article by Pat Farnack, of WCBS radio news in NY

[Guest guest]

Good morning, all.

A friend sent me this article about Lewy Body; it is very good.

Here is the link, and I've also done a copy and paste of the article below.

http://www.buckslocalnews.com/articles/2012/08/27/opinion/doc503ba3815aaa4564634\

434.txt

I'm doing ok sometimes, and sometimes not ok. But my Mom would want me to keep

moving forward, so I put one foot in front of the other, even when I just want

to be still.

Hugs to you all from NY,

Helene

By Pat Farnack; Do I Look O.K.?

Imagine the brain not only beginning to slip into confusion, but suddenly you

hear voices or see things, people who aren't there. At night, you physically act

out your nightmares and awaken suddenly, terrified of your dreaming, the sheets

– and you – twisted and drenched in sweat. Another terrible symptom is becoming

delusional, fervently believing that people you love who are very close to you,

are conspiring to destroy you or bring you down.

Lewy Body Dementia is actually the second most common form of degenerative brain

disease behind Alzheimer's in this country, but it has a few odd extras. The

disease can affect a person's walk. They begin to shuffle. with

the Lewy Body Dementia Association told me her dad had LBD. He had been an

engineer and was able to fix anything. He was actually known for his tinkering.

They knew something was wrong when he would take something apart to repair it,

only to look helplessly at the parts laid out before him He began, suddenly, not

to have a clue about how the pieces fit back together again.

Many people have never heard of Lewy Body Dementia. Kelsey Grammer, however, has

just recorded a PSA, a public service announcement about the disease. He plays a

character in the Starz TV series " Boss, " who has LBD.

No one knows why someone gets Lewy Body. It is often misdiagnosed several times

before doctors settle on LBD. It looks like Parkinson's disease, although with

LBD, the tremors do not always appear when a person is at rest. The shaking may

be seen instead when the person is walking or moving in some way. Because of the

hallucinations, LBD can also be mistaken for various forms of mental illness. To

further complicate matters, not all LBD patients have the same symptoms. Like

Alzheimer's, a diagnostic test for Lewy Body Dementia does not yet exist.

Certain drugs do help. However, with Lewy Body, there can be violent reactions

to drugs that help Alzheimer's patients or those with other forms of dementia.

It becomes quite an experiment to find out what cocktail of medicines can help

someone with LBD find some peace.

LBD isn't necessarily a hereditary illness, as far as they know. told me

that a Lewy Body is a protein which mysteriously folds itself in the body. No

one is sure why it becomes misshapen or if it is a cause of the illness, or a

byproduct which happens to be found in someone with LBD. Just as with

Alzheimer's, however, the LBD patient does usually degenerate, although

pneumonia can be the actual cause of death.

Listen to my interview with by Googling WCBS Health and Well Being

Report and listen to Kelsey Grammer talk about it on the " Boss " site on Starz.

Pat Farnack is midday anchor at all news WCBS 880 AM in NYC and at

www.cbsnewyork.com. She lives in Bucks County.