic jam: The scientists were able to completely reverse the ApoE4-induced recycling block in mice through pharmacological and genetic inhibition of the NHE6 protein, which acts to make the endosomal vesicles less acidic.

Clearing the Brain's "Traffic Jam"

These findings suggest a novel potential therapeutic approach for the prevention of late-onset Alzheimer’s disease, Dr. Herz said. The vesicle traffic jam due to the selective loss of solubility of ApoE4 likely is the earliest mechanism at which the protein negatively affects nerve cells, Dr. Herz said. 

Most Alzheimer’s research has focused on halting the formation of amyloid and tau protein aggregates once they exist in the brain and degeneration has already begun. “Our approach in this study was to stop the overall degeneration process earlier; that is, before the formation of these aggregates,” Dr. Herz said.

Inexpensive Pill

The next step is to develop tailor-made, small molecule inhibitors that can enter the brain efficiently and selectively block NHE6, he added. 

“The beauty of NHE inhibitors is that these are small molecules that can be produced inexpensively and thus made widely available, in contrast to the more elaborate antibody-based therapies that are currently being evaluated in clinical trials. A simple pill could someday neutralize the risk of late-onset Alzheimer’s disease just as readily available statins are able to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease,” Dr. Herz said. 


SOURCE:
  • UT Southwestern Medical Center
    UT Southwestern, one of the premier academic medical centers in the nation, integrates pioneering biomedical research with exceptional clinical care and education. The institution’s faculty has received six Nobel Prizes, and includes 22 members of the National Academy of Sciences, 17 members of the National Academy of Medicine, and 15 Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigators. The faculty of more than 2,700 is responsible for groundbreaking medical advances and is committed to translating science-driven research quickly to new clinical treatments. UT Southwestern physicians provide care in about 80 specialties to more than 105,000 hospitalized patients, nearly 370,000 emergency room cases, and oversee approximately 2.4 million outpatient visits a year.

Monday, January 28, 2019

More ways to stop Alzheimer's aggressive and agitated behavior

Caregivers, and healthcare professionals,here is some great information

Here is a great dementia resource for caregivers and healthcare professionals,

Follow alzheimersideas on twitter

The Dementia Caregiver's Little Book of Hope [Kindle Edition]

Your residents will love the Amazon Kindle Fire

Here is information on being the best caregiver you can be

Here is a way for nurses administrators, social workers and other health care  professionals to get an easyceu or two

ADEAR 

As Alzheimer's progresses, people may become more agitated or aggressive. Check out 9 tips for handling it.




Agitation means that a person is restless or worried. He or she doesn't seem to be able to settle down. Agitation may cause pacing, sleeplessness, or aggression, which is when a person lashes out verbally or tries to hit or hurt someone.

Causes of Agitation and Aggression

Most of the time, agitation and aggression happen for a reason. When they happen, try to find the cause. If you deal with the causes, the behavior may stop. For example, the person may have:
  • Pain, depression, or stress
  • Too little rest or sleep
  • Constipation
  • Soiled underwear or diaper
  • Sudden change in a well-known place, routine, or person
  • A feeling of loss—for example, the person may miss the freedom to drive
  • Too much noise or confusion or too many people in the room
  • Being pushed by others to do something—for example, to bathe or to remember
  • events or people—when Alzheimer's has made the activity very hard or impossible
  • Feeling lonely and not having enough contact with other people
  • Interaction of medicines
Look for early signs of agitation or aggression. If you see the signs, you can deal with the cause before problem behaviors start. Try not to ignore the problem. Doing nothing can make things worse. 

A doctor may be able to help. He or she can give the person a medical exam to find any problems that may cause agitation and aggression. Also, ask the doctor if medicine is needed to prevent or reduce agitation or aggression. 

Tips for Coping

Here are some ways you can cope with agitation or aggression:
  1. Reassure the person. Speak calmly. Listen to his or her concerns and frustrations. Try to show that you understand if the person is angry or fearful.
  2. Allow the person to keep as much control in his or her life as possible.
  3. Coping with changes is hard for someone with Alzheimer's. Try to keep a routine, such as bathing, dressing, and eating at the same time each day.
  4. Build quiet times into the day, along with activities.
  5. Keep well-loved objects and photographs around the house to help the person feel more secure.
  6. Try gentle touching, soothing music, reading, or walks.
  7. Reduce noise, clutter, or the number of people in the room.
  8. Try to distract the person with a favorite snack, object, or activity.
  9. Limit the amount of caffeine, sugar, and "junk food" the person drinks and eats.

Here are some things you can do:

  • Slow down and try to relax if you think your own worries may be affecting the person with Alzheimer's.
  • Try to find a way to take a break from caregiving.

Safety Concerns

When the person is aggessive, protect yourself and others. If you have to, stay at a safe distance from the person until the behavior stops. Also try to protect the person from hurting himself or herself. 

Saturday, January 26, 2019

Dementia-How to stop sundowning

Caregivers, and healthcare professionals,here is some great information

Here is a great dementia resource for caregivers and healthcare professionals,

Follow alzheimersideas on twitter

The Dementia Caregiver's Little Book of Hope [Kindle Edition]

Your residents will love the Amazon Kindle Fire

Here is information on being the best caregiver you can be

Here is a way for nurses administrators, social workers and other health care  professionals to get an easyceu or two


SOURCE:
The Alzheimer's Disease Education and Referral (ADEAR) Center is a service of the National Institute on Aging, part of the National Institutes of Health. The Center offers information and publications for families, caregivers, and professionals about Alzheimer's disease and age-related cognitive changes.


AGITATION & ANXIETY IN ALZHEIMER'S: 

Get these tips for coping with "sundowning". (Sundowning is restlessness or agitation in the late afternoon or early evening in Alzheimer's.) 




Late afternoon and early evening can be difficult for some people with Alzheimer's disease. They may experience sundowning (restlessness, agitation, irritability, or confusion that can begin or worsen as daylight begins to fade) often just when tired caregivers need a break. 

Sundowning can continue into the night, making it hard for people with Alzheimer's to fall asleep and stay in bed. As a result, they and their caregivers may have trouble getting enough sleep and functioning well during the day. 

Possible Causes

The causes of sundowning are not well understood. One possibility is that Alzheimer's-related brain changes can affect a person's "biological clock," leading to confused sleep-wake cycles. This may result in agitation and other sundowning behaviors. 

Other possible causes of sundowning include: 

  • being overly tired
  • unmet needs such as hunger or thirst
  • depression
  • pain
  • boredom

Coping with Sundowning

Look for signs of sundowning in the late afternoon and early evening. These signs may include increased confusion or anxiety and behaviors such as pacing, wandering, or yelling. If you can, try to find the cause of the person's behavior. 

If the person with Alzheimer's becomes agitated, listen calmly to his or her concerns and frustrations. Try to reassure the person that everything is OK and distract him or her from stressful or upsetting events. 

You can also try these tips: 

  • Reduce noise, clutter, or the number of people in the room.
  • Try to distract the person with a favorite snack, object, or activity. For example, offer a drink, suggest a simple task like folding towels, or turn on a familiar TV show (but not the news or other shows that might be upsetting).
  • Make early evening a quiet time of day. You might play soothing music, read, or go for a walk. You could also have a family member or friend call during this time.
  • Close the curtains or blinds at dusk to minimize shadows and the confusion they may cause. Turn on lights to help minimize shadows.

Preventing Sundowning

Being too tired can increase late- afternoon and early-evening restlessness. Try to avoid this situation by helping the person: 
  • go outside or at least sit by the window—exposure to bright light can help "reset the person's body clock"
  • get physical activity or exercise each day
  • get daytime rest if needed, but keep naps short and not too late in the day
  • get enough rest at night
Avoid things that seem to make sundowning worse: 
  • Do not serve coffee, cola, or other drinks with caffeine late in the day.
  • Do not serve alcoholic drinks. They may add to confusion and anxiety.
  • Do not plan too many activities during the day. A full schedule can be tiring.

If Problems Persist

If sundowning continues to be a problem, seek medical advice. A medical exam may identify the cause of sundowning, such as pain, a sleep disorder or other illness, or a medication side effect. 

If medication is prescribed to help the person relax and sleep better at night, be sure to find out about possible side effects. Some medications can increase the chances of dizziness, falls, and confusion. Doctors recommend using them only for short periods of time.


SOURCE:
The Alzheimer's Disease Education and Referral (ADEAR) Center is a service of the National Institute on Aging, part of the National Institutes of Health. The Center offers information and publications for families, caregivers, and professionals about Alzheimer's disease and age-related cognitive changes.

Thursday, January 24, 2019

Anytime gifts for those with dementia

Caregivers, and healthcare professionals,here is some great information

Here is a great dementia resource for caregivers and healthcare professionals,

Follow alzheimersideas on twitter

The Dementia Caregiver's Little Book of Hope [Kindle Edition]

Your residents will love the Amazon Kindle Fire

Here is information on being the best caregiver you can be

Here is a way for nurses administrators, social workers and other health care  professionals to get an easyceu or two


By Ann Julian

DEMENTIA GIFT IDEAS: 

Memory problems bring surprises. It's nice when that surprise is a gift.

People with Alzheimer's may lose many abilities, but they rarely lose the capacity for feeling. Feelings still matter. 
  
What once were nice presents may no longer be right; what wasn't much of a gift may have become a great one. See these suggestions.




We have all dreamed about gifts when we were small.

Gifts for people with Alzheimer's 

 Whether your Alzheimer's loved one understands the gift, or even particularly cares about it in the later stages, is not really what counts.

It's the feelings that matter. Your loved one with Alzheimer's disease can sense your feelings and responds in kind.

Gift Ideas

So really, in a very deep sense, the gift you give to someone with Alzheimer's is one that you give to yourself as well. A night out at a quiet restaurant, tickets for a happy movie, and at the earliest stages, even a durable chess set are all great gifts.
Simple games can make engaging gifts, including back-to-basics like:
Electronics are sure-fire gifts. Easy-to-read calendar clocks look good and help orient people with dementia. Therapeutic lamps and Mood-lights liven up living spaces, reduce agitation and boost mood.

printer to which you can email photos or an digital-photo-frame to which family can email smartphone photos as fast as they can take them makes sharing pictures easier than ever. These easy technologies take your pictures all day long and keep them on display. Generations stay together, while reducing distance and loneliness.

Amplified photo phones keep the conversations going. Wireless key finders also help locate phones or pets and even remote controls , while special elderly automobile cushions and Handy-Bars-for-Cars help loved ones get around.

CDs or DVDs of your loved one's favorite music are a sure-fire gift that is certain to raise spirits in almost any stage of Alzheimer's. Whether it's Oldiesclassical music, or whatever they enjoyed most when they were young, research has shown music tobe one of the best, simplest and most effective therapies for people with dementia. Movies or Broadway musicals are wonderful, even in the middle to late stages.

Easy-to-put-on clothing , snuggly stadium blankets or comforters can provide ease and a sense of well-being. Special foods, all kinds of entertaining books for seniors, as well as books rich in photos of nature or senior Adorable photos, coloring books(children and grand vistas are great!) and yes, soft dolls and stuffed toys provide a reassuring feeling, too. Remember, the later the stage, the younger the functional and emotional level.

Getting Together

Preparing for family gatherings, parties and other events can be extremely stressful and expectations often need to be adjusted to meet the demands of the new reality each stage brings.

In the early stages, a person with Alzheimer's disease can still help with preparing food (no fire, no knives), hanging baubles (try to avoid glass) and wrapping presents (avoid the scissors). It is very reassuring to have his or her favorite music on while doing this, or sing some of the "old songs" together. 

As for the main event, loud noises, sudden movements, blinking lights and chaos are all major no-no's that can confuse or even frighten someone with Alzheimer's disease, even in the early stages, so it's important to keep things light and easy. Safety and serenity are key.

Gifts for Caregivers

It's always great to receive a gift, but for caregivers the experience is even more precious, since the giving is often going the other way, all day, every day.

Think "Afternoon at the Spa"aromatherapy shower gel , Gift Certificates for a good restaurant or a sweet dessert, perhaps a soothing foot spa, a "Respite Day" or simply a "Weekend Off". (This is where friends or family become essential, so that someone else can do the caregiving for a while.) Free gifts often mean the most – a day of help with housework, a weekly cleaning assist, someone else to do the cooking – anything to lighten the load.

If your Alzheimer's loved one is in an Assisted Living Facility (ALF) or Nursing Home (NH), it is equally important to remember the staff, from a practical as well as a 'basic decency' standpoint.
Who knows better how hard it is to care for a person with Alzheimer's disease, than one who has had to do it?

It is this sense of gratitude and appreciation that is so important to thank the staff for caring, for the compassion and for having the strength to do what must be done in caring for a person with Alzheimer's disease. Also, it is the staff that cares for the residents, so giving back what they give daily to your loved one isn't just decent, it's smart. Staff people remember those who remember them.

It is impossible to give 10-plus gifts to cover all the staff members, but it is possible to bake cookies, buy a cake, a few pizzas, a box of chocolate – anything that will show your appreciation for all their hard work. It doesn't have to be expensive; it just has to be there.

Living in the Moment

People with Alzheimer's, more than anyone else know how to live in the moment. For just an hour, an afternoon or day, joining with your loved one in that moment can make for a very special day.
By Ann Julian

Tuesday, January 22, 2019

Could a robot help dementia patients live independently?

Caregivers, and healthcare professionals,here is some great information

Here is a great dementia resource for caregivers and healthcare professionals,

Follow alzheimersideas on twitter

The Dementia Caregiver's Little Book of Hope [Kindle Edition]

Your residents will love the Amazon Kindle Fire

Here is information on being the best caregiver you can be

Here is a way for nurses administrators, social workers and other health care  professionals to get an easyceu or two


Washington State University

A robot built by scientists in the US could help elderly people and those with dementia live independently at home, its creators claim.
Scientists at Washington State University (WSU) say its Robot Activity Support System (RAS) uses sensors embedded around the home to determine where a resident is, what they’re doing and when they need help with daily tasks.
When needed, a helper robot can then be deployed to find people on their own and provide video instructions on how to carry out simple tasks or lead owners to important objects such as medication or food.
Diane Cook, regents professor of electrical engineering and computer science and director of the WSU Centre for Advanced Studies in Adaptive Systems where the robot was developed, said the system could help more elderly people stay in their own homes.

“Upwards of 90% of older adults prefer to age in place as opposed to moving into a nursing home,” she said.

Sunday, January 20, 2019

Hippocampal-Sparing Alzheimer's Goes Dangerously Misdiagnosed

Caregivers, and healthcare professionals,here is some great information

Here is a great dementia resource for caregivers and healthcare professionals,

Follow alzheimersideas on twitter

The Dementia Caregiver's Little Book of Hope [Kindle Edition]

Your residents will love the Amazon Kindle Fire

Here is information on being the best caregiver you can be

Here is a way for nurses administrators, social workers and other health care  professionals to get an easyceu or two


Mayo Clinic

Hundreds of thousands of people with Hippocampal-Sparing Alzheimer's go misdiagnosed. With a correct diagnosis, existing medicines can do more. Learn about the diagnosis and treatment for this common type of dementia. 




JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Neuroscientists at Mayo Clinic in Florida have defined a subtype of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) that they say is neither well recognized nor treated appropriately.


 The variant, called hippocampal sparing AD (short for hippocampal sparing Alzheimer's disease), made up 11 percent of the 1,821 Alzheimer's-confirmed brains examined by Mayo Clinic researchers — suggesting this subtype is relatively widespread in the general population. The Alzheimer’s Association estimates that 5.2 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). With nearly half of hippocampal sparing AD patients being misdiagnosed, this could mean that well over 600,000 Americans make up this AD variant, researchers say.

Unique Symptoms

In an oral presentation at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology in Philadelphia, scientists say hippocampal sparing AD often produces symptoms that are substantially different from the most commonly known form of AD, which affects the hippocampus, the center of memory.

The patients, mostly male, are afflicted at a much younger age, and their symptoms can be bizarre — behavioral problems such as frequent and sometimes profane angry outbursts, feelings that their limbs do not belong to them and are controlled by an “alien” unidentifiable force, or visual disturbances in the absence of eye problems, researchers say.

They also decline at a much faster rate than do patients with the most common form of AD.

“Many of these patients, however, have memories that are near normal, so clinicians often misdiagnose them with a variety of conditions that do not match the underlying neuropathology,” says the study’s lead author, Melissa Murray, Ph.D., an assistant professor of neuroscience at Mayo Clinic in Florida.

Misdiagnosis & Consequences

Many of these patients are misdiagnosed with frontotemporal dementia, a disorder characterized by changes in personality and social behavior, or corticobasal syndrome, characterized by movement disorders and cognitive dysfunction. Language dysfunction is also more common in hippocampal sparing AD, although patients do not have vocal or hearing deficits.

“What is tragic is that these patients are commonly misdiagnosed and we have new evidence that suggests drugs now on the market for AD could work best in these hippocampal sparing patients — possibly better than they work in the common form of the disease,” Dr. Murray says.

The researchers benefit greatly from one of the largest brain banks in the country — more than 6,500 brain donations — as well as a collaborative environment between neuroscience research and neurology at Mayo Clinic, she says.

Both hallmark proteins of AD — amyloid beta (Aβ), which forms Aβ plaques, and tau, which produces tangles — are found across all subtypes of AD, including hippocampal sparing AD. The researchers developed a mathematical algorithm to classify AD subtypes using tangle counts. “What is fascinating is that all the AD patient subtypes had the same amount of amyloid, but for some reason tau tangles were found in strategic cortical regions disproportionate to the hippocampus.”

In these patients, tau preferentially damages and eventually destroys neurons in parts of the brain involved in behavior, motor awareness and recognition, as well as use of speech and vision, Dr. Murray says.

She says she hopes this research, the second high-profile Mayo study to highlight hippocampal sparing AD, will “open the minds” of clinicians who are trying to diagnose dementia, helping them understand that loss of memory is not present in every AD patient.

“Our studies support the notion that dementia related to AD does not necessarily equate to a loss of memory, and points to the need for more research in amyloid and tau imaging biomarkers to help clinicians accurately diagnose AD — regardless of subtype,” Dr. Murray says.

About Mayo Clinic
Recognizing 150 years of serving humanity in 2014, Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit worldwide leader in medical care, research and education for people from all walks of life. For more information, visit 150years.mayoclinic.orgMayoClinic.org or newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/.

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