Alzheimers help?

[Scrapr]

When I read this a few days ago a low frequency hum went off. Then I ran it by someone else for which a bell went off. The bolded part. I have always been under the apprehension that Alzheimers is caused by the plaque not the other way around. Might the OP be a slight mis-statement?

Very likely that I mixed up cause & effect. The initial screen was about an hour w/paperwork, the MMSE & a review w the head researcher. The next appointment is 2.5 hours & I'll be able to ask more questions

 

[audreyh1]

I agree. The one that gets me is the counting backwards in increments of 7. Just trying to do that in my head, I'm struggling. I wonder how many people actually pass that question.

Keep subtracting 7s.

 

[audreyh1]

I am at an age in retirement where I question my mental sharpness every time I forget something or forget a name.
My mom passed away at age 85 with dementia and Parkinson’s.
I am very much interested in the latest treatment if needed.
However, the reduction of amyloid plaque build in the brain is still not greatly beneficial to anyone in present trials or treatment.

That’s my understanding. It’s not the plaque. From what I’ve read the amyloid plaque build-up is a side effect from the brain trying to protect itself from some other root cause.

 

[Calico]

You need that retirement day of the week clock.

I just ask Alexa. She always knows the day and the date!

 

[aja8888]

I'm occasionally off on the date, but always recall the day for some reason.

My issue is deciding which pair of shoes to wear each day.

I am good with the date and clock time as I stay busy and engaged. It's my decision making process that is suspect, but it's always been that way.

 

[Spock]

Dad's primary care dr would admin a MMSE, which Dad would score "ok" (not great) on.
The "problem" is Dad was fairly intelligent prior to dementia, so he would score better on tests, but still have obvious mental decline.
I could fill a volume with examples of his decline which are scattered across my previous posts on this topic, but the PCP and hospital admin were of zero help. "He's still making decisions, they are just bad decisions" was their common response. It was like if he's not standing naked in the front yard barking at the moon, the health care profession would not engage.

When Dad tried to give his house to his home health aid (who was already on the state Adult Protective Services registry for having scammed a previous client) I went full tilt for court ordered guardian and conservatorship. This process required exams by neurologists.
Even after a diagnosis of severe cognitive impairment likely due to Alz, he still scored a 25 out of 30 on a MMSE. Dad's initial impairment wiped out "executive functions" (their term), meaning he couldn't reason, plan, understand cause and effect, etc. He could draw clocks and count backwards, but he couldn't understand that he did not win the Spanish Lottery, the Publishers Clearing House sweepstakes, or that the phone call directing him to go to the bank and pull all of his money out was a scam.

So while an MMSE might be a general indicator I would not take the results as "absolute truth".

 

[braumeister]

I have always been under the apprehension that Alzheimers is caused by the plaque not the other way around.

I'm fairly sure that this is still unknown. There are several hypotheses.

 

[Scrapr]

and then there are the Dr's that don't want to have hard conversations. My parents had a long time PCP like that. The kids (us) were seeing severe declines...leaving food on the stove, dents in the car fender, etc. He scored them in the 20's on the MMSE. We got an independent Dr in Palm Desert to give them another test. They both scored under 10

 

[audreyh1]

I'm fairly sure that this is still unknown. There are several hypotheses.

From my understanding, there has been a huge amount of research into removing and reducing plaque, in fact that’s where most of the research funds have gone. And unfortunately seems like a dead end.

 

[razztazz]

I'm fairly sure that this is still unknown. There are several hypotheses.

Right-o. Just was going over this with someone. It's still a chicken / egg proposition.

 

[Koolau]

My issue is deciding which pair of shoes to wear each day.

I am good with the date and clock time as I stay busy and engaged. It's my decision making process that is suspect, but it's always been that way.

Shoes are easy. I have two pairs. One "sorta dressy" and then "every day."

 

[MichaelB]

Shoes are easy. I have two pairs. One "sorta dressy" and then "every day."

I’ve been told that in both South Florida and Hawaii the locals have just 2 footwear options, flip flops and dressy, and by definition anything not a flip flop is dressy,

 

[Koolau]

I’ve been told that in both South Florida and Hawaii the locals have just 2 footwear options, flip flops and dressy, and by definition anything not a flip flop is dressy,

DW even has "dressy" flip flops! She does have more than 2 pairs of shoes - unlike me.

 

[PatrickA5]

DW even has "dressy" flip flops! She does have more than 2 pairs of shoes - unlike me.

The last time I wore shoes other than my tennis shoes was at my daughter's wedding - and that was two years ago! So, figuring out what shoes to wear is one problem I don't have. I do have other problems though.

 

[bloom2708]

Type 3 diabetes. Read up on a a "whole food, plant based" lifestyle. It is the food (and drink).

Anyone can change at anytime. If you want to.

 

[Koolau]

Type 3 diabetes. Read up on a a "whole food, plant based" lifestyle. It is the food (and drink).

Anyone can change at anytime. If you want to.

IIRC Type 3 diabetes is still only a theory. It makes some sense, and eating healthy is always better. But I'm not ready for a plant based diet. Probably too late for me anyway.

 

[Teacher Terry]

IIRC Type 3 diabetes is still only a theory. It makes some sense, and eating healthy is always better. But I'm not ready for a plant based diet. Probably too late for me anyway.

I’m definitely not ready for plant based either.

 

[RetiredHappy]

Type 3 diabetes. Read up on a a "whole food, plant based" lifestyle. It is the food (and drink).

Anyone can change at anytime. If you want to.

You can become a diabetic on a whole food, plant based diet. It's all about carbs. Lots of carbs with plant based diets. In fact, I have several vegan friends are overweight and diabetic.

 

[Redbugdave]

If it involves math...forget it.

 

[aja8888]

If it involves math...forget it.

Plus, most dinosaurs ate plants and look what happened to them.

 

[Walt34]

Other tests might include asking about current events. I recall when they tested my dad, they would ask things like "What is today's date? What day is it?

Since I retired I've thought those two were kind of unfair questions to ask retirees. If you're retired, who cares what day of the week it is? Or the date? Unless you have an appointment somewhere those things don't matter much. Half the time I have to look at the newspaper, phone, or computer to remember what the day or date is anyway.

 

[Global Wizzo]

I was at a family function about a week ago & one family member said they are in a research program that will remove the plaque in your brain that Alzheimer's creates. Both my Mom & Dad passed at age 85 from Alzheimer's 6 & 7 years ago. As such I feel doomed at 68. I went in today for the initial consult. 7 or 8 pages of medical questions, then into a staffer to do some testing (aka MMSE...aka the "clock" test). If you don't know the clock test is a request from the tech to draw an analog clock with all the numbers. then the tech asks you to draw a time on the clock...aka 2:40. It's infamous in the memory care world.

MMSE is 30 questions. Count backwards from 100 by 7's, repeat a list of 3-6 words, testor names a list of 15 or so words that are related & then ask to repeat as many as you can, etc. So I did that at the intake. This was sobering as there were several questions I "failed" in my mind. Looking on the internet a score of 24 or below is mild cognitive decline.

Then was passed off to a Dr. we discussed my daily activities, trouble driving?, what do you do all day, what do you have planned, etc. He called my state as mild cognitive decline. Without the history of both parents having ALZ he would not be worried. Then he explained that they can now discover the amount of brain plaque via blood draw. And provide a treatment (clinical trial) to remove the plaque. So after our trip to Italy I am signed up to start onto this trial.

I am both saddened & hopefully optimistic

Got a friend that isn’t in that trial, but I’d taking a 12 month infusion series of a drug that was approved in July. Same target cleaning out existing plaque. Doesn’t reverse anything.

Good luck.

 

[ddoorn]

I was at a family function about a week ago & one family member said they are in a research program that will remove the plaque in your brain that Alzheimer's creates. Both my Mom & Dad passed at age 85 from Alzheimer's 6 & 7 years ago. As such I feel doomed at 68. I went in today for the initial consult. 7 or 8 pages of medical questions, then into a staffer to do some testing (aka MMSE...aka the "clock" test). If you don't know the clock test is a request from the tech to draw an analog clock with all the numbers. then the tech asks you to draw a time on the clock...aka 2:40. It's infamous in the memory care world.

MMSE is 30 questions. Count backwards from 100 by 7's, repeat a list of 3-6 words, testor names a list of 15 or so words that are related & then ask to repeat as many as you can, etc. So I did that at the intake. This was sobering as there were several questions I "failed" in my mind. Looking on the internet a score of 24 or below is mild cognitive decline.

Then was passed off to a Dr. we discussed my daily activities, trouble driving?, what do you do all day, what do you have planned, etc. He called my state as mild cognitive decline. Without the history of both parents having ALZ he would not be worried. Then he explained that they can now discover the amount of brain plaque via blood draw. And provide a treatment (clinical trial) to remove the plaque. So after our trip to Italy I am signed up to start onto this trial.

I am both saddened & hopefully optimistic

I highly recommend you check out Dr. Terry Wahls and her approach to treating neurodegenerative diseases. She cured herself from multiple sclerosis.

She was featured on Cleveland Clinic’s website, which adds a lot of credibility to her approach!

Here is her full documentary, Defying All Odds available for free on YouTube:

My wife has Parkinson’s, her mother died from it last year. My wife’s neurologist was astonished to see my wife’s symptoms had diminished over the past two years since she was diagnosed as he rarely sees reduction of symptoms.

 

[NXR7]

I've struggled with calendar blindness all my life. With retirement, my ability to recall what day it is, and what's on the docket for me, has fallen off a cliff.

I only need to remember one day now that I'm retired, the day before trash day. And if I forget my neighbors offer visual clues at the end of their driveways.

 

[FedRetired50]

60 Minutes has a piece on an experimental treatment involving ultrasound. Opens the blood-brain barrier, then drugs remove the plaque more efficiently.

Neurosurgeon works to slow Alzheimer's progression, treat addiction with cutting-edge technology