People want Alzheimer’s answers – here’s what you need to know about tests

If you could get answers now, would you like to know if you could develop symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease?

The majority of Americans have, according to a new report by the Alzheimer’s association. The group questioned more than 1,700 American adults aged 45 and over, and found that 79% would like to know if they have Alzheimer’s disease before developing symptoms disruptive of life – or symptoms.

“People clearly want to be able to do something,” said Elizabeth Edgerly, PHD, principal director of community programs and services at the Alzheimer association. This is a change in relation to the past, when many people were afraid of the disease and diagnosticly diagnosed Health.

But even if four out of five Americans are curious to know if they could have the disease, understanding it is not so simple. Are small touches in memory a sign of aging or Alzheimer’s disease? And what is the right time to talk to your doctor to be tested?

Here is what the experts had to say about how to determine if you develop Alzheimer’s disease – and when it is worth digging more deeply with the tests to know with certainty.

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia, affecting around 6 million Americans. It is a progressive brain disease, which means that its symptoms – including the difficulty in remembering, reasoning and thinking – are worse over time.

A person with Alzheimer’s disease generally began to feel symptoms in the mid -1960s, according to the National Institute of Aging, although signs can emerge earlier. Memory loss is often the first opinion, but there are also other warning signs – to regularly search for words, to get lost or to confuse more easily, difficult to pass from one task to another, mood changes, etc.

So, if you find yourself walking for why you have entered a room or sometimes forget the name of someone, is it a sign that something is wrong, and you should be tested? Not necessarily.

All minor memory waste is not a sign of Alzheimer’s, underlined in a adhering way. “We all have changes with normal aging-more and more things that are perhaps more discomfort than anything else,” she said.

To determine if you are experiencing the first signs of Alzheimer, consider to what extent the problems of memory and cognition affect your daily life, said in a shame. Oblivre minor is probably a harmless problem.

However, paying bills several times because you don’t remember if you’ve already done so, or find it hard to communicate because you regularly forget big pieces of previous conversations, maybe signs of a more important problem.

Another question to consider: when you forget something, does the information come back to you ultimately?

“For most people in the normal aging process, if you think about it strong enough, you will determine where you put your keys or why you have entered this room,” said Jared Brosch, MD, associate professor of clinical neurology at Indiana University School of Medicine.

If you don’t remember regularly, it doesn’t matter how much you try, it can be a red flag.

Someone who presents signs of dementia may have progressed too far to recognize them, said Brosch Health. It is often relatives of a patient who collect these warning panels and take them to a doctor.

If you show signs of cognitive decline, the first step is generally a visit to a primary care doctor, Maureen O’Connor, Psyd, deputy professor of neurology at the University of Boston Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, says Health. Describe any worrying change frankly, offering specific examples if possible, she suggested.

A primary care provider can then make preliminary cognitive screening and, if necessary, provide references to specialists who can perform more in-depth diagnostic assessments that test your memory, your language, your visual-spatial skills, etc., explained O’Connor.

If Alzheimer’s disease seems likely, doctors can use additional diagnostic methods such as brain analyzes or cerebrospinal fluid tests to search for abnormal changes in the brain that indicate the disease.

But these tests are not necessarily easy to respond – there is a high demand for easy and non -invasive alternatives. In the new report of the Alzheimer’s association, for example, more than 90% of respondents said they would like to pass a simple diagnostic test, such as a blood test, if you were available.

Researchers have already developed blood tests that measure protein levels associated with Alzheimer’s, and research suggests that they can be very precise. For the moment, these blood tests are mainly used for research or in specialized clinics, said adorable way, but consumers can directly buy some of these tests.

Above all, none of these blood tests has yet obtained the total approval of American regulators, and they are generally not recommended for people who are simply curious about their cognitive health.

Because Alzheimer is a progressive disease “which starts somewhere about 20 to 25 years before a person has their first symptom”, it is possible to test the biological signs of the disease long before cognitive problems arise, said Brosch.

If people should Get “presymptomatic” tests while they are still healthy, however, is a controversial question.

There are potential advantages to discover early, said Brosch. A diagnosis could motivate someone to plan the future or adopt lifestyle shown to help prevent or delay the appearance of dementia. This could include eating well, stopping tobacco, exercising and keeping the brain lively through demanding cognitive activities, social interactions and new experiences.

But, noted O’Connor, these are universally healthy habits that anyone can and should adopt, no time and potentially expensive tests required.

In addition, there are new drugs on the market to help slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease, which are approved by the FDA for patients with light Alzheimer or at an early stage. Although this highlights the importance of early detection, people with presymptomatic Alzheimer’s cannot take these drugs, so there are few things that someone can do if they are diagnosed before the symptoms appear.

Receiving a diagnosis of an Alzheimer’s disease can also be deeply confusing and overwhelming, even to upset someone’s life. Doctors hesitate to provide this news if they cannot also provide treatment.

“Are we just going to worry about this person’s life, because we have nothing to do on this?” Said Brosch.

The situation could change in the future. Studies in progress analyze if the treatment administered during the presymptomatic phase can prevent, delay or reduce the symptoms of Alzheimer. Depending on how these studies take place, one day there may be therapies available for people diagnosed with Alzheimer before having disruptive symptoms.

For the moment, however, groups like the Alzheimer’s association – as well as many independent experts – do not recommend intensive tests for people without symptoms. A simple cognitive screening test during your annual physique is probably harmless, said O’Connor, but it does not suggest going further than that.

“There may be a future where, just as we screen for other things when we do blood,” it is logical to test proactively to Alzheimer, said O’Connor. “But I don’t quite think we’re still there.”