2024-07-26 08:45:27
Scientists have identified and explained a type of memory loss in older people that has been confused with Alzheimer’s disease because it has similar symptoms, but is different, a disease that can be better treated.
Scientists from the Mayo Clinic, in the United States conducted the study.
The team has developed new criteria for memory loss syndrome in older people, which mainly affects the limbic system of the brain. Unlike Alzheimer’s disease, with which it can be confused, Limbic Predominant Amnestic Neurodegenerative Syndrome, or LANS, progresses more slowly, has a better prognosis, and is clearly defined, all of which will help to provide health care better for these patients.
Before the researchers developed the clinical criteria, published in the academic journal Brain Communications, the disease features could only be confirmed by examining brain tissue after a person’s death. The proposed criteria provide a set of guidelines for psychologists and other professionals to differentiate the condition in patients living with symptoms, providing a more accurate diagnosis and possible treatments. They looked at factors such as age, the severity of memory impairment, what shows up on brain scans, and biomarkers that indicate deposits of specific proteins in the brain.
The criteria were developed and validated using data from more than 200 participants in databases from the Mayo Clinic Disease Research Center, the Mayo Clinic Geriatrics Study, and Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging.
With new clinical features, it will be easier to reduce symptoms and provide more personalized treatments for patients suffering from this type of illness, as opposed to Alzheimer’s disease, according to Dr. David T. Jones, a neurologist. physician at the Mayo Clinic and an author of the study.
The artistic activity of neurons controls a memory about a place. (Photo: Wonders/NCYT)
“In our clinical work, we see patients whose memory symptoms appear to correspond to Alzheimer’s disease, but when we look closely at their brain images or physical symptoms, it is clear that they do not have Alzheimer’s. To date, there is no specific medical diagnosis; but now we can give patients some answers. “This research creates the right guidelines that other medical professionals can use to treat their patients. This system has important implications for treatment decisions, including amyloid-lowering drugs, new clinical trials, and prognostication, genetics and other patient factors.”
Decades of work to understand and distinguish different types of dementia is underway, emphasized Nick Corriveau-Lecavalier, co-author of the study. These findings build on the ongoing efforts of scientists to uncover neurological conditions that often have the same symptoms or may occur simultaneously, but may have very different treatments and prognoses. .
“Historically, it has been typical to see someone in their 80s with memory problems and think that the person may have Alzheimer’s disease. Many people still think this way these days,” explained Corriveau-Lecavalier. “With this study, we describe a different syndrome that occurs later in life. Often, the symptoms are limited to memory and do not progress or affect other cognitive areas, so the prognosis is good than Alzheimer’s disease”.
With no signs of Alzheimer’s disease, the researchers looked into a possible culprit: the accumulation of a protein called TDP-43 in the limbic system that scientists have found in the brain itself from young adults. The researchers classified the accumulation of these protein deposits as TDP-43-related limbic age-related encephalopathy, or LATE. These protein deposits may be associated with the newly described memory loss syndrome, but there are other possible causes and more research is needed, the study authors noted.
The study published in the academic journal Brain Communications is titled “Clinical criteria for dominant amnestic neurodegenerative syndrome.” (Source: Mayo Clinic)
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