My kinda town....

"We're building a databank of photographs and information," said John Evans, a sergeant with the Delray Beach Police.

"I had been thinking about it for a long time, that we need a database to be able to save lives," said Laura Panizza, the director of adult day-care for the Mae Volen Senior Center.

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Bob DeMarco is the editor of the Alzheimer's Reading Room and an Alzheimer's caregiver. The Alzheimer's Reading Room is the number one website on the Internet for news, advice, and insight into Alzheimer's disease. Bob has written more than 950 articles with more than 8,000 links on the Internet. Bob resides in Delray Beach, FL.

Original content Bob DeMarco, Alzheimer's Reading Room

Mi sento agitata....

When older people cannot walk except very slowly, this predicts that they are likely to become "frail" (weak and prone to diseases) and develop dementia.

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I accepted this. Nevertheless, for more than a year I was thinking about it all the time.

You might ask -- well why didn't you take her to the doctor? She went to the doctor five times during that year. Guess what her doctor said when I finally asked him about it. Good guess -- she's getting old.

I wrote about walking and balance many times on this website -- Changes in Walking and Balance Can be a Sign of Alzheimer's and Dementia.

...early detection of balance problems may lead to earlier detection of Alzheimer's disease or other forms of dementia.

Thinking about this led me to envision an advertisement for Alzheimer's Awareness.

Something that might actually catch the attention of people that are worried about their elderly loved one. People that suspect something is wrong, or going wrong. An advertisement that might have some impact, or make a difference.

Here is my television script.

Ad comes on. Black screen. The sound of my mother's feet scrapping across the concrete. That eerie sound.

The picture comes on. A shot of my mother and me walking -- I am holding her hand. We are walking very slowly.

I turn and start talking.

My name is Bob DeMarco, I am an Alzheimer's caregiver.

I put may arm around my mother's shoulder. This is my mother Dorothy, now 93 years old, she suffers from Alzheimer's disease.

Prior to her dementia diagnosis my mother started scrapping her feet on the ground. In 2002, she walked 30 blocks in New York city without a problem. In late 2003, I finally realized she couldn't walk a block. She fell and couldn't get up without assistance.

At the same time, she was still driving her car. Still doing her own shopping. Still taking herself to bingo on Wednesday night. And, still living on her own.

Finally, I had her doctor give her a physical. She was in good health. He explained the problem to me this way -- she is getting old. He told me he could order her a walker.

A year and three doctors later we learned that my mother was suffering from dementia -- probable Alzheimer's disease.

Don't make the same mistake I made. If your elderly loved one starts scraping their feet on the ground, starts walking slowly, or starts having problems with their balance -- get their memory tested. Get their memory tested by a specialist -- not your family doctor.

Early detection of Alzheimer's or dementia is imperative to maintain a good quality of life. Early detection and treatment makes a difference.

Just ask yourself this question.

If you were in an early stage of Alzheimer's would you want your family to have you tested?

Or, would you rather fall into the black hole of dementia while everyone sits around saying -- she is just getting old.

The television ad closes with an 800 number that actually goes to someone that can tell you where and how to get tested, and the sound of my mother's feet scrapping the concrete.

Who knows, maybe sell some Aricept while we are at it.

Ask the next ten people you see that are not involved in medicine or caregiving if they know which month is Alzheimer's awareness month, and when they hold national Alzheimer's screening day.

You comments are welcome.

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Bob DeMarco is the editor of the Alzheimer's Reading Room and an Alzheimer's caregiver. The Alzheimer's Reading Room is the number one website on the Internet for news, advice, and insight into Alzheimer's disease. Bob has written more than 950 articles with more than 8,000 links on the Internet. Bob resides in Delray Beach, FL.

Original content Bob DeMarco, Alzheimer's Reading Room

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• Regular exercise is linked to reduced risk of dementia, Alzheimer's disease, and declines in how well people think.
• The first signs of dementia—including Alzheimer's disease—may be physical, not mental.
• For example, when older people cannot walk except very slowly, this predicts that they are likely to become "frail" (weak and prone to diseases) and develop dementia.

At each biannual study visit, participants are observed as they walk and do many other physical and mental tasks. They are asked many questions, including whether they would allow an autopsy on their brains after they die. Thanks to willing participants, the study has gleaned its most recent discoveries, which center on how vascular (blood vessel) disease contributes to late-life dementia, including Alzheimer's disease:

• Microscopic injuries to blood vessels in the brain, called cerebral "microinfarcts," which cause "small-vessel disease of the brain," can lead to many brain problems in late life.
• These microinfarcts may be responsible for more cases of dementia than previously recognized, often combined with Alzheimer's.
• Controlling high blood pressure may lower the risk of dementia by minimizing microinfarcts.

In the next five years, the ACT team will largely focus on deeper exploration of these most recent findings. They will test whether diabetes, kidney disease, and atrial fibrillation (the most common abnormal heart rhythm) contribute to brain decline through microinfarcts or changes in larger blood vessels—and whether physical activity counters them.

Ongoing trials also include interventions to improve sleep as well as thinking and physical well-being.

Like the celebrated Framingham Heart Study, ACT is a longitudinal cohort study of people leading their lives in a community. That means it follows a large group of people at regular intervals over a long time to see what happens to them.

As with Framingham, insights from the study group have helped other people to stay healthier. ACT the only 'population-based' study involving autopsy and study of diseases of nervous system tissue (neuropathology).

The ACT study has learned many lessons to date, published in nearly 250 scientific articles. The study is known best for findings about the benefits of physical activity:

• Regular exercise is linked to reduced risk of dementia, Alzheimer's disease, and declines in how well people think.
• The first signs of dementia—including Alzheimer's disease—may be physical, not mental.
• For example, when older people cannot walk except very slowly, this predicts that they are likely to become "frail" (weak and prone to diseases) and develop dementia.

Other study findings have led to changes in how people with dementia are cared for and helped ease the burdens these illnesses can cause. Here are some examples:

• Certain drugs, especially sedatives, can cause confusion and falling.
• Statin drugs, used to treat high cholesterol, may be linked to fewer of the microscopic brain changes that are typical of Alzheimer's disease.
• Anti-oxidant supplements (vitamins A and C) and some common pain relievers (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, or NSAIDs) seem not to prevent brain decline.
• But a related study of Japanese-American seniors in King County linked regularly drinking fruit and vegetable juices—both rich sources of natural anti-oxidants—to reduced risk of Alzheimer's disease.
• Avoiding environmental toxins throughout life can help delay the brain's decline.
• Wearing shoes—not just socks, stockings, or slippery slippers—can help prevent falling, even at home.
• Wandering, agitation, and disturbed sleep complicate the lives of patients with Alzheimer's and their families.

The ACT study enrolls about 240 new people each year, keeping the study group size steady at about 2,000 people. People are invited to participate after being randomly selected from a census of all Group Health members who are age 65, enrolled in central King County medical centers, and without dementia.

The participants have been patients at Group Health for an average of at least 30 years before joining the study. "That gives us a wealth of medical, drug, and lifestyle information to help answer our research questions," Dr. Larson said. "ACT is the world's only study that can link outcomes for dementia, frailty, and aging to data that captures each participant's whole health history, including medical, lab, and pharmacy records."

Study of aging in Group Health patients renewed with $12 million grant
________________
Group Health Research Institute

Founded in 1947, Group Health Cooperative is a Seattle-based, consumer-governed, nonprofit health care system. Group Health Research Institute (www.grouphealthresearch.org) changed its name from Group Health Center for Health Studies on September 8, 2009. Since 1983, the Institute has conducted nonproprietary public-interest research on preventing, diagnosing, and treating major health problems. Government and private research grants provide its main funding.


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Bob DeMarco is the editor of the Alzheimer's Reading Room and an Alzheimer's caregiver. The Alzheimer's Reading Room is the number one website on the Internet for news, advice, and insight into Alzheimer's disease. Bob has written more than 950 articles with more than 8,000 links on the Internet. Bob resides in Delray Beach, FL.

Original content Bob DeMarco, Alzheimer's Reading Room

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MDVN Starts New Alzheimer’s Trials

Earlier this month, Medivation, Inc. (MDVN - Analyst Report) and Pfizer, Inc. (PFE - Analyst Report) initiated two phase III studies, CONTACT and CONSTELLATION, with Dimebon in patients with moderate-to-severe Alzheimer's disease (AD). Dimebon is being developed in collaboration with Pfizer for the treatment of Alzheimer’s and Huntington diseases.

The CONTACT study will assess the potential benefits of adding Dimebon to ongoing treatment with Pfizer’s Aricept on neuropsychiatric symptoms and activities of daily living. Meanwhile, the CONSTELLATION study will evaluate the effects of adding Dimebon to Forest Lab’s (FRX - Analyst Report) Namenda, another standard of care, on cognition, memory and activities of daily living.

Preclinical studies indicate that Dimebon has the potential to protect brain cells from damage and enhance brain cell survival, by stabilizing and improving mitochondrial function. Dimebon’s mechanism is distinct from currently available Alzheimer’s medications.

Dimebon is currently in seven studies which are evaluating the safety and efficacy of the candidate across all stages of Alzheimer's disease, both as monotherapy as well as in combination with currently available Alzheimer's treatments, and in Huntington disease.

Dimebon’s unique mechanism of action and efficacy seen in clinical trials could make it a significant player in the worldwide Alzheimer’s market, which represents huge commercial potential. It is estimated that the market is currently worth about $5 billion.

Dimebon has successfully completed the first of two pivotal trials required to gain marketing approval in the U.S. for mild-to-moderate Alzheimer’s disease. A second confirmatory phase III study, CONNECTION, is currently ongoing. We expect to see top-line results from this study in the first half of 2010. Positive results should allow Medivation to go ahead with the filing of the new drug application (NDA) for the Alzheimer’s indication in 2011.

We currently have a Neutral recommendation on Medivation.

All of the above investment information is from Zacks investment research. It does not represent any opinion on our part.

To read more about Medivation and Dimebon -- go here.

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Original content Bob DeMarco, Alzheimer's Reading Room

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The Technorati Blog]]> http://caringforhawaiiselders.honadvblogs.com/2009/11/08/adrc-hawaii-part-1/ http://caringforhawaiiselders.honadvblogs.com/2009/11/08/adrc-hawaii-part-1/ http://feedproxy.google.com/%7Er/typepad/caregiving/%7E3/jj2sj8AyEhs/memory-tests-for-alzheimers-scare-the-caregiver.html http://feedproxy.google.com/%7Er/typepad/caregiving/%7E3/jj2sj8AyEhs/memory-tests-for-alzheimers-scare-the-caregiver.html http://www.knowitalz.com/community/caregiver/straight-a-s.html http://www.knowitalz.com/community/caregiver/straight-a-s.html http://feedproxy.google.com/%7Er/typepad/caregiving/%7E3/lxdIToozZ3A/losing-touch-a-sign-of-alzheimers.html http://feedproxy.google.com/%7Er/typepad/caregiving/%7E3/lxdIToozZ3A/losing-touch-a-sign-of-alzheimers.html http://feedproxy.google.com/%7Er/TheTangledNeuron/%7E3/wQDAqFaktdY/last-month-a-group-of-people-with-memory-loss-their-families-and-doctors-successfully-petitioned-the-french-alzheimers-a.html http://feedproxy.google.com/%7Er/TheTangledNeuron/%7E3/wQDAqFaktdY/last-month-a-group-of-people-with-memory-loss-their-families-and-doctors-successfully-petitioned-the-french-alzheimers-a.html ]]> http://www.knowitalz.com/community/caregiver/sherman-hatfield-williams.html http://www.knowitalz.com/community/caregiver/sherman-hatfield-williams.html http://www.medicinenet.com/guide.asp?s=rss&a=107209&k=Alzheimer%27s_General http://www.medicinenet.com/guide.asp?s=rss&a=107209&k=Alzheimer%27s_General Category: Health News
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Last Editorial Review: 11/3/2009]]> http://950milesaway.blogspot.com/2009/10/mourning.html http://950milesaway.blogspot.com/2009/10/mourning.html
She has been replaced by a woman who says bigoted outrageous things, gets angry if she's contradicted, and often acts like a spoiled child.

My visit did not go well.

I was not prepared for the changes that have occurred in my mom since I last visited in December. I was impatient and angry with her. I could not label it "the illness" when she behaved badly but instead reacted as if she were unimpaired. I tried to reason with her. I tried to shame her into acting better. I got angry with her. And it's not her fault.

Yesterday I had tea with a friend. I related to her my various shortcomings in dealing with my mom. She asked me if perhaps I was sublimating my sadness into anger. The tears welled in my eyes, and I knew she was right.