US scientists have found brain scans measuring the thickness of certain regions of the brain may help identify people who have a higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.
 
Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital, in Boston, and the University of Pennsylvania, in Philadelphia, studied MRI scans from 159 cognitively normal older people. The scientists looked at measurements of the brain’s cortex in nine regions that, in earlier studies, have been shown to shrink in Alzheimer’s disease. They theorised that those with a thinner than average cortex would have a higher risk of Alzheimer’s, and those with a thicker than average cortex would have lower risk.
 
The scientists analysed cognitive test results for 125 participants, and found that 21% of those with a thinner cortex showed signs of cognitive decline over three years. In comparison, just 7% of those with a cortex of average thickness showed decline, and among participants with a thicker cortex, none showed a decline.
 
The researchers also looked at cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples taken from 84 of the participants after three years, checking for levels of amyloid – a hallmark protein found in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients. They found 60% of those with a thinner cortex had abnormal amyloid levels in their CSF, similar to those seen in Alzheimer’s, compared to 36% of those with a cortex of average thickness and 19% of those with a thicker cortex.
 
The findings, which are published online today (21 December) in the journal Neurology, add to previous evidence suggesting that brain shrinkage may start years before the symptoms of Alzheimer’s, such as memory loss, begin to show. The researchers believe that MRI scans measuring cortical thickness may be useful for helping to identify people at greater risk of developing the disease. However, they stress that studies with a longer follow-up period are now needed.
 
Dr Simon Ridley, Head of Research at Alzheimer’s Research UK, the UK’s leading dementia research charity, said:
“The ability to predict who will develop Alzheimer’s disease is a key target for dementia research, as it would allow new treatments to be trialled early, when they are more likely to be effective. These findings add weight to existing evidence that Alzheimer’s begins long before symptoms appear, although it’s important to note that the study did not assess who went on to develop the disease. This research provides a potential new avenue to follow, but we need to see larger and longer-term studies before we can know whether this type of brain scan could accurately predict Alzheimer’s.
 
“There are currently 820,000 people in the UK affected by dementia, yet research into the condition is desperately underfunded compared to other serious diseases. We urgently need to invest in research if we are to find new ways to diagnose, treat and prevent dementia.”

 

Campaigns & Issues

Lobby for libraries

NPCThe NPC officers have given their backing to a lobby being organised by UNISON, the National Federation of Women’s Institutes (NFWI), Voices for the Library, The Library Campaign, Campaign for the Book and the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP) which will call on politicians to protect vital library services. 

Read More

News

WRVS response to Health Committee report on social care

WRVS.jpg

WRVS calls for a decisive leap towards joining up health and social care responding to the Health Select Committee inquiry report.

David McCullough, Chief Executive of WRVS said:  “Delivering 21st-century health services will hinge on us switching considerable resources into keeping older people in their own homes and  breaking the cycle of isolation that faces many people from their seventies onwards.

Read More

Competitions & Fun

Win a signed copy of Citizen James on DVD

citizen james

CARRY ON’S inimitable Sid James is Citizen James in the hilarious 1960s BBC comedy, which finally comes to DVD for the first time. This long-lost classic comedy series makes its DVD debut, featuring the only known surviving episodes, the complete series one, and two episodes each from series two and three. They will be released as a two-disc set on 6 February 2012 courtesy of Acorn Media.

In series one written by Alan Simpson and Ray Galton (Hancock, Steptoe & Son), Sid (Sid James) is a hard-working layabout, gambler and con-artist, hanging out on the streets of Soho with his sidekick Bill (Bill Kerr), in Charlie’s Nosh Bar and occasionally paying a visit to his long-suffering fiancée Liz (Liz Fraser), to borrow money to pay off his gambling debts and cons gone wrong.

Read More

Advertorial

February is travel love month with Silver Travel Advisor

Silver Travel_Advisor_LogoWIN £1,000 CRUISE VOUCHERS WITH VIKING RIVER CRUISES AND MANY OTHER PRIZES

Silver Travel Advisor is a friendly website packed with advice, tips, information and honest reviews written by and for silver travellers (aged over 50). A team of advisors are on hand to answer queries (for free), and you can share your own experiences too. 

February is Travel Love month at Silver Travel Advisor, and there is a whole range of prizes to be found including the star prize:

Viking River Cruises – win £1,000 cruise vouchers

Read More

Health & Wellbeing

Scrap the government's health bill, say BMJ readers

bmj logoMore than 90% of British Medical Journal readers responding to a poll published today think the government's health reforms should be scrapped.

The poll asked: "Should the Health and Social Care Bill for England now be withdrawn?"

Read More

Property & Finance

Did you miss the Self Assessment deadline?

hmrc logoIf you have missed the deadline for submitting a Self Assessment (SA) tax return and you can show that you should not have been in the SA regime in the first place, then you may be able to avoid any penalties.

Read More

Lifestyle

Paula's Wines of the Week starting 6 February 2012

Paula Goddard

If you really like a certain wine, rather than buying it in single cork-stoppered bottles why not get larger four bottle-sized amounts available in boxes? But if stepping along to the supermarket seems like too much of a chilly effort then try the online winebox retailer InspiredWine.co.uk because they’re offering free delivery during February.

There are advantages to buying wine in a winebox. As the wine is dispensed through a plastic tap all the annoyance of the cork is removed: no more tainted 'corked' wine (this spoils at least one in ten traditionally bottled wines due to improperly sterilised corks) and no more chasing around bits of broken cork that always sink when the index finger sent in to oik them out gets anywhere near them.

Read More

Travel & Leisure

£15m boost for sustainable travel

Sustrans imageTransport Minister Norman Baker today announced £15m of new funding for sustainable travel projects across the country that will promote economic growth and cut carbon.

The investment is in addition to the £560m Local Sustainable Transport Fund announced in January 2011. This additional funding, heavily geared towards cycling, will support jobs, enhance access to employment and encourage greater use of more environmentally friendly transport.

Read More

More informative and entertaining than ever! 

 
 

Copyright © 2011-12 Mature Times. All rights reserved CSS Valid XHTML Valid Site built for Mature Times by The Third Stage