http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. Activating an enzyme known to play a role in the anti-aging benefits of calorie restriction delays the loss of brain cells and preserves cognitive function in mice, according to a study published in the May 22 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience. The findings could one day guide researchers to discover drug alternatives that slow the progress of age-associated impairments in the brain. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-caloric-intake-nerve-cell-loss.html Neuroscience Tue, 21 May 2013 17:00:09 EST news288374042 Researchers from the Indiana University Center for Aging Research and the Regenstrief Institute are conducting the nation's first randomized controlled dementia screening trial to weigh the benefits and risks of routine screening for dementia. The results of the five-year trial will help policy-makers, individuals and families weigh the pros and cons of routine screening of adults age 65 and older. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-iu-regenstrief-nation-randomized-dementia.html Alzheimer's disease & dementia Thu, 04 Apr 2013 11:35:48 EST news284294140 More symptoms of depression and lower cognitive status are independently associated with a more rapid decline in the ability to handle tasks of everyday living, according to a study by Columbia University Medical Center researchers in this month's Journal of Alzheimer's Disease. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-depression-alzheimer-patients-declining-ability.html Alzheimer's disease & dementia Tue, 19 Mar 2013 09:49:07 EST news282905326 A study in the JAMA Neurology (formerly the Archives of Neurology) suggests that controlling or preventing risk factors such as hypertension earlier in life may limit or delay the brain changes associated with Alzheimer's disease and other age-related neurological deterioration. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-uncontrolled-hypertension-alzheimer-disease.html Alzheimer's disease & dementia Mon, 18 Mar 2013 18:36:24 EST news282850567 Innovative medical records software developed by geriatricians and informaticians from the Regenstrief Institute and the Indiana University Center for Aging Research will provide more personalized health care for older adult patients, a population at significant risk for mental health decline and disorders. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-dynamic-software-aging-brain.html Health Thu, 14 Mar 2013 13:09:11 EST news282485344 (Medical Xpress)—New findings by Columbia researchers suggest that along with amyloid deposits, white matter hyperintensities (WMHs) may be a second necessary factor for the development of Alzheimer's disease. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-amyloid-white-hyperintensities-alzheimer-disease.html Alzheimer's disease & dementia Tue, 19 Feb 2013 17:04:03 EST news280515824 Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) researchers have identified a protein trafficking defect within brain cells that may underlie common non-familial forms of Parkinson's disease. The defect is at a point of convergence for the action of at least three different genes that had been implicated in prior studies of Parkinson's disease. Whereas most molecular studies focus on mutations associated with rare familial forms of the disease, these findings relate directly to the common non-familial form of Parkinson's. The study was published today in the online edition of the journal Neuron. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-treatment-non-familial-parkinson.html Parkinson's & Movement disorders Wed, 06 Feb 2013 13:17:15 EST news279379025 The pattern of blood flow in the prefrontal cortex in the brains alters with age during multi-tasking, finds a new study in BioMed Central's open access journal BMC Neuroscience. Increased blood volume, measured using oxygenated haemoglobin (Oxy-Hb) increased at the start of multitasking in all age groups. But to perform the same tasks, healthy older people had a higher and more sustained increase in Oxy-Hb than younger people. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-01-brain-copes-multi-tasking-age.html Neuroscience Thu, 17 Jan 2013 19:00:02 EST news277661639 Older adults who have suffered from aphasia for a long time can nevertheless improve their language function and maintain these improvements in the long term, according to a study by Dr. Ana Inés Ansaldo, PhD, a researcher at the Research Centre of the Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal (University Geriatrics Institute of Montreal) and a professor in the School of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology at the Faculty of Medicine of Université de Montréal. The study was published in Brain and Language. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-01-intensive-aphasia-older-patients.html Neuroscience Wed, 09 Jan 2013 04:33:12 EST news276928315 The approach of the Indianapolis Discovery Network for Dementia—with contributions from family members, community advocates, health care systems and researchers—improves dementia care and informs dementia research, according to a new study by researchers from the Regenstrief Institute and the Indiana University Center for Aging Research. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-network-village-approach-dementia.html Alzheimer's disease & dementia Mon, 19 Nov 2012 13:27:50 EST news272554062 The development of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is much like that of children without ASD at 6 months of age, but differs afterwards. That's the main finding of the largest prospective, longitudinal study to date comparing children with early and later diagnosis of ASD with children without ASD. The study appears in the journal Child Development and has implications for clinical work, public health, and policy. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-months-children-autism.html Autism spectrum disorders Tue, 30 Oct 2012 06:37:51 EST news270797855 Older patients undergoing cardiac surgery often experience changes in cognitive function, such as memory problems or an inability to focus, in the days immediately following their operations. While these changes are usually temporary, for unknown reasons, a significant number of cardiac patients will encounter long-term cognitive problems, lasting as long as a year after their surgeries. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-07-postoperative-delirium-cardiac-surgery-patients.html Cardiology Wed, 04 Jul 2012 17:00:04 EST news260626574 The first study to examine the actual willingness of older adults to be screened for dementia has found that acceptance of screening is pervasive, although it varies by age. However, willingness to be screened for dementia does not differ by sex, race or income level. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-willingness-screened-dementia-varies-age.html Alzheimer's disease & dementia Tue, 19 Jun 2012 11:41:57 EST news259324903 The state of acute confusion and disorientation known as delirium can stem from a serious illness, surgery or infection, and often develops while patients are in the hospital. Now a new study confirms that for patients with Alzheimer's disease, hospitalization and delirium pose a particular risk and can lead to adverse outcomes, including hastened cognitive decline, institutionalization and death. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-alzheimer-patients-adverse-outcomes-delirium.html Alzheimer's disease & dementia Mon, 18 Jun 2012 17:00:19 EST news259251672 A new study shows that a practical clinical tool developed by researchers from the Regenstrief Institute and the Indiana University School of Medicine to measure severity of dementia symptoms is reliable and valid. The Healthy Aging Brain Care Monitor is simple, user-friendly and sensitive to change in symptoms. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-free-user-friendly-blood-pressure-cuff.html Alzheimer's disease & dementia Thu, 14 Jun 2012 11:30:14 EST news258892202 An innovative model of dementia care that significantly reduces emergency department visits and hospitalizations, and encourages use of medications that are not harmful to older brains, has now been used to treat over 1,000 patients. The Aging Brain Care model was developed by researcher-clinicians from the Regenstrief Institute and the Indiana University School of Medicine. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-dementia-hospitalizations-successfully.html Alzheimer's disease & dementia Thu, 31 May 2012 12:48:13 EST news257687259 A drug prescribed for Alzheimer's disease does not ease clinically significant agitation in patients, according to a new study conducted by researchers from the U.K., U.S. and Norway. This is the first randomized controlled trial designed to assess the effectiveness of the drug (generic name memantine) for significant agitation in Alzheimer's patients. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-alzheimer-drug-significant-agitation.html Alzheimer's disease & dementia Wed, 02 May 2012 17:10:05 EST news255191859 The resources developed for an innovative collaborative model of dementia care, which reduces emergency room and hospital visits and improves the quality of care for those with dementia, are now available to institutions, clinicians and caregivers around the globe with the establishment of the Aging Brain Care Program. The ABC Program is the first initiative of the new Senior Health Implementation Center at the Regenstrief Institute. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-regenstrief-successful-aging-brain-globally.html Health Wed, 02 May 2012 12:00:01 EST news255176387 Neither screening for cognitive impairment nor screening followed by computerized alerts to the health care team improved patient outcome according to the first randomized, controlled study of care provided to hospitalized patients with cognitive impairment. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-screening-cognitive-impairment-hospitals.html Alzheimer's disease & dementia Fri, 20 Apr 2012 10:11:56 EST news254135499 The aging brain loses its ability to recognize when it is time to move on to a new task, explaining why the elderly have difficulty multi-tasking, Yale University researchers report. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-aging-brain-stuck.html Neuroscience Wed, 14 Mar 2012 10:18:05 EST news250939077 Strong scientific evidence exists that eating blueberries, blackberries, strawberries and other berry fruits has beneficial effects on the brain and may help prevent age-related memory loss and other changes, scientists report. Their new article on the value of eating berry fruits appears in ACS' Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-strong-scientific-evidence-berries-benefits.html Health Wed, 07 Mar 2012 16:01:34 EST news250358486 For decades, researchers have debated whether Alzheimer's disease starts independently in vulnerable brain regions at different times, or if it begins in one region and then spreads to neuroanatomically connected areas. A new study by Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) researchers strongly supports the latter, demonstrating that abnormal tau protein, a key feature of the neurofibrillary tangles seen in the brains of those with Alzheimer's, propagates along linked brain circuits, "jumping" from neuron to neuron. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-02-alzheimer-disease-brain-region.html Neuroscience Wed, 01 Feb 2012 17:00:10 EST news247336803 In the US alone, at least 500,000 people suffer from Parkinson's disease, a neurological disorder that affects a person's ability to control his or her movement. New technology from the University of Bonn in Germany lets researchers observe the development of the brain cells responsible for the disease. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-visualize-parkinson-cells.html Medical research Tue, 31 Jan 2012 05:03:09 EST news247208559 New research links 'silent strokes,' or small spots of dead brain cells, found in about one out of four older adults to memory loss in the elderly. The study is published in the January 3, 2012, print issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-12-clues-older-people-memory.html Neuroscience Wed, 28 Dec 2011 15:53:37 EST news244310011 A new national plan of action provides a roadmap for improving the care of patients with delirium, a poorly understood and often unrecognized brain condition that affects approximately seven million hospitalized Americans each year. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-11-brains-tackling-delirium.html Health Thu, 17 Nov 2011 10:23:15 EST news240747787 (Medical Xpress) -- Neuroscientists have long known that memory, sleep quality and sleep duration deteriorate with age, yet sleep enhances two major types of learning in young people. To date, few investigations have looked at whether cognitive decline is related to decreases in sleep quality and quantity in older adults. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-11-benefit-older-adults-young-people.html Neuroscience Mon, 14 Nov 2011 06:53:43 EST news240476013 A tiny difference in the coding pattern of a single gene significantly affects the rate at which men's intellectual function drops with advancing age, investigators at the Stanford University School of Medicine and the Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System have learned. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-10-gene-variation-age-related-decline-mental.html Psychology & Psychiatry Tue, 25 Oct 2011 04:19:35 EST news238735158 Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) are two of the most prevalent forms of neurodegenerative disorders. In a study published online today in Genome Research, researchers have analyzed changes in gene expression in the aging and diseased brain, finding new clues to the biology of normal aging and neurodegenerative diseases. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-08-reveals-link-alzheimer-disease-healthy.html Genetics Mon, 15 Aug 2011 17:00:01 EST news232642158 Researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine have published new data on why the aging brain is less resilient and less capable of learning from life experiences. The findings provide further insight into the cognitive decline associated with aging and neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's. The study is published in the May 25 issue of the Journal of Neuroscience. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-05-ability-aging-brain.html Neuroscience Tue, 24 May 2011 17:54:11 EST news225478434