The aging brain: False alarms
Detective Work: The False Alzheimer's Diagnosis
By MELINDA BECK, WSJ
Family members of J.D. "Jasper" Cain suspected he had Alzheimer's disease as they watched the once fun-loving father and husband struggle with memory and movement. Three doctors thought he had Parkinson's disease and kept raising his medication dose when he didn't improve.
At his daughter's suggestion, Mr. Cain, of Bedford, Ind., saw a neurologist last year who did an MRI, then a spinal tap. He found that Mr. Cain had a buildup of fluid in the brain called normal pressure hydrocephalus. The fluid was drained with a surgically implanted shunt. Now, 13 years after his symptoms began Mr. Cain, 70, is walking, joking and matching wits with TV's "Jeopardy" again. "It was just like getting my life back," he says.
More than 100 other conditions, from vitamin and hormone deficiencies to rare brain disorders, can mimic Alzheimer's disease, experts say. Some are readily treatable.
Alzheimer's symptoms such as confusion, memory loss and personality changes also can be side effects from medication—even commonly used drugs. For example, the entire class of anticholinergic drugs, which includes many antihistamines, antianxiety drugs, muscle relaxants and sleeping pills, block the brain chemical acetylcholine, which sends signals in the nervous system. It is the same chemical that many Alzheimer's medications boost. Cholesterol-reducing statins have also been linked to brain fog in some people.
(More here.)
By MELINDA BECK, WSJ
Family members of J.D. "Jasper" Cain suspected he had Alzheimer's disease as they watched the once fun-loving father and husband struggle with memory and movement. Three doctors thought he had Parkinson's disease and kept raising his medication dose when he didn't improve.
At his daughter's suggestion, Mr. Cain, of Bedford, Ind., saw a neurologist last year who did an MRI, then a spinal tap. He found that Mr. Cain had a buildup of fluid in the brain called normal pressure hydrocephalus. The fluid was drained with a surgically implanted shunt. Now, 13 years after his symptoms began Mr. Cain, 70, is walking, joking and matching wits with TV's "Jeopardy" again. "It was just like getting my life back," he says.
More than 100 other conditions, from vitamin and hormone deficiencies to rare brain disorders, can mimic Alzheimer's disease, experts say. Some are readily treatable.
Alzheimer's symptoms such as confusion, memory loss and personality changes also can be side effects from medication—even commonly used drugs. For example, the entire class of anticholinergic drugs, which includes many antihistamines, antianxiety drugs, muscle relaxants and sleeping pills, block the brain chemical acetylcholine, which sends signals in the nervous system. It is the same chemical that many Alzheimer's medications boost. Cholesterol-reducing statins have also been linked to brain fog in some people.
(More here.)
Powered by Blogger
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home