Smell Test May Predict Alzheimer's - U.S. Study
Posted on 2004-12-14 07:34:27 in
Alzheimer's Disease |
A simple scratch and sniff test may help doctors identify patients with Alzheimer's disease, researchers said on Monday.
They found that patients with early Alzheimer's disease may be unable to smell certain odors, including strawberry, smoke, soap and cloves.
"Early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease is critical for patients and their families to receive the most beneficial treatment and medications," said Dr. Davangere Devanand, a professor of psychiatry and neurology at New York's Columbia University, who led the study.
"While currently there is no cure for the disease, early diagnosis and treatment can help patients and their families to better plan their lives."
Alzheimer's, which affects an estimated 4.5 million Americans, is an incurable and always fatal brain disease.
It starts out with mild memory loss but progresses to damage the brain severely, causing confusion and eventually leaves the patient unable to care for himself or herself.
There are some drugs that may help slow the progression of the early disease, and researchers are working on vaccines and new drugs to treat Alzheimer's.
While some simple tests such as a challenge to draw a clock face can point to Alzheimer's, in the early stages it is often difficult to tell if a patient has Alzheimer's or some other form of memory loss that may or may not lead to dementia.
For the study Devanand and colleagues studied 150 patients with minimal to mild cognitive impairment. They compared them to 63 healthy elderly people and ran tests on them every 6 months.
The inability to identify 10 specific odors clearly predicted who would go on to develop Alzheimer's, they told a meeting of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology.
These smells included strawberry, smoke, soap, menthol, clove, pineapple, natural gas, lilac, lemon and leather.
"Narrowing the list of odors can potentially expedite screening and help with early diagnosis," Devanand said in a statement.
This makes sense, he added, because examination of the brains of Alzheimer's patients shows that the nerve pathways involved in smell are affected at a very early stage.
Several groups have tried to link the sense of smell with Alzheimer's and at least one company markets a scratch and sniff test for the disease. But Devanand said it is important to identify the specific odors that may be involved.
They found that patients with early Alzheimer's disease may be unable to smell certain odors, including strawberry, smoke, soap and cloves.
"Early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease is critical for patients and their families to receive the most beneficial treatment and medications," said Dr. Davangere Devanand, a professor of psychiatry and neurology at New York's Columbia University, who led the study.
"While currently there is no cure for the disease, early diagnosis and treatment can help patients and their families to better plan their lives."
Alzheimer's, which affects an estimated 4.5 million Americans, is an incurable and always fatal brain disease.
It starts out with mild memory loss but progresses to damage the brain severely, causing confusion and eventually leaves the patient unable to care for himself or herself.
There are some drugs that may help slow the progression of the early disease, and researchers are working on vaccines and new drugs to treat Alzheimer's.
While some simple tests such as a challenge to draw a clock face can point to Alzheimer's, in the early stages it is often difficult to tell if a patient has Alzheimer's or some other form of memory loss that may or may not lead to dementia.
For the study Devanand and colleagues studied 150 patients with minimal to mild cognitive impairment. They compared them to 63 healthy elderly people and ran tests on them every 6 months.
The inability to identify 10 specific odors clearly predicted who would go on to develop Alzheimer's, they told a meeting of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology.
These smells included strawberry, smoke, soap, menthol, clove, pineapple, natural gas, lilac, lemon and leather.
"Narrowing the list of odors can potentially expedite screening and help with early diagnosis," Devanand said in a statement.
This makes sense, he added, because examination of the brains of Alzheimer's patients shows that the nerve pathways involved in smell are affected at a very early stage.
Several groups have tried to link the sense of smell with Alzheimer's and at least one company markets a scratch and sniff test for the disease. But Devanand said it is important to identify the specific odors that may be involved.
Health Headlines MORE »
For every 10 g per day increase in soluble fiber intake, a woman may reduce her risk of breast cancer by up to 26%.
Peptides from soybeans modulate neurotransmitters, thereby helping to boost circulation in the brain.
Capsaicin (found in hot peppers) and capsiates (present in sweet peppers) exert modest weight management benefits.
While over 20% of U.S. adults receive periodic health examinations each year, many do not receive recommended preventive screening tests and counseling services
Researchers from Norway suggest a mechanism by which stress may make a person fat, and being obese may create stress.
Swedish researchers report that people who are short on sleep experience greater levels of hunger.
Among women with Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), regular physical activity helps to reduce anxiety, irritability, feelings of tension, low energy and pain.
For every 100 mg per-day increase in magnesium in the diet, stroke risk may decline by up to 9%.
The best male marathon runners over age 65, and the best female marathon runners over age 45, continue to consistently improve their performance.
UCLA-led team safely uses human embryonic stem cells to treat macular degeneration.
ANTI-AGING TIP OF THE DAY
In Working Order
Men and women who stay mentally engaged in their original occupational field fare after retirement fare best mentally. University of Maryland (Maryland, USA) researchers studied 12,189 retired men and women, ages 51 to 61 years at the beginning of the study. The team revealed that those retirees who continued to work in a bridge job experienced fewer major diseases...
»
MORE
