Alzheimer's of Central Alabama

Serving people with Alzheimer’s, caregivers and professionals in central Alabama through education, caregiver services and research grants.

ACA’s Weekly Email June 21, 2024

ACA volunteers will be delivering July 4th Care Baskets to many on our service programs.  Your support will provide these families with all the fixings for a cookout and a box fan to help them stay cool this summer.  To donate or learn more: https://alzca.org/july4/

ACA’s 12th annual Glow for a Cure night golf tournament, July 26th, Highland Park Golf Course,   There are a limited number of teams still available, and this event has sold out every year.  The tournament is presented by our Junior Board and supports the Lindy Harrell Pre-doctoral Scholars Program in Alzheimer’s Research at UAB.  ACA has funded 7 student researchers since 2019.  https://alzca.org/glow/

Virtual Research Update from the Alzheimer’s Association, June 25th, at 6:30 p.m. with 3 local researchers who will share the work they are doing related to Alzheimer’s and dementia.  Register here:  https://alz-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJ0vdOmprzkqGNV8zio2gp4kdlD51I2zAc5H#/registration

Contenu is hosting a retreat that focuses on health and wellness activities for the person with a serious illness and their caregiver, August 24, New Water Farms, Dadeville, 8 am – 4:30 pm.  This retreat will focus on health and wellness activities for the person with a serious illness, and their caregivers, with the aim of giving attendees a space to refresh, recharge, and relax.  Com.  e and enjoy a day of health and wellness. Activities will include sessions like movement and mindfulness, fruit farming, and taking a boat ride.  The cost is $50.   Contenu Retreat

Support Group Meetings:

June Webinars from Alabama Lifespan Respite: https://alabamarespite.org/events2/

Alzheimer’s News:

The National Institute on Aging (NIA), part of the National Institutes of Health, has awarded an estimated $21.4 million five-year grant to the University of Alabama at Birmingham for an Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center.   People born in the Deep South have a 20 percent to 30 percent higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease or dementia. In 2020, UAB became an exploratory ADRC to advance research in dementia disparities in the region. The new grant allows the team to extend its research efforts.  “We hope to use the data collected through the ADRC to translate research findings into advances in the care, treatment and prevention of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia,” said Erik Roberson, M.D., Ph.D., Rebecca Gale-Heersink endowed chair in the UAB Department of Neurology and the center director.  Over the past four years, the UAB team investigated new Alzheimer’s disease biomarkers, including measures in blood and eyes, new electronic measures to make cognitive testing more accessible to patients and new imaging tests for the disease. Additionally, they evaluated the effects of race and social determinants of health on dementia risks.  https://www.uab.edu/news/health/item/14213-uab-receives-21-4-million-from-nih-to-expand-alzheimer-s-disease-research-center

My mother spent the last three decades of her life afflicted by the loss of memory and control that comes with Alzheimer’s. When I was diagnosed with the same disease last fall I visualized a pathetic decline that would make me and my family miserable.  But that is far from the full story. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/08/opinion/alzheimers-mom-family-diagnosis.html?unlocked_article_code=1.z00.L1PL.FnldcVaeEAJF&smid=url-share&ref=mariashriversundaypaper.com

Eat well, move more, sleep sound.  It’s important for caregivers to balance all 3.  This article explores the powerful connection between diet, exercise, and sleep. While each is crucial for good health, they work together in amazing ways. Learn how a healthy diet fuels your workouts, quality sleep boosts your energy, and exercise improves your sleep quality. https://www.sleepfoundation.org/physical-health/diet-exercise-sleep

Although older patients with dementia have similar rates of colonoscopy-related complications as patients without dementia, they have higher rates of other non-procedural complications, according to a new study.  Patients with dementia had higher rates of renal injury, pulmonary events, cerebrovascular accidents, and sepsis. They were also less likely to have routine discharges, more likely to have longer hospital stays, and had higher hospital costs.  The study results suggest that colonoscopy in this population should be done with careful discretion, it ultimately reminds us about the importance of collaborative decision-making efforts between patients, their physicians, as well as family members.  https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/balancing-risks-colonoscopy-elderly-patients-dementia-2024a1000bda?ecd=WNL_trdalrt_pos1_240620_etid6611928&uac=407526BK&impID=6611928

About one in twenty Americans report feeling isolated or lonely very often. These feelings, as scientists have found, aren’t innocuous: People who experience social isolation and loneliness have a higher risk of developing depression and anxiety. In addition, they also have a 40 percent increased risk of developing dementia. Scientists aren’t sure why this is the case — but people who are isolated or lonely often have multiple other risk factors for dementia which might explain part of the link. The good news is that this risk factor may be something we can change.  Social scientist Kalsey Killam shares some advice that can help you make new connections — and in so doing, help modify this risk factor.  https://www.beingpatient.com/how-to-make-new-friends-when-youre-old/?utm_source=Being+Patient+Newsletter&utm_campaign=515a7b447e-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2020_11_06_03_59_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_95b92454c1-515a7b447e-109213217

Irisin levels in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) are significantly lower among patients with Alzheimer’s disease, and levels positively correlate with amyloid beta 1-42 (Abeta42), increasing support for this emerging Alzheimer’s disease biomarker, according to investigators.  Irisin, a hormone released by muscles during physical exercise, also negatively correlated with Clinical Dementia Rating Scale Sum of Boxes (CDR-SOB) in female patients, pointing to a sex-specific disease phenomenon.  Regular physical exercise can slow cognitive decline in individuals at risk for or with Alzheimer’s disease, and irisin appears to play a key role in this process. Previous studies have shown that increased irisin levels in the brain are associated with improved cognitive function and reduced amyloid beta levels, suggesting the hormone’s potential as a biomarker and therapeutic target for Alzheimer’s disease.  https://www.medscape.com/s/viewarticle/irisin-shows-potential-alzheimers-disease-biomarker-2024a1000azf?src=FYE&ecd=WNL_recnlnew3_broad_US_perso_etid6609453&uac=407526BK&240620&impID=6609453

Novel, noninvasive testing is able to predict dementia onset with 80% accuracy up to 9 years before clinical diagnosis.  The results suggest resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) could be used to identify a neural network signature of dementia risk early in the pathological course of the disease, an important advance as disease-modifying drugs such as those targeting amyloid beta are now becoming available.   https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/novel-method-able-predict-if-when-dementia-will-develop-2024a1000aw4?ecd=wnl_sci_tech_240619_MSCPEDIT_etid6605343&uac=407526BK&impID=6605343

People with essential tremor (ET) have nearly three times increased risk of developing dementia compared with the general population, new research showed.  In a prospective, longitudinal study, incidence of dementia was nearly 20% among older adults with ET. However, the rates were lower than those in adults with Parkinson’s disease. https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/essential-tremor-tied-threefold-increased-risk-dementia-2024a10004qd?ecd=mkm_ret_240616_mscpmrk_neuro_pd_etid6597224&uac=407526BK&impID=6597224

Dementia poses many challenges, both for people struggling with it and for those close to them. It can be hard to witness and cope with common behaviors that arise from illnesses like Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia, or frontotemporal dementia.  Caring for a person who has dementia may be frustrating, confusing, or upsetting at times. Understanding why certain behaviors occur and learning ways to handle a variety of situations can help smooth the path ahead.  People with dementia often exhibit a combination of unusual behaviors, such as:

  • Making odd statements or using the wrong words for certain items.
  • Not realizing they need to bathe or forgetting how to maintain good hygiene.
  • Repeating themselves or asking the same question over and over.
  • Misplacing objects or taking others’ belongings.
  • Not recognizing you or remembering who they are.
  • Being convinced that a deceased loved one is still alive.
  • Hoarding objects, such as mail or even garbage.
  • Exhibiting paranoid behavior.
  • Becoming easily confused or agitated.
  • Leaving the house without telling you, and getting lost.

Here are 6 strategies for coping with dementia-related behaviors:

  • Don’t point out inaccurate or strange statements.
  • Don’t try to reason with the person.
  • Use distraction.
  • Keep unsafe items out of sight.
  • Supervise hygiene routines.
  • Spend time together.

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/dementia-coping-with-common-sometimes-distressing-behaviors-202305082933?utm_source=delivra&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=A%2FB%20Test%207036%20Part%2084005%3A%20BF20240617-PosPsych&utm_id=7170335&dlv-emuid=195143e3-1889-43b1-a67a-778c125927c2&dlv-mlid=7170335

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