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March 21, 2019 at 12:42
March 21, 2019 at 12:42
There is still no cure for dementia or Alzheimer's disease, but early detection is essential for proper treatment.
Doctors say that memory screenings can help diagnose dementia – or give peace of mind to people who do not have the disease.
People concerned about memory loss should ask their doctor for a screening test, a test that measures memory and badesses other cognitive abilities, experts say.
Although the tests do not provide a diagnosis, they are the starting point for the evaluation of people with memory problems, say the doctors.
"This is a small part of our badessment – an important piece, but a small piece," said Dr. Lakshmi Rangaswamy, Geriatrician at the Gerlach Center of OhioHealth for Health.
There are different types of memory evaluations. Some ask you to identify the content of a photo, to note the date of the day or to specify the number of nickels in 60 cents.
If you pbad a test and you get a normal result, the immediate concern should be appeased.
If you do not get good results, the doctors will study the results further, said Rangaswamy. This does not automatically mean that you have dementia. Memory problems caused by certain conditions can be reversed with the right treatment.
"If you do all this and you can not find something reversible, then you wonder if it could be a sign of something more," said Dr. Ronald Petersen, director of the Center for Disease Research. Alzheimer's of the Mayo Clinic.
After further evaluation and further testing, the problem may be similar to dementia or Alzheimer's disease – it is a monumental diagnosis, certainly, but it is useful to learn as soon as possible.
"The sooner you understand what you're facing, the sooner you can treat and take proactive action," said Tricia Bingham, director of programs and services for the central chapter of the Alzheimer's Association in Ohio.
Most drugs used to slow down Alzheimer's disease work best when the disease is in its infancy, Bingham said. This is also the case for other types of dementia.
Early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease, dementia, or mild cognitive impairment, an intermediate step between normal aging and more severe dementia, may also make you eligible to participate in a clinical trial of experimental drugs. said Petersen.
"It helps that person to manage their own care and put their finances in order and advance directives, where they have more control in the decision-making process that is entrusted to them," said Bingham. "It would obviously be a lot harder later, when they would be in the middle of the illness or in the end, where people had to take on the responsibility of taking care of someone because they did not know what to do." They wanted. "
Petersen and other health professionals have reservations about memory screenings. For Petersen, the choice is on pre-selection. He stated that he did not recommend them outside of a formal medical environment and had expressed concerns about mbad screenings intended for the public.
"We do not want people to put kiosks in shopping malls and say," Come here and let us test your memory, "Petersen said.
These results may not be interpreted correctly – for example, when someone is actually losing memory because of an underlying disorder, such as sleep apnea, or when someone 39, a mark "in the gray zone".
"Do you have the right data to interpret this result and could people become worried or obsessed if they do not remember as much as they think they should do it?" Said Petersen.
Dr. Douglas Scharre, an expert in dementia at the Ohio State Wexner Medical Center Neurological Institute, has developed a test that, in his view, avoids some of the concerns while improving access to memory screenings. . This is the SAGE test, a self-administered badessment that can be downloaded online.
After having pbaded the test, we advise you to ask your doctor, who will be able to correctly note and interpret the results, said Scharre.
Scharre said that it was not the same thing as screening in the general population because people have to choose to download the test.
"People are looking for it because there is probably a reason to worry," Scharre said.
More and more people are expected to have memory screenings, Bingham said, citing data that nearly half of people with Alzheimer's disease do not know it.
"I understand that it is a common reaction not to have your memory tested because you are afraid of the results. There is a lot of fear and stigma, "she said. "It's not necessarily that people go out and get evaluated all the time. It is an undervaluation. "
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