USA2 SPOTLIGHT

An October 19, 2018 UsAgainstAlzheimer’s press release announced two new projects to advance recommendations of the first-ever National Strategy for Recruitment and Participation in Alzheimer’s Disease Clinical Research. The strategy was released at last week’s NAPA Council meeting. The two new projects, a National Alzheimer’s Index and Data Dashboard, and a clinical trials awareness toolkit, will help fulfill the goals of the national strategy. According to UsA2 Chairman George Vradenburg, “The national strategy is a first, but important, step on the path to faster, more efficient, higher quality clinical trials, which are necessary to accelerate Alzheimer’s treatments and cures.” Also covered by CISION PR Newswire.

MUST READS

An October 19, 2018 Boston Globe article looked at the role of inflammation in Alzheimer’s disease. Boston University School of Medicine researchers found that people who have the ApoE4 gene, coupled with chronic inflammation, have a dramatically increased risk of AD. According to Cynthia Lemere of Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, “These results provide support for the role of peripheral, chronic inflammation in AD, and suggest that early treatment with anti-inflammatory therapies may be helpful in staving off AD, at least in ApoE4 carriers.” Also covered by Science Daily and Psych Central.   

MUST LISTEN

(ICYMI) An October 10, 2018 NPR Morning Edition radio segment and articleexplored the link between a visit to the ICU and resulting symptoms of dementia caused by delirium. “Post-ICU syndrome” is a cluster of cognitive symptoms that can include anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and delirium. It affects 30 to 50 percent of patients who go to the ICU and can lead to dementia. According to the article, “For many, the damage to mental processing is akin to what's seen with a traumatic brain injury, in a condition called mild cognitive impairment — or even with Alzheimer's disease.”

LIFESTYLE

An October 15, 2018 Being Patient Brain Talks spoke with Dr. James Galvin from Florida Atlantic University College of Medicine about effects on the brain of being “skinny fat,” slender without muscle tone (sarcopenia), or gaining fat and losing muscle. According to Galvin, “The people who are purely obese but had normal muscle mass were just a little bit different than the healthy controls, but not by very much. The people who had sarcopenia had more problems, but the people who had both sarcopenia and obesity had a greatly increased risk of having difficulties with various cognitive functions, particularly problem solving executive kind of functions.”

ALZ TECH

(ICYMI) A September 30, 2018 Gadgette article announced the release of the Stall Catchers mobile app. The Stall Catchers crowdsourced online game helps to identify clogged blood vessels in the brain, which is linked to Alzheimer’s disease. Players are now using a new dataset, examining a molecular pathway that might be a good drug treatment target.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

A September 21, 2018 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Ground Rounds post, “Promoting Well-Being and Independence in Older Adults,” looked at the role that public health can play in promoting healthy, successful aging and in reducing aging-associated burdens. Active engagement in prevention and wellness can help prevent or delay the onset of cognitive decline. According to the post, “Care planning for adults with dementia can facilitate the coordination of care and improve its quality through better management of comorbid conditions. Better disease and medication management can result in fewer hospitalizations and emergency department visits.”