Monterey, CA Alzheimer’s Breakthrough With The Christchurch Variant APOE Gene

A man in white lab coat and tie.


Researchers have been studying a group of families in Columbia for years due to the fact that they carry a variant of the gene PSEN-1 which pretty much guarantees they will get Alzheimer’s.  Many get it at an early age, with a sad story being told by a mother who had to take care of her son who had Alzheimer’s disease.  There has been a recent breakthrough, with Aliria Rosa Piedrahita de Villegas, a woman in her 70’s with the gene who did not get Alzheimer’s disease until the age of 72, three decades after most others with the gene get the disease.  Further study found that Aliria also had two copies of another rare variant of the APOE gene, also known as the Christchurch variant, which helped protect her brain and drastically slowed the progression of the disease.  “This opens a new door for Alzheimer’s research,†said Yakeel Quiroz, an associate professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and Neurology at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School.  “And through that door are new opportunities for treatments,†he said.  Quiroz and other researchers are now working on developing an Alzheimer’s treatment that can replicate the protective actions and effects of the Christchurch variant.  Regular readers of my blog know that both my grandmother and my father had this terrible disease when they died.  There is a great group of people at the Monterey branch of Alzheimer’s Association in Ryan Ranch or you can also call their 24-hour hotline for support at 1-800-272-3900.

Monterey, CA Alzheimer’s Clinical Trials Can Help You And Others

A doctor and patient looking at a book


There can be great self-gratification that comes from participating in a clinical trial in the hopes of coming up with a promising treatment for Alzheimer’s disease.  Unfortunately, there has been very little good news on the clinical trial front, with a new study showing that the most recent drug released to the market, Roche’s crenezumab did not slow or prevent cognitive decline.

There was a recent story in The Future of Personal Health about Donald Macintosh, a smart attorney with a good memory who had a 25-year career but now can’t make a cup of coffee or remember what he ate for lunch.  He was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease, an affliction that impacts 6 million Americans.  He is now excited to be participating in a clinical trial for a new Alzheimer’s drug which could slow the progress of the disease.  “It’s a privilege,†he says.  “Not everyone is in such a trial because either they don’t know about it or they don’t meet the requirements,†he added.  Although Donald had to drop out of the most recent trial due to side effects, he is looking forward to joining others.  He has no regrets about participating.  “Even if it doesn’t benefit me personally, it will benefit other people in the future,†he said.

Regular readers of my blog know that both my father and my grandmother died of this terrible disease.  There are some great people at the Alzheimer’s Association in Monterey at Ryan’s Ranch that can help you if you are dealing with a family member with dementia.  They also have a 24 hour hotline at 1-800-272-3900.

Carmel, CA Promising New Alzheimer’s Drug Crenezumab Takes Another Hit

An old woman with a bruised eye and hand on her face.


A new study is out on the controversial drug that recently hit the market to treat Alzheimer’s disease, Roche’s crenezumab, and the results are not good.  The study showed that it did not slow or prevent cognitive decline in a long-running study of Colombian families who carried a genetic mutation that put them at a very high risk of developing the disease.  The drug did not demonstrate a significant benefit in tests measuring cognitive abilities or memory function among study participants.  ‘We’re disappointed that crenezumab did not show a significant clinical benefit,†Eric Reiman, the executive director at Banner Alzheimer’s Institute, told USA Today.  Regular readers of my blog know that both my father and my grandmother died of this terrible disease.  There are some great people at the Alzheimer’s Association in Monterey at Ryan’s Ranch that can help you if you are dealing with a family member with dementia.  They also have a 24 hour hotline at 1-800-272-3900.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2022/06/16/closely-watched-alzheimers-study-fails-prevent-advance-disease/7639930001/

Carmel, CA Ward Off Alzheimer’s And Dementia By Going To Bed Early

A group of people sitting around a table.


One of the easiest ways to try and ward off Alzheimer’s disease or some other form of dementia is by going to bed early, according to Sara Mednick, professor of cognitive science at the University of California Irvine.  She tells AARP The Magazine (April/May 2022, page 38) that we should all be in bed by 10:00 p.m.  “The earlier you get to sleep, the more slow-wave sleep you’ll get,†says professor Mednick, the author of The Power of the Down State.  Slow-wave Sleep connections between areas of the brain to create stronger memories.  However, SWS goes by the circadian clock and peters out at about 1:00 a.m.  Regular readers of my blog know that both my grandmother and my father had this terrible disease when they passed away.  There is a great group of people at the Alzheimer’s Association in Ryan Ranch who are there to help you.  They also have a 24-hour hotline at 1-800-272-3900.

 

Monterey, CA An Interesting New Twist On Alzheimer’s & Dementia Testing

A woman with grey hair sitting in a chair.


A new training tool dubbed the Interview For Decisional Abilities, or IDA, helps to assess whether some seniors can make informed choices about their own care and well being.  Although not specifically a test for Alzheimer’s disease or dementia, it was developed by two geriatricians to help Adult Protective Services (APS) workers decide if seniors have the cognitive ability to make financial and other decisions, even if those fly in the face of what family members want.  It’s also used by hospital discharge planners to assess whether a patient has the capacity to assist on going home instead of going into rehab.  Assisted living facilities may also start using IDA to see if new residents understood the contracts that they were signing.  Regular readers of my blog know that both my grandmother and my father had this terrible disease when they passed away.  There is a great group of people at the Alzheimer’s Association in Ryan Ranch who are there to help you.  They also have a 24-hour hotline at 1-800-272-3900.

Carmel, CA Home Care Aide (HCA) Senior Alzheimer’s & Dementia Caregiver Jobs Available : Set Your Own Hours: $2/Hour Extra On The Weekends CNA Or HHA Designation A Plus

A nurse is helping an elderly woman to get out of her wheelchair.


Carmel, CA Home Care Aide (HCA) Senior Alzheimer’s & Dementia Caregiver Jobs Available : Set Your Own Hours: $2/Hour Extra On The Weekends CNA Or HHA Designation A Plus (Service Areas Are Aromas, Big Sur, Carmel, Carmel-by-the-sea, Carmel Valley, Castroville, Corral-de-Tierra, Gonzalez, Greenfield, King City, Marina, Monterey, Pacific Grove, Pebble Beach, Prunedale, Salinas, Seaside & Soledad

We have developed a reputation for having the best caregivers (Home Care Aides or Senior Companions) in Monterey County over the past decade and have recently expanded into Santa Cruz County.   We are currently looking for qualified caregivers.

 

Family inHome Caregiving of Monterey and Santa Cruz is seeking compassionate, mature and dependable caregivers who want to improve the lives of our elderly Clients by providing in-home, non-medical care.  Our services include:

Caring companionship

Meal preparation

Incidental transportation

Running errands

Liht housekeeping

Medication reminders

Monitoring of safety while bathing

Information and referral services

Other services that improve the safety, security and quality of life of seniors.

If you believe you would make an exceptional Home Care Aide, we would love to hear from you!  We prefer those with experience helping the elderly, disabled and others with mobility problems.  Having cared for those with dementia and/or Alzheimer’s is a plus.  To work for us, you must have excellent references, a clear criminal record, a good driving record, and an insured reliable vehicle.  To apply, please visit our website www.fhcofm.com, click on home care aides, then careers where you can fill out an application online.  We have immediate openings all over Monterey County.

Carmel, CA Ward Off Alzheimer’s And Dementia By Going To Bed Early

A purple background with the alzheimer 's association logo.


One of the easiest ways to try and ward off Alzheimer’s disease or some other form of dementia is by going to bed early, according to Sara Mednick,  professor of cognitive science at the University of California Irvine.  She tells AARP Th Magazine (April/May 2022, page 38) that we should all be in bed by 10:00 p.m.  “The earlier you get to sleep, the more slow-wave sleep you’ll get,†says professor Mednick, the author of The Power of the Down State.  Slow-wave Sleep connections between areas of the brain to create stronger memories.  However, SWS goes by the circadian clock and peters out at about 1:00 a.m.  Regular readers of my blog know that both my grandmother and my father had this terrible disease when they passed away.  There is a great group of people at the Alzheimer’s Association in Ryan Ranch who are there to help you.  They also have a 24-hour hotline at 1-800-272-3900.

MRI Studies Looking For Clues To Alzheimer’s And Dementia May Have Been Unreliable

A doctor and patient in a room with a laptop.


A study which was published in the journal Nature found that by studying M.R.I. data from about 50,000 people searching for clues between brain structure and complex psychological traits in groups with different numbers of subjects, thousands of patients must be included for the study to be reliably replicated.  This threw cold water on a number of recent studies done looking for clues in M.R.I.s to solve how diseases develop, looking at anything from autism to Alzheimer’s disease, because they typically only focused on a handful of M.R.I.s.  Researchers from The School of Medicine at Washington University, St. Louis and colleagues located elsewhere noted that researchers across the globe are increasingly using magnetic resonance imaging, or M.R.I., to try and find links between what is seen on an M.R.I. like cortical thickness or patterns of connection, and complicated psychological traits such as cognitive ability or mental-health conditions.  These brain-association studies are looking to unlock clues to what causes mental health and dementia.  The researchers concluded that studies done to date have been too small (many just had a few dozen participants) and suggested that there needed to be at least 1,000 participants for the studies to be considered valid.  This is problematic because M.R.I. machines typically cost about $1,000 per hour to operate.  Journals historically have preferred surprising correlations to findings of no correlation, a phenomenon known as publication bias.  “The paradoxical effect is that the answer that’s the most wrong gets published if you use a small sample,†said Nico Dosenback, an associate professor of neurology at Washington University, as well as an author of the Nature study.

Monterey, CA Ward Off Alzheimer’s And Dementia By Going To Bed Early

A man and woman cutting an apple on a board.


One of the easiest ways to try and ward off Alzheimer’s disease or some other form of dementia is by going to bed early, according to Sara Mednick, professor of cognitive science at the University of California Irvine.  She tells AARP The Magazine (April/May 2022, page 38) that we should all be in bed by 10:00 p.m.  “The earlier you get to sleep, the more slow-wave sleep you’ll get,†says professor Mednick, the author of The Power of the Down State.  Slow-wave Sleep connections between areas of the brain to create stronger memories.  However, SWS goes by the circadian clock and peters out at about 1:00 a.m.  Regular readers of my blog know that both my grandmother and my father had this terrible disease when they passed away.  There is a great group of people at the Alzheimer’s Association in Ryan Ranch who are there to help you.  They also have a 24-hour hotline at 1-800-272-3900.