Drop in Certain Visual Skills May Precede Alzheimer's
MONDAY, Oct. 12 (HealthDay News) -- The ability to perceive relationships between objects (visuospatial skills) may decline years before a person is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, a new study suggests.
It included 444 people who were dementia-free when they were enrolled in the study and underwent tests on a number of cognitive abilities, including visuospatial skills. The assessments were repeated at least once before the end of the study. After an average follow-up of 5.9 years, 134 participants had developed dementia. Of those, 44 underwent brain autopsies that confirmed they had Alzheimer's disease.
The researchers used data from the cognitive assessments to chart declines in various areas before participants were diagnosed with dementia. They found an inflection point (sudden change to a steeper slope of decline) in visuospatial abilities three years before clinical diagnosis of dementia.
Declines in overall cognition occurred the next year, while inflection points for verbal and working memory weren't seen until one year before diagnosis.
The findings appear in the October issue of the Archives of Neurology.
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My name is Kathy and I am the full time caregiver for my eighty one year-old Dad who has Alzheimer's and lives with me in North Carolina.
When my Mom died in 2004 and Dad moved in with me, I had no idea what to do. But day by day, I found ways to cope, and even enjoy having my Dad with me.
So I started writing a blog at www.KnowItAlz.com, which shows the "lighter" side of caring for someone with dementia.
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Please pass this link along to anyone you feel would enjoy it.
Thanks!
Kathy Hatfield