DISPARITIES SPOTLIGHT

A March 21, 2017 NBC News article reported on the toll Alzheimer’s takes on African-American families, as they have the highest rates of AD of any racial or ethnic group, and are two times as likely to develop late onset. A study from researchers at the Mayo Clinic, published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, looks at genetics of African Americans who develop the disease after age 65. Currently there is no cure or disease modifying therapies for Alzheimer’s, and one of the challenges is a lack of research on African-Americans. “Despite being the largest published study of this type in this population to our knowledge, this study is still much smaller than similar ones being conducted in Caucasians,” said Dr. Nilufer Ertekin-Taner, M.D., Ph.D., Neurogeneticist and Neurologist, Mayo Clinic.

RESEARCH, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

A March 22, 2017 Medical News Today article highlighted a new study looking at the behavior of fatty acid metabolites in the brain tissue of healthy seniors and how it affects their cognitive abilities. Participants did cognitive assessments in the year prior to their deaths, and their brain tissue was tested for neuropathologies post mortem. The study, published in the journal PLOS Medicine, revealed that six unsaturated fatty acids are correlated with AD. Larger studies are needed to replicate and confirm the findings.

POLITICAL INSIGHTS

A March 21, 2017 Dover Post article printed a statement from Sen. Tom Carper in response to the President’s proposed 2018 budget. Carper opens with very strong words by reminding us that a budget is a reflection of our values as a nation, and that calling it “draconian” is an understatement. He says further that it is “dead on arrival,” and is “irresponsible” and a “political statement” that will put the health and safety of Americans at risk. "He's going to slash a fifth of the budget for the National Institutes of Health, undermining life-changing research on everything from Alzheimer's to cancer to autism." Carper concludes that the President’s budget shows “disregard for the real concerns of families across this country."

REGIONAL PERSPECTIVES

A March 21, 2017 San Diego Union-Tribune segment and article highlighted a pilot program in San Diego County aimed at preventing violence and other dementia-related crises, that is part of the their ongoing Alzheimer’s Project, a comprehensive effort launched in 2014. The program is in affiliation with Sharp Grossmont Hospital and the Grossmont Healthcare District in East County, and will look for more effective ways to divert people with memory loss from the ER and law-enforcement systems, and aims to eliminate the need for 911 calls arising from unintentional violence committed by people with memory loss (to themselves or others). An estimated 64,000 local residents are living with Alzheimer’s disease, and AD and other forms of dementia are involved in about 32,000 emergency-room visits. “What you’re seeing now is is mostly disjointed efforts with sometimes not great resources. By and large, it’s the Wild West out there. Individual providers are a little overwhelmed trying to keep on top of these kinds of situations,” according to Dr. Jeffrey Jackson, Professor, Medical College of Wisconsin.