Alzheimer’s early detection now possible with new test

Scientists have found a way to detect Alzheimer’s 20 years before symptoms start

14:46 07 November 2012

As they say, prevention is better than cure. After years of studying teenagers with a genetic predisposition for Alzheimer’s, scientists have developed a test that may be able to detect the first signs of the condition 20 years before the symptoms develop.

According to a new study, people who are more likely to be affected by Alzheimer’s usually have substances in the fluid surrounding their spinal column, and there are changes in their brain. This happens decades before the symptoms develop, as reported by the BBC.

Just like any other disease or health condition, early detection is the key to halt the progression of the condition. Scientists are hoping that the new tests can be developed and be made available to the general population.

 

Lead author Prof Eric Reiman said: “These findings suggest that brain changes begin many years before the clinical onset of Alzheimer’s disease, and even before the onset of amyloid plaque deposition.

 

“They raise new questions about the earliest brain changes involved in the predisposition to Alzheimer’s and the extent to which they could be targeted by future prevention therapies.”

 

The findings were published in the journal Lancet Neurology.