Guest guest Posted March 26, 2012 Report Share Posted March 26, 2012 > Lori wrote: > Is there any way for doctors to find dementia or Alzheimer's conclusively or is diagnosis still symptom based? > Due to my memory challenges and cognitive trouble, my former neurologist in Akron had me on an Alzheimer's med (it was Aircept or something like that. My pcp said it was a risky med and felt I should discontinue it, so after a couple years I did stop taking it. Lori, Some of our meds give us some fogs of the brain and yes I had tremors and was sent to elder-care doctor. He wanted to put me on Abilify that has the same bad effects, not worth going on to take it. Getting a baseline brain MRI would be beneficial as Parkinson and brain small vessel disease that causes dementia, will show plaque on the brain. Here are some of the neurological testing they do http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/alzheimers-disease/DS00161/DSECTION=tests-and-d\ iagnosis you could complete and then re do every so often to see if you are digressing or staying the same. I have been told doing Sudoko, Crossword Puzzles, Word Puzzles, help keep your memory going. Memory games you find online or hand coordination games. A friend of mine got it from mental health medication she was on for years and she has small vessel disease of the brain and she became incompetent without knowing she pees and that is part of the neurological process, she has a unbalanced gait, slurred speech, and tremors. She gets lost and cannot write addition but still does it in her head. I think having a baseline would help you so you can monitor yourself. Be sure to check you current meds and see if any of the side effects would effect your cognitive abilities, many do and I take them also. Good luck Lori and am glad you are off Aricept, don't take it until you really need it and start playing scrabble, I do Bennie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 29, 2012 Report Share Posted March 29, 2012 ---lorijkarasek@... wrote: > > Is there any way for doctors to find dementia or Alzheimers conclusively or is diagnosis still symptom based? Hi Lori - The diagnosis is still symptom based. The only definitive " test " is a brain autopsy - not really much help in diagnosing the living! Cheryl in AZ Moderator Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 29, 2012 Report Share Posted March 29, 2012 If a patient has mild cognitive impairment that points to dementia (Alzheimer's) then they do an MRI of the brain. There are certain changes in the brain that will get worse as time goes on if it's Alzheimer's. You can google Alzheimer's brain images to see examples. http://tinyurl.com/cw8n9wm My husband is getting his MRI soon and then in a year or so they will do another, as well as more of the cognitive testing that gave him the diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment. Alzheimer's can be a slower progressing or faster progressing type, but of course the end is the same. We hope for a cure soon. Jennette Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 3, 2012 Report Share Posted April 3, 2012 > Lori wrote: > Is there any way for doctors to find dementia or Alzheimers conclusively or is diagnosis still symptom based? All, THIS WHAT I FOUND. BENNIE hffp//www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071101122822.htm The scan, FDG-PET, helped six doctors from three national Alzheimer's disease centers correctly diagnose frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and Alzheimer's in almost 90 percent of cases in the study--an improvement of as much as 14 percent from usual clinical diagnostic methods. FDG stands for fluorodeoxyglucose, a short-lived radioactive form of sugar injected into people during PET scans to show activity levels in different parts of the brain. In Alzheimer's, low activity is mostly in the back part of the brain; in FTD, low activity is mostly in the front of the brain. On this page also : Is It Alzheimer's Disease or Another Dementia? Marker May Give More Accurate Diagnosis (Nov. 30, 2011) New research finds a marker used to detect plaque in the brain may help doctors make a more accurate diagnosis between two common types of dementia -- Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal lobar PET Scans May Improve Accuracy Of Dementia Diagnosis (June 15, 2009) A new study shows that the use of positron emission tomography (PET) scans may improve the accuracy of dementia diagnoses early in disease onset for more than one out of four PET Scans May Help Assess Presence Of Brain Plaques Related To Alzheimer's Disease (Aug. 11, 2008) A type of positron emission tomography scanning may be useful in a noninvasive assessment of the formation of Alzheimer's disease-related plaques in the brain, according to small study posted online PET Effectively Detects Dementia, Decade of Research Shows (Jan. 7, 2012) Scientists find that a method of positron emission tomography safely and accurately detects dementia, including the most common and devastating form among the elderly, Alzheimer's New Research Supports Upcoming Alzheimer's Disease Guidelines (Aug. 1, 2011) Two new studies provide insight into the potential of positron emission tomography (PET) to differentiate between types of dementia and to identify pharmaceuticals to slow the progress of dementia. Okay not trying to rival this but the plaques on the brain are one of the indicators and can be seen on MRI's but PET Scans have been showing this up in early 2000. Hope this helps Bennie Alzheimers Disease (Part of this article confuses me as it says plaques cannot be determined until autopsy, Doctors do use the plaques on Brain which show up in MS also and other diseases. Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia. It is a progressive, degenerative disease of the brain, affecting up to 5% of people aged 65-74, increasing to up to 50% of people aged over 85 years. **check these stats seems pretty high. The main features of AD are the amyloid plaques and tangled neuronal fibres that disrupt the normal organization and function of the brain. These initially appear in the temporal lobe of the brain, the area that is responsible for memory and language. Thus, memory problems are often the first indicator of AD. Because the presence of plaques and tangles cannot be determined until autopsy, diagnosis is made based on behavioral changes, memory tests and questionnaires and elimination of other possible causes. Therefore, diagnosis is generally given as dementia of the Alzheimers type or ˜probable Alzheimers Disease. However, QEEG technology may be able to provide a more conclusive diagnosis, particularly in the early stages which can start some 12 years before full blown dementia. In those early stages the symptoms are referred to as Primary Degenerative Dementia. There are new clinical criteria for alzheimers as of April 2011 and gave some conclusive diagnostic markers and how it is changed. I believe this is what Jennette recommended also. FAQ on New Guidelines for Alzheimer's Disease Diagnosis: Download it at the following link: www.alz.org/documents_custom/Alz_Diag_Criteria_FAQ.pdf based chiefly on a doctor's clinical judgment about the cause of a patient's symptoms, taking into account reports from the patient, family members and friends, Bennie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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