New guidelines for diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease define its progression in three distinct stages, and encourage testing for changes in the brain that are associated with the development of the disease.
Protein powder supplements may slightly lower blood pressure, a study suggests. The study included 352 young adults. Some had early-stage high blood pressure. Others had pre-hypertension. This is blood pressure that is above normal, but too low for a diagnosis of high blood pressure. People in the study received 3 types of powdered food supplements. They were made of soy protein, milk protein or carbohydrates. Each person received one supplement at a time, for 8 weeks. There was a 3-week “wash-out” period with no supplements before each person switched to a different one. Blood pressure dropped about 2 points after people took either of the protein powders. It did not change with the carbohydrate powder. The study leader acknowledged that the drop in blood pressure was small. But he said it could have an impact on the overall population.
Many elderly nursing home patients with dementia are being prescribed antipsychotic medications, despite evidence that they are twice as likely to die during treatment.
Those with depression are more likely to lead a sedentary lifestyle, which is a significant risk factor for heart disease.
While medications are frequently prescribed to children with autism spectrum disorders, there is only slight evidence of any positive effect.
People with mental illnesses are particularly susceptible to metabolic syndrome, due to factors like a lack of exercise, poor nutrition, and medications that cause weight gain.
New guidelines for diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease aim to identify changes in the brain that are associated with the development of the disease.
Frequent falls or protein deposits in the eye could signal an increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease, two studies suggest. Both were presented at a conference in France. The fall study included 125 people with normal brain function. Their average age was 74. Journals they kept showed that 48 fell at least once in a 6-month period. Everyone was given a spinal tap to look for substances that can detect Alzheimer’s risk. People with these substances in their spinal fluid were much more likely to fall than others. The eye study compared photographs of the retina for 3 groups. These included 13 people with Alzheimer’s and 13 with mild cognitive impairment. This condition can lead to Alzheimer’s. The third group consisted of 110 healthy people. Blood vessels in people with Alzheimer’s were narrower. This showed they had a protein buildup in the vessels.
A new study finds that taking one type of pain reliever long-term may be risky for people with high blood pressure and heart disease. The study focused on nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). Some of the most popular over-the-counter pain relievers are NSAIDs. They include ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin and others) and naproxen (Aleve, Naprosyn and others). The group also includes a prescription medicine, celecoxib (Celebrex). The study focused on 882 people who took NSAIDs regularly. They were compared with almost 22,000 people who used these drugs from time to time or never. Everyone in the study had coronary artery disease and high blood pressure. Researchers kept track of them for about 3 years. In that time, the rate of death, heart attack and stroke was 47% higher in regular NSAIDs than in those who used the drugs less or not at all.
A fake treatment (placebo) can make asthma patients feel better just as well as a real treatment, a new study suggests. But tests showed the real treatment improved breathing more. The study included 39 asthma patients. Each person visited a doctor’s office 3 times, with a few days between visits. They received treatments each time, in random order. They were treated with a standard albuterol inhaler, a fake inhaler or fake acupuncture. They also were given no treatment sometimes. People also received repeated tests of their ability to exhale. These tests showed 20% improvement with the albuterol inhaler and 7% with the other approaches. But patients thought their breathing improved about 45% to 50% with all three of the active treatments. They thought there was a 21% improvement with no treatment. The study raises many questions about the so-called placebo effect.