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Hello to all,
I just am joining this group, as I went to the doctor yesterday. I have
had vertigo for about 3 months and had an MRI done....so went to get
results. I now go to an ENT specialist. The shocker was, my doctor told me,
my brain had shrunk from the last MRI I had 14 mos ago.....there was
something in the report to flag the bioimaging center, that I might develop
Alzheimer's.
my question to you is??? is this possible??? what does al this mean. I am
61 yrs old female.
thanks
--
http://my.tupperware.com/jeancrawford
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| Morgan 2005-01-28, 8:01 am |
| Another question I have......are the MRI's reliable.......why else would
one's brain shrink??
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| Morgan 2005-01-28, 8:01 am |
| oh.......I work at a communications job also...where I do a lot of
thinking and working.......how can I not be using my brain?
> Hello to all,
> I just am joining this group, as I went to the doctor yesterday. I
have
> had vertigo for about 3 months and had an MRI done....so went to get
> results. I now go to an ENT specialist. The shocker was, my doctor told
me,
> my brain had shrunk from the last MRI I had 14 mos ago.....there was
> something in the report to flag the bioimaging center, that I might
develop
> Alzheimer's.
> my question to you is??? is this possible??? what does al this mean. I
am
> 61 yrs old female.
> thanks
> --
> http://my.tupperware.com/jeancrawford
>
>
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| Mary_Gordon@tvo.org 2005-01-28, 8:01 am |
| I'm presuming the doctor is sending you to a neurologist with a
dementia specialty who can conduct whatever additional testing is
required to give you more information and a diagnosis of what is going
on. Take things one step at a time. Make sure every possibility has
been checked out, and once they have settled on a cause for the
shrinkage and your other symptoms, you can talk about what can be done,
and what the prognosis is.
Anyone can get AD. Its an equal opportunity illness - being smart and
mentally active won't protect you. Its an organic disease, not
something caused by wasting due to inactivity.
It is more common in seniors (and the older we get, the more likely we
are to develop AD) but people can and do develop AD in middle age.
Mary G.
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| <Mary_Gordon@tvo.org> wrote in message
news:1106878115.820036.16730@c13g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...
<snip>>
> Anyone can get AD. Its an equal opportunity illness - being smart and
> mentally active won't protect you. Its an organic disease, not
> something caused by wasting due to inactivity.
>
> It is more common in seniors (and the older we get, the more likely we
> are to develop AD) but people can and do develop AD in middle age.
> Mary G.
Hi Mary
Like you, I've always understood that being mentally active has no bearing
on AD (that's a good phrase - "an equal opportunity illness"), but came
across this article the other day, which I found interesting:
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitem...01/s1288435.htm
Risk factors for Alzheimer's, heart disease similar
US researchers say people who have high blood pressure, cholesterol,
diabetes or who smoke in midlife have a much higher risk of developing
Alzheimer's disease later on.
The more factors a person has, the higher the risk.
People with all four risk factors have more than double the risk of
Alzheimer's, the team at the Kaiser Permanent Division of Research in
Oakland, California found.
"The message is that the risk factors that are bad for the heart are bad for
the brain," Dr Marilyn Albert said, chair of scientific and medical research
at the non-profit Alzheimer's Association.
"That largely is because what happens to blood vessels in the heart is the
same as what happens to blood vessels in the brain," he said, whose group
was not involved in the study.
For the report, published in the journal Neurology, Rachel Whitmer and
colleagues studied nearly 9,000 people living in northern California.
The men and women from various ethnic groups were followed for 27 years.
Those with diabetes at age 40 to 45 were 46 per cent more likely to develop
dementia later on.
People with high cholesterol were 42 per cent more likely to develop
dementia while those with high blood pressure were 24 per cent more likely.
Smokers were 26 per cent more likely to develop dementia.
Smokers with diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol were more
than twice as likely to develop dementia, Ms Whitmer and colleagues
reported.
People who were treated for their conditions lowered their overall risk of
Alzheimer's, however.
"The real strength of our study is the large, multi-ethnic cohort of men and
women, followed up for 27 years, all with equal access to medical care," Ms
Whitmer said.
A team at Thomas Jefferson university in Philadelphia reports in the Public
Library of Science this month that taking statin drugs, which lower
cholesterol, also reduces the risk of Alzheimer's.
Heart experts believe the drugs not only reduce cholesterol levels but
somehow also keep the linings of blood vessels healthy.
Doctors say the prescriptions for avoiding heart disease and for lowering
the risk of Alzheimer's are similar - eat plenty of fresh fruits and
vegetables and nuts, and exercise daily.
The Alzheimer's Association advocates mental and physical exercise to help
lower the risk of the deadly and incurable brain disease.
"We can't prevent it but we can do an awful lot in our daily life to reduce
risk," Dr Albert said.
Physical, mental and social activity all seem to be important, she said.
Studies in the December issue of Neurology showed people who exercised and
who had social connections had less risk of mental decline.
Caz
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| Dennis P. Harris 2005-01-28, 8:01 am |
| On Fri, 28 Jan 2005 14:32:11 +0800 in alt.support.alzheimers,
"Caz" <here@don'tgothere.com> wrote:
> Those with diabetes at age 40 to 45 were 46 per cent more likely to develop
> dementia later on.
>
> People with high cholesterol were 42 per cent more likely to develop
> dementia while those with high blood pressure were 24 per cent more likely.
>
> Smokers were 26 per cent more likely to develop dementia.
>
> Smokers with diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol were more
> than twice as likely to develop dementia, Ms Whitmer and colleagues
> reported.
notice that this report says "dementia" not "alzheimers". of
course people who smoke or have clogged arteries are likely to
have dementia, but i'll bet that it's more often vascular
dementia, not AD.
and the journalist's story seems to treat them as the same when
they are not.
| |
| Tumbleweed 2005-01-28, 8:01 am |
|
"Dennis P. Harris" <NO_SPAM_TO_dpharris@gci.net> wrote in message
news:l9qjv0l55k78jgk6msfas1pu6krk1o2apc@4ax.com...
> On Fri, 28 Jan 2005 14:32:11 +0800 in alt.support.alzheimers,
> "Caz" <here@don'tgothere.com> wrote:
>
>
> notice that this report says "dementia" not "alzheimers". of
> course people who smoke or have clogged arteries are likely to
> have dementia, but i'll bet that it's more often vascular
> dementia, not AD.
>
> and the journalist's story seems to treat them as the same when
> they are not.
>
and, 'reducing a risk' is not the same as eliminating it, though I suspect
many people read the former as the latter.
--
Tumbleweed
email replies not necessary but to contact use;
tumbleweednews at hotmail dot com
| |
|
| "Tumbleweed" <thisaccountneverread@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:35u9bkF4rotqkU1@individual.net...
>
> "Dennis P. Harris" <NO_SPAM_TO_dpharris@gci.net> wrote in message
> news:l9qjv0l55k78jgk6msfas1pu6krk1o2apc@4ax.com...
more[vbcol=seagreen]
>
> and, 'reducing a risk' is not the same as eliminating it, though I suspect
> many people read the former as the latter.
>
Yes, though this is the part I found confusing:
(quote)"The message is that the risk factors that are bad for the heart are
bad for
the brain," Dr Marilyn Albert said, chair of scientific and medical research
at the non-profit Alzheimer's Association.
"That largely is because what happens to blood vessels in the heart is the
same as what happens to blood vessels in the brain," he said, whose group
was not involved in the study. (unquote)
My understanding is that heart blood vessels have been narrowed/hardened by
cholesterol deposits, whereas AD is a disease without known cause, which
destroys brain cells.
Caz
| |
| Tumbleweed 2005-01-28, 8:01 am |
|
"Caz" <here@don'tgothere.com> wrote in message
news:41f9f413@quokka.wn.com.au...
> "Tumbleweed" <thisaccountneverread@yahoo.com> wrote in message
> news:35u9bkF4rotqkU1@individual.net...
> more
> Yes, though this is the part I found confusing:
>
> (quote)"The message is that the risk factors that are bad for the heart
> are
> bad for
> the brain," Dr Marilyn Albert said, chair of scientific and medical
> research
> at the non-profit Alzheimer's Association.
>
> "That largely is because what happens to blood vessels in the heart is the
> same as what happens to blood vessels in the brain," he said, whose group
> was not involved in the study. (unquote)
>
> My understanding is that heart blood vessels have been narrowed/hardened
> by
> cholesterol deposits, whereas AD is a disease without known cause, which
> destroys brain cells.
>
> Caz
>
Thats true but dont forget the report is about dementia rather than Az.
--
Tumbleweed
email replies not necessary but to contact use;
tumbleweednews at hotmail dot com
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