A treatable disease that can be mistaken for Alzheimer's

I came across this online.  There's a condition called  Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus (NPH) that causes, amongst other things, dementia that can be mistaken for Alzheimer's Disease:

http://www.alz.org/dementia/normal-pressure-hydrocephalus-nph.asp

In some cases the disease is treatable.  Sometimes patients can make an almost complete recovery.

Everyone interested in dementia should be aware of this disease as it is one of the few conditions involving dementia for which there is, sometimes, a 'cure'.  If someone with NPH is diagnosed as having AD, the consequence could be that they miss out on the possibility of successful treatment.

HSV1 and Alzheimer's Disease again

Yet more about the link between the herpes simplex virus (HSV1) and Alzheimer's can be found by following this link:

From the Alzheimer's Society Dementia Catalogue

The AS Dementia Catalogue, which I've only just discovered, looks like a very useful resource generally for anyone interested in dementia.


For new readers, these posts also deal with the herpes virus and Alzheimer's/dementia:

http://adventureswithdementia.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/herpes-alzheimers-and-schizophrenia-yes.html

http://adventureswithdementia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/01/more-about-possible-relationship.html

http://adventureswithdementia.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/herpes-and-ad-yet-again.html

http://adventureswithdementia.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/bipolar-also-what-next.html

http://adventureswithdementia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/herpes-vaccine-may-help.html

http://adventureswithdementia.blogspot.co.uk/2014/04/that-nasty-virus-rears-its-head-again.html

http://adventureswithdementia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/beacons-of-hope.html

http://adventureswithdementia.blogspot.co.uk/2011/10/possible-causescontributory-factors-2.html

http://adventureswithdementia.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/looks-like-great-resource-for-hsv1-and.html

http://adventureswithdementia.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/guess-what-type-2-diabetes-now.html

An interesting article about ageism....

..which might offer one explanation as to why research into dementia, which primarily affects and kills older people, is so shockingly underfunded as compared with research into cancer, for example:

Article in The Lancet

Ash Frontman releases solo album about dementia

Please follow this link to learn more:

http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/site/scripts/news_article.php?newsID=2229

A best-seller first novel that accurately portrays AD

I've just finished reading 'We Are Not Ourselves' by Matthew Thomas. It's one of the best books I've read for a long time.

One of the main characters develops Alzheimer's  -  a bit of a spoiler, I know, but that's the reason I'm recommending it here.

I found it absolutely authentic in its portrayal of the disease and its effects on the lives of others. I don't know of any other novels that have done this but I expect there are some.

I didn't know about the focus on Alzheimer's when I started the novel and wouldn't necessarily have chosen to read such a novel if I had known but I'm so glad I did.

Telling it like it is

This article in 'the Guardian' gives an accurate insight into the horrific ways in which dementia can affect the lives of people living with it, and the lives of their carers:

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/oct/28/solve-dementia-crisis-paying-gps

It serves as a good counter-balance to the sanitised view  -  a little old lady who has a bit of difficulty remembering things  -  that is so often presented via the media.

Paying GPs £55 for diagnosing dementia

Readers in other countries may not be aware of a news story that is currently causing some controversy in the UK,  There is a proposal that GPs should be paid £55 for every case of dementia they diagnose (as I understand it, the money would go to the practice rather than to the GP personally).

Amongst the points that have been raised:

* Why should anyone be paid more for simply doing their job which diagnosis is part of?

* In reality when GPs suspect that a patient may have dementia they will normally refer them to a memory clinic/service for tests and scans and, hopefully, a confident diagnosis.

* There is anecdotal evidence that some GPs fail to spot the signs of dementia, particularly in younger people and, certainly, it would be unwise to assume that a GP can make an accurate diagnosis of the condition.  I've read of two cases recently where people have been wrongly diagnosed as having dementia.  In one case, a woman sold her house to pay for care and spent over a year in a care home before the error was discovered.

* A distinction needs to be made between a diagnosis of the condition we call dementia and a diagnosis of one or more of the diseases that cause the condition. If it's clear that the diagnosis of dementia is not always easy, diagnosis of the disease(s) can be very difficult. It is true to say that a definite diagnosis can only be made post mortem  -  if then.

* Is it wise to rush to diagnose people with a condition for which there is no cure and for which the only treatments are, for many people, inadequate or worse?
I've discussed this in earlier posts which you can find by using the search box (top left).

* Many people living with dementia, and their carers, feel that adequate support post-diagnosis should be the number one priority.  There's also a fear that a rapid increase in the number of diagnoses made will simply put more pressure on support services which are, in many cases, already falling apart or non-existent.

Fast diagnosis - a bit of a reality check.

I've written before about various aspect of diagnosis (try search  -  left top corner  -  if you are interested).

This story is a little worrying:

http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/522684/Pensioner-Sold-Home-Dementia-Care-Home-Misdiagnosed

The story is a useful reminder that the diagnosis of dementia, and more particularly the diagnosis of a specific disease, is not always as straightforward as the current demand for fast-track diagnosis would suggest. As the quoted dementia specialist says, it's a bit of a reality check.

A study on the association between infectious burden and Alzheimer's disease.

The following link will take you to a summary of this study:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24910016

The conclusion of the study is that 'IB* consisting of CMV, HSV-1, B. burgdorferi, C. pneumoniae and H. pylori is associated with AD. This study supports the role of infection/inflammation in the etiopathogenesis of AD.'

*IB: 'Infectious Burden' (the burden of previous infections by the viruses and bacteria mentioned)

This particularly interests me because my wife's dementia followed a long period, maybe 15 years, when she more or less constantly suffered from debilitating infections (I know that she tested positive for, amongst many viruses, CMV and HIV-1 and B. burgdorferi  -  which she has never been tested for  -  causes Lyme Disease which may be relevant in S's case see this).  I suspect others will be interested for similar reasons. 

I've previously seen it suggested that repeated infections might lay the groundwork, so to speak, for Alzheimer's but, for us, this conclusion takes things to a new level and might put a number of jigsaw pieces together  -  for what that's worth at this stage.

HSV-1 and Alzheimer's disease: more than a hypothesis.

A recent article with this title (also discovered on Alzforum) is summarised here.

Revisiting the link between the Herpes Simplex virus (HSV-1) and Alzheimer's Disease

Regular readers will know that I am very interested in this link.  New readers can find several past posts about the link by putting HSV-1 or herpes into the search box (top left).

I get the weekly newsletter from the excellent Alzforum Network.  For some reason, I searched their database today and found that Professor Ruth Itzhaki, who has done so much to research and publicise the link has very recently published a paper which updates the information that I posted here.

A summary of the new paper can be found here.

There are also some other papers that look interesting.

I never claim to understand all these papers but I think it's still possible to get the gist of them. If you've not come across the discovery of this link you may well be surprised that it is not better known.

Alzheimer's and Parkinson's - an update

The appointment was useful. I was impressed by the specialist. Prior to meeting us he did the usual speed-read of 'the notes' of course (just the notes since the diagnosis when my S was transferred to the care of the Adult Mental Health Team). He started by saying that the AMHT guy we see had noted that my wife has Lewy Bodies Disease (she hasn't - the diagnosis is Alzheimer's). When I queried this he said he thought it best to forget about labels - a man after my own heart.  (But I'll query this with the AMHT.)

He quickly identified that, as suspected, my wife has several Parkinsonism symptoms e.g. rigidity, 'cogwheel' unbending of arms. He thought on balance it was worth trying a very low dose (initially one 12.5/50mg tab a day) of Co-careldopa. I'd told him about my wife's extreme sensitivity towards many drugs. He said that because of the low dose and the short half-life of the drug (2-4 hours) any serious problem would be very unlikely but, obviously, we should stop taking it if there were any problems.

This dose may not produce any improvement but will show if the drug is tolerated and then the dose could be upped later. Someone once told me 'start low and start slow' is a good policy for most drugs you've not taken before.

So, I started today when nothing else is planned.  We have had a short walk so far, about 3/8ths mile.  It was about as good as it gets at the moment  -  we didn't have to stop at all. No adverse effects are apparent.

We will also get a visit from the 'falls team' who might be able to suggest some exercises that could help.

The specialist also mentioned that a Datscan (relatively new) could confirm whether S has some kind of Parkinsonian syndrome but agreed that this would be something of an ordeal for someone with S's problems and that as he could already see the problems she has we could just get on and try to treat them.