scholarly journals Do Alzheimer’s Disease Patients Appear Younger than Their Real Age?

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Zeynep Tufekcioglu ◽  
Başar Bilgic ◽  
Abdullah Emir Zeylan ◽  
Albert Ali Salah ◽  
Hamdi Dibeklioglu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Age Estimation ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Healthy Controls ◽  
Empirical Observation ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Computer Based ◽  
Estimation System ◽  
Facial Images

<b><i>Introduction:</i></b> The most prominent risk factor of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is aging. Aging also influences the physical appearance. Our clinical experience suggests that patients with AD may appear younger than their actual age. Based on this empirical observation, we set forth to test the hypothesis with human and computer-based estimation systems. <b><i>Method:</i></b> We compared 50 early-stage AD patients with 50 age and sex-matched controls. Facial images of all subjects were recorded using a video camera with high resolution, frontal view, and clear lighting. Subjects were recorded during natural conversations while performing Mini-Mental State Examination, including spontaneous smiles in addition to static images. The images were used for age estimation by 2 methods: (1) computer-based age estimation; (2) human-based age estimation. Computer-based system used a state-of-the-art deep convolutional neural network classifier to process the facial images contained in a single-video session and performed frame-based age estimation. Individuals who estimated the age by visual inspection of video sequences were chosen following a pilot selection phase. The mean error (ME) of estimations was the main end point of this study. <b><i>Results:</i></b> There was no statistically significant difference between the ME scores for AD patients and healthy controls (<i>p</i> = 0.33); however, the difference was in favor of younger estimation of the AD group. The average ME score for AD patients was lower than that for healthy controls in computer-based estimation system, indicating that AD patients were on average estimated to be younger than their actual age as compared to controls. This difference was statistically significant (<i>p</i> = 0.007). <b><i>Conclusion:</i></b> There was a tendency for humans to estimate AD patients younger, and computer-based estimations showed that AD patients were estimated to be younger than their real age as compared to controls. The underlying mechanisms for this observation are unclear.

Performance of healthy elderly with Alzheimer's disease at an early stage in executive function and language

2011 ◽  
Vol 26 (S2) ◽  
pp. 498-498
Author(s):  
M.T. Santos ◽  
G.C. Couto ◽  
J.C. Achieri ◽  
C.A. Júnior
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Screening Tests ◽  
Healthy Elderly ◽  
Initial Stage ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Common Causes ◽  
The Impact

Dementia are increasingly prevalent in population. The most common causes of dementia is Alzheimer's disease (AD). Screening tests have been used for the premature diagnosis of Alzheimer Disease (AD), specifically in the executive functions and language, which are compromised at an initial stage. However, the necessity standardized means and validated for our middle, to show oneself a pressing subject.ObjectiveTo analyze the impact of the length of sentences in the abstraction of proverbs in the Screening Test for Alzheimer's disease with Proverbs (TRDAP), healthy elderly and with Alzheimer's disease at early stage.MethodSurvey document in the database, analyzing the responses of the elderly (abstract or concrete interpretation of proverbs), relating the length of sentences (sayings) of stage B of TRDAP with the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease and the interference of age and schooling.ResultsHealthy older people showed greater capacity for abstraction than those with AD. There was Significant differences, in the sayings 1 (p = 0.033) and 2 (p = 0.001), corresponding to lower sentences, which did not occur with the proverb 3. As for age no verified significant difference among the healthy and only saying 3 in AD patients, however schooling differenced the healthy.ConclusionElderly with Alzheimer's disease at an initial stage have lower performance in the comprehension of ambiguous sentences, interpretation and abstraction of proverbs, corroborating with the data of the literature. The size of these sentences appears to be inversely proportional to the correctness of interpretation in elderly patients with and without AD.

scholarly journals Investigation of five polymorphic DNA markers associated with late onset Alzheimer disease

Genetika ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 503-514 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jalal Gharesouran ◽  
Maryam Rezazadeh ◽  
Mohaddes Mojtaba
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Dna Markers ◽  
Neurodegenerative Disorder ◽  
Late Onset ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Healthy Controls ◽  
Genotype Frequencies ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
And Control

Alzheimer's disease is a complex neurodegenerative disorder characterized by memory and cognitive impairment and is the leading cause of dementia in the elderly. The aim of our study was to examine the polymorphic DNA markers CCR2 (+190 G/A), CCR5?32, TNF-? (-308 G/A), TNF-? (-863 C/A) and CALHM1 (+394 C/T) to determine the relationship between these polymorphisms and the risk of late onset Alzheimer's disease in the population of Eastern Azerbaijan of Iran. A total of 160 patient samples and 163 healthy controls were genotyped by PCR-RFLP and the results confirmed using bidirectional sequencing. Statistical analysis of obtained data revealed non-significant difference between frequency of CCR5?32 in case and control groups. The same result was observed for TNF-? (-863 C/A) genotype and allele frequencies. Contrary to above results, significant differences were detected in frequency of TNF-? (-308 G/A) and CCR2-64I genotypes between the cases and healthy controls. A weak significant difference observed between allele and genotype frequencies of rs2986017 in CALHM1 (+394 C/T; P86L) in patient and control samples. It can be concluded that the T allele of P86L variant in CALHM1 & +190 G/A allele of CCR2 have a protective role against abnormal clinical features of Alzheimer's disease.

scholarly journals A Strategy for Identifying the Risk of Developing Alzheimer's Disease From Healthy Controls: Distance to Novelty Detection Boundary

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiangbing Mao ◽  
Qinyong Ye ◽  
Hongqing Yang ◽  
Magda Bucholc ◽  
Shuo Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Cognitive Impairment ◽  
Cognitive Decline ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Novelty Detection ◽  
Imaging Biomarkers ◽  
Support Vector ◽  
Support Vector Data Description ◽  
Healthy Controls

Abstract Background:Machine learning (ML) techniques are expected to tackle the problem of the high prevalence of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) we are facing worldwide. However, few studies of novelty detection (ND), a typical ML technique for safety-critical systems especially in healthcare, were engaged for identifying the risk of developing cognitive impairment from healthy controls (HC) population.Materials and Methods: Two independent datasets were used for this study, including the Australian Imaging Biomarkers and Lifestyle Study of Ageing (AIBL) and the Fujian Medical University Union Hospital (FMUUH), China datasets. Multiple feature selection methods were applied to identify the most relevant features for predicting the severity of AD. Four easily interpretable ND algorithms, including k nearest neighbor, Mixture of Gaussian (MoG), KMEANS, and support vector data description were used to construct predictive models. The models were visualized by drawing their decision boundaries tightly surrounding the HC data. A distance to boundary (DtB) strategy was proposed to differentiate individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and AD from HC. Results: The best overall MCI&AD detection performance in both AIBL and FMUUH was obtained on the cognitive and functional assessments (CFA) modality only using MoG-based ND with AUC of 0.8757 and 0.9443, respectively. The highest sensitivity of MCI was presented by using a combination of CFA and brain imaging modality. The DTB value reflects the risk of developing cognitive impairment for HC and the dementia severity of MCI/AD.Conclusions: Our findings suggest that applying some non-invasive and cost-effective features can significantly detect cognitive decline in an early stage. The visualized decision boundary and the proposed DtB strategy illustrated the severity of cognitive decline of potential MCI&AD patients in an early stage. The results would help inform future guidelines for developing a clinical decision-making support system aiming at an early diagnosis and prognosis of MCI&AD.

The Effectiveness and Safety of Chemical Drugs Combined with Acupuncture for Alzheimer’s Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shenghua Yu ◽  
Hongjie Liu ◽  
Li Xu ◽  
Yan Zhang ◽  
Yan Ma ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Small Sample Size ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
Risk Of Bias ◽  
Disease Assessment ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Significant Difference

Introduction: Acupuncture has been applied with chemical drugs to treat Alzheimer’s disease (AD) in the clinic. Whether such combination is effective and safe should be studied although it is recommended by some researchers.Methods: To explore the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture combined with the chemical drugs for AD, databases like PubMed, Web of Science were searched to retrieve randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on AD treated with acupuncture and chemical drugs to perform meta-analysis. The risk of bias in each study was assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias scale. Meta-analysis was performed using RevMan 5.3.Results: Five studies were included in which only donepezil combined with acupuncture was evaluated. Acupuncture combined with donepezil showed a significant difference in effectiveness rate [RR=1.45, 95% CI (1.19, 1.77), P=0.0002] compared with donepezil. On the comparison of mini-mental state examination (MMSE) score and Alzheimer's disease assessment scale cognitive subscale (ADAS-Cog) score there was no difference. However, after one trial with severe AD patients was removed, acupuncture combined with donepezil showed better effect than donepezil alone. Conclusion: Acupuncture combined with donepezil could work on AD at the early stage or with mild AD, implying that acupuncture could be a complementary therapy for AD at early stage or with mild condition. Besides, scalp acupuncture seems to be more effective on improving cognitive function. However, this conclusion must be considered cautiously, given the small sample size and lack of trials of high quality. Therefore, more high-quality, multicenter, prospective, RCTs with large sample sizes are needed to further clarify the effect of acupuncture combined with chemical drugs for AD.

scholarly journals Elevated Angiopoietin-1 Serum Levels in Patients with Alzheimer’s Disease

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brigitte Schreitmüller ◽  
Thomas Leyhe ◽  
Elke Stransky ◽  
Niklas Köhler ◽  
Christoph Laske
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Cognitive Impairment ◽  
Serum Levels ◽  
Cognitive Status ◽  
Potential Candidate ◽  
Healthy Controls ◽  
Healthy Elderly ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Angiopoietin 1

Background. Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia in the elderly. AD is characterized by the accumulation of amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles and by massive neuronal loss in the brain. There is epidemiologic and pathologic evidence that AD is associated with vascular risk factors and vascular diseases, contributing to cerebral hypoperfusion with consecutive stimulation of angiogenesis and upregulation of proangiogenic factors such as Angiopoietin-1 (Ang-1).Methods. In the present study, we measured Ang-1 serum levels in 42 patients with AD, 20 patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and in 40 healthy elderly controls by ELISA.Results. We found significantly increased Ang-1 serum levels in patients with AD compared to control subjects(P=0.003). There was no significant difference between MCI patients and healthy controls(P=0.553)or between AD and MCI patients(P=0.054). The degree of cognitive impairment as measured by the mini-mental status examination (MMSE) score was significantly correlated with the Ang-1 serum levels in all patients and healthy controls.Conclusions. We found significantly increased Ang-1 serum levels in AD patients. We could also show an association between Ang-1 serum levels and the cognitive status in all patients and healthy controls. Thus, serum Ang-1 could be a potential candidate for a biomarker panel for AD diagnosis.

scholarly journals Study on the Behavioural Assessment of the Dysexecutive Syndrome (BADS) performance in healthy individuals, Mild Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer's disease: A preliminary study

2009 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 101-107 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cristiane Garcia da Costa Armentano ◽  
Cláudia Sellitto Porto ◽  
Sonia Maria Dozzi Brucki ◽  
Ricardo Nitrini
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Cognitive Impairment ◽  
Mild Cognitive Impairment ◽  
Rating Scale ◽  
Neuropsychiatric Symptoms ◽  
Inhibitory Response ◽  
Healthy Controls ◽  
Healthy Individuals ◽  
Significant Difference

Abstract Executive deficits as well as deficits in episodic memory characterize the initial phases of Alzheimer Disease (AD) and are clinically correlated to neuropsychiatric symptoms and functional loss. Patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment present more problems as to inhibitory response control, switching and cognitive flexibility. Objective: To compare performance on the BADS with performance on other executive functional tests among patients with mild Alzheimer's disease, Amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment (aMCI) to performance of control individuals and to examine discriminative capacity of BADS among these groups. Methods: The BADS was performed by 35 healthy controls, 13 patients with aMCI, and 16 mild probable AD patients. Besides performing the BADS, subjects underwent neuropsychological evaluation which comprised: the Dementia Rating Scale (DRS), verbal fluency by phonemic categories (F.A.S) and Concentrated Attention Test (CA). Results: There were no differences among groups by educational level, but performance differed for age (p<0.01). No difference between healthy controls and aMCI patients was found on total scores or subitems of the BADS. A significant difference was observed between aMCI and AD patients (p<0.05) and between controls and AD patients (p<0.05) on total and standard scores. Conclusions: Performance on the BADS differed between healthy individuals and mild AD patients. The BADS proved to be a sensitive method for discriminating AD from aMCI.

scholarly journals Dual Task Abilities as a Possible Preclinical Marker of Alzheimer's Disease in Carriers of the E280A Presenilin-1 Mutation

2011 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 234-241 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah E. MacPherson ◽  
Mario A. Parra ◽  
Sonia Moreno ◽  
Francisco Lopera ◽  
Sergio Della Sala
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Gene Mutation ◽  
Dual Task ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Genetic Mutation ◽  
Coordination Mechanism ◽  
Presenilin 1 ◽  
Healthy Controls ◽  
Presenilin 1 Mutation

AbstractPrevious dual task studies have demonstrated that patients with sporadic Alzheimer's disease (AD) are impaired in their ability to perform two tasks simultaneously compared with healthy controls, despite being able to successfully perform the tasks alone relatively well. Yet, it remains unclear what the earliest clinical manifestation of this dual task coordination deficit is. This study examined dual task abilities in individuals who are at risk of early-onset familial AD due to an E280A presenilin-1 mutation. Thirty-nine carriers of the gene mutation who did not meet the criteria for AD and 29 non-carrier healthy controls were asked to perform digit recall accompanied by a secondary tracking task. Individuals who were carriers of the genetic mutation demonstrated significantly higher dual task costs than healthy non-carriers. Dual task performance was found to be more sensitive to this very early stage of FAD than episodic memory measures. The findings support the notion that a deficit in the coordination mechanism of the central executive may be a pre-clinical marker for the early detection of AD due to the E280A presenilin-1 gene mutation. (JINS, 2012, 18, 234–241)

scholarly journals Perceived Rights of and Social Distance to People with Alzheimer’s Disease

GeroPsych ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisabeth Bourkel ◽  
Dieter Ferring ◽  
Germain Weber
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Social Distance ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Minor Degree ◽  
Female Target ◽  
A Minor

The present study investigated how laypeople and professionals (N = 185) judge the rights of someone affected with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and whether social distance exists toward this person. Participants completed a questionnaire after reading a vignette describing a target person with an early stage of AD. Half of the participants responded to a female target, the other half to a male target. Results showed that the rights and competencies of the persons are rated high and social distance is exhibited only to a minor degree, although there was a significant difference between the male and female targets. Furthermore, health professionals approved more rights than laypeople, which suggests that there is a need for more detailed information about this disease in the general population.

A Review of Computer-Based Cognitive Training for Individuals With Mild Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer's Disease

2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 47-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kimberly D. Mueller
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Cognitive Impairment ◽  
Mild Cognitive Impairment ◽  
Cognitive Function ◽  
Cognitive Training ◽  
Training Programs ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Significant Evidence ◽  
Computer Based

Computer-based cognitive training programs are increasing in popularity, not only due to trends in technological advances, but also due to the intense marketing campaigns of such programs toward late-middle-aged and older adults. This article's objective is to evaluate the effectiveness of computer-based cognitive training programs in maintaining or improving cognitive function in people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and early-stage Alzheimer's disease (AD). Twelve databases were searched using terms related to computerized cognitive training (CCT) and MCI and Alzheimer's disease (AD). Two raters independently extracted articles using agreed-upon criteria. Due to the heterogeneity of the samples, interventions, and outcomes, data of the studies was not statistically pooled for meta-analysis. Ten studies met the inclusion criteria and the findings were summarized. All of the studies reviewed provided support that computerized cognitive interventions are feasible in people with MCI or early-stage AD. None of the studies yielded significant evidence to support the use of CCT alone for improvement or maintenance of cognitive function in people with MCI or AD. Further, no studies presented significant evidence of transfer of training to everyday skills and tasks. Recommendations for evaluating products and for areas of research need are provided.

Semantic Memory as an Early Cognitive Marker of Alzheimer’s Disease: Role of Category and Phonological Verbal Fluency Tasks

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Camillo Marra ◽  
Chiara Piccininni ◽  
Giovanna Masone Iacobucci ◽  
Alessia Caprara ◽  
Guido Gainotti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Semantic Memory ◽  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Wilks Lambda ◽  
Marginal Means ◽  
Post Hoc

Background: The assessment of semantic memory may be a useful marker to identify individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) who will progress to Alzheimer’s disease (AD) in the early stages of the disease. Objective: The aim of this five-year follow-up longitudinal study is to assess whether semantic assessment could predict progression in MCI. Methods: A population of MCI (N = 251); mild (N = 178) and moderate AD (N = 114); and a sample of healthy participants (HP; N = 262) was investigated. The five-year follow-up of the MCI group was completed by 178 patients. Semantic and episodic memory measures were used, including a measure of the discrepancy between categorical and phonological verbal fluency, the semantic–phonological delta (SPD). The main outcome was the progression of MCI due to AD to dementia. Results: A general linear model showed a significant effect of diagnosis on SPD (Wilks’ Lambda = 0.591; p <  0.001). The estimated marginal means were –0.91 (SE = 0.185) in HP, –1.83 (SE = 0.187) in MCI, –1.16 (SE = 0.218) in mild AD, and –1.02 (SE = 0.275) in moderate AD. Post-hoc comparisons showed a significant difference between MCI and HP (p <  0.001). The follow-up was completed by 178 MCI individuals. SPD in MCI patients who progress to dementia was significantly lower than in MCI that will not progress (p = 0.003). Together with the Mini-Mental State Examination, the SPD was the only measure with a significant predicting effect at the five-years follow-up (p = 0.016). Conclusion: The SPD indicate the impairment of semantic memory in individuals with underlying AD at the MCI early stage, reflecting the early involvement of perirhinal and entorhinal cortices in the earliest stages of AD neuropathological process.

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