Alzheimer’s disease could be diagnosed early with a simple memory test, according to a new study.
Researchers found taking a memory test could be a crucial tool in diagnosing the disease early.
Memory loss is a critical part of Alzheimer’s, a disease in which parts of the brain increasingly shrink and cells die. It is the most common cause of dementia.
The test could be used to identify people who had memory issues, but could still create and store memories – a very early stage of dementia, The Express reported.
Researchers said the test could be used in place of expensive or invasive scans and spinal taps.
Alzheimer’s leads to memory less, difficulty thinking, making decisions, the ability to do familiar tasks, as well as personality and behavioural changes.
The Alzheimer’s memory test
Published in the American Academy of Neurology, researchers trialled the test on 4,000 people without any known cognitive issues.
The Alzheimer’s memory test was developed by researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
Participants were asked to look at pictures of objects for which they received clues about which category the picture item belongs.
Each person was then asked to remember the item they saw in the picture.
If they couldn’t recall it, they were asked to name a general category instead.
Researchers later divided the participants into five different groups, based on how they scored during the test.
People in the first three groups, who had a higher score, showed difficulty remembering an item at first, but could remember with the help of clues.
Whereas, people with lower scores, who were placed in the last two groups, had trouble remembering the items despite the clues.
How the memory test could change Alzheimer’s diagnosis
(Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)
According to Dr Ellen Grober, the findings suggest that this simple memory test can be used to detect cognitive decline before an Alzheimer’s diagnosis.
Dr Grober, study author and researcher at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York, said: “This system allows us to distinguish between the following: the difficulty people have retrieving memories when they are still able to create and store memories in their brains, which occurs in the very early stages before dementia can be diagnosed; and the memory storage problems that occur later in this pre-dementia phase when people can no longer store the memories in their brains.”
She suggested that such a simple test could be substituting expensive or invasive scans, as well as lumbar punctures in the early stages of cognitive loss.
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How does the test tell who could have early Alzheimer’s?
There is a protein – beta-amyloid plaque – whose build-up may trigger Alzheimer’s and it is one of the three main markers for diagnosing Alzheimer’s.
After being divided into groups, participants underwent PET scans and magnetic resonance imaging.
The study found that nearly 30 percent of people in group 0 (highest scores) had evidence of beta-amyloid plaque on their brain scans.
As for the other groups, the beta-amyloid plaque was found in 31 per cent of people in group 1, 35 percent of people in group 2, 40 percent of people in group 3, and 44 per cent of people in group 4.
“Results from this research add to the accumulating evidence that cognitive impairment, if measured properly, can be detected very early in the disease process,” commented Dr Grober.
More than 1,000 people participating in the study, who showed significant brain amyloid are now enrolled in the “A4 clinical trial”.
The trial, the author explained, “is evaluating a drug designed to slow memory and cognitive decline by targeting beta-amyloid”.
She added that tests like this one are helpful in evaluating therapies that could prevent Alzheimer’s dementia from developing.
What is the cause of Alzheimer’s and what are the risk factors?
The exact cause of Alzheimer’s is still unknown and there is no certain way of preventing the disease.
A healthy lifestyle could certainly help in reducing its risk.
The latest research shows that risk factors for dementia include, but are not limited to, cardiovascular problems, diabetes, hearing loss, untreated depression, loneliness and a sedentary lifestyle.
By avoiding or modifying these risk factors, people could be able to significantly reduce the risk of dementia.
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