Essay Contest Will Reward Caregivers With Respite
Caring Today magazine and Home Instead Senior Care have teamed up to offer the 2008 "Give a Caregiver a Break" Essay Contest. If you like to write, this could be a great opportunity for you to share your story. In 500 words or less, describe your day-to-day experiences of caregiving, including how you've embraced your role as a caregiver, how it's affected you, how you've inspired others, and how respite (short-term breaks from caregiving) would make a difference in your life.Entries must be submitted by July 16, 2008 (instructions are provided here). The Grand Prize winner will receive $5000 in respite care (in-home companionship, supervision, and related services), two First Prize winners will receive $2500 in respite care, and 12 Extraordinary Caregiver Award winners will receive $500 in respite care from a local Home Instead Senior Care agency.
If you're caring for your loved one with Alzheimer's or a related dementia, it's important for you to take a break from caregiving at least a few hours a week. It's essential for your physical and emotional health, and it helps prevent caregiver burnout. I applaud Caring Today and Home Instead Senior Care for offering this essay contest with very valuable prizes.
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Happy Mother's Day
This is a special day for individuals with Alzheimer's and caregivers who are also mothers. I wish you a restful, peaceful day spent with family and filled with the knowledge that you are loved.If you're caring for a mother with Alzheimer's, this might be a difficult day for you. Try to find an activity that you both enjoy and that can be adapted to your mother's current abilities. If you're caring for your mother and you're a mother yourself, let your children give you a gift of respite by caring for their grandmother so you can take a little break. Even short periods of rest can be rejuvenating and beneficial to your emotional and physical well-being.
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More Families Post Videos of Etanercept Results
About a month ago, I posted an update on etanercept treatment of Alzheimer's that included YouTube videos of real people with the disease before and after receiving the treatment. Since then, more videos have been posted, including one featuring a woman in her 50s named Linda. I encourage you to watch it, as well as view the updates that her husband Bob and other caregivers have taken the time to post.Etanercept treatment for Alzheimer's has received inconsistent attention in the media and scientific community, with varying degrees of skepticism and support. If you've read my previous blogs, you know that I approach Alzheimer's research with a critical mind and an open heart. Like others, I want to know whether etanercept is truly effective in a large sample and whether it poses any serious health risks (e.g., the manufacturer of etanercept, which is currently approved for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and similar conditions, recently added a warning to its label that the drug can increase susceptibility to tuberculosis).
But the only way to answer these questions is to conduct more research, including a large-scale clinical trial using rigorous methodology. Unfortunately, it takes several different organizations and entities to make this happen, which can be a difficult and protracted process. After seeing the before-and-after videos of Linda and other individuals trapped within the confines of Alzheimer's, it seems all the more urgent and justified to move forward.
Previous Blogs on Etanercept:
- Research Shows Reversal of Alzheimer's Symptoms
- More Thoughts on Etanercept Research
- The Latest on Etanercept Research
- Etanercept Treatment Garners More Attention
Illustration © Alzheimer's Disease Education and Referral Center
May Is Older Americans Month
May is Older Americans Month, an opportunity to honor older members of our society for their priceless contributions to family, community, education, the arts, science, and many other areas of influence. It's also a chance to thank the caring individuals who serve older adults and enrich their lives.How does Alzheimer's disease relate to Older Americans Month? In its proclamation, the Administration on Aging urges "all citizens/communities to work collaboratively to strengthen the services" provided to older adults "in ways that recognize the changing nature of their needs, and that provide older adults with more opportunities to make informed choices about their lives." This means offering compassionate Alzheimer's services that recognize the dignity of each individual and that help people with Alzheimer's stay at home for as long as possible, if that is their wish.
Of course, I think we should be honoring older adults and those who serve them every month, but May's designation as Older Americans Month is a nice reminder to do so.
It's also a great time to get involved in the Alzheimer's cause. For more information, see How to Join the Fight Against Alzheimer's.
Who are you going to thank this month?
Photo © Administration on Aging
SAGE's Health Fair to Include Information About Alzheimer's Disease
There isn't a lot of information or support for older adults with diverse sexual orientations and gender identities who are dealing with Alzheimer's disease. That's why I was so pleased to learn that SAGE (Services and Advocacy for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual & Transgender Elders) is including information about Alzheimer's at its 30th Anniversary Celebration and Senior Health Fair.The event will take place from 2 - 5 PM on Thursday, May 22, 2008 at the LGBT Community Center (208 West 13th Street) in New York City. The Alzheimer's Association will be there to provide information about the early warning signs of Alzheimer's and steps to finding and accessing health and support services. Information about other diseases that affect brain health such as diabetes, heart disease, and HIV will also be available.
I applaud SAGE, the Alzheimer's Association, and the other participating organizations for offering such a valuable event.
For More Information:
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Shorter Arms and Legs Associated with Increased Alzheimer's Risk
Here's something I must admit I've never considered: Are shorter arms and legs linked to an increased risk for Alzheimer's or other dementias?Apparently, there's some research to back this up. A study just published in the journal Neurology found that women with shorter arm spans were 1.5 times more likely to develop Alzheimer's than women with longer arm spans. Long legs were also a plus for women, indicated by a 16% reduction in Alzheimer's risk for each additional inch of leg length beyond the average. While arm length affected Alzheimer's risk in men, leg length was not a significant factor.
This study supports three previous studies in Korea that linked shorter limbs with an increased risk for cognitive impairment. Why are researchers finding this link? They theorize that shorter limbs are often due to poor nutrition in early life, which can also affect brain development. If the brain doesn't develop properly in childhood, it might be more susceptible to brain disorders in adulthood.
I know what you're thinking: "My mom and dad are/were both short, so that's why I'm short! It wasn't because of poor nutrition." That's right, genetic factors play a significant role in our development, too. Luckily, the researchers acknowledge that. Still, I guess I have another reason to be happy about being six feet tall.
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Should Drugs for Alzheimer's and Incontinence Be Combined?
Researchers from Wake Forest University School of Medicine have been busy conducting great research on Alzheimer's and related issues (see my previous blog). This time, they teamed up with researchers from Purdue University to study the combined effect of Alzheimer's medications and drugs for incontinence on 395 nursing home residents in Indiana. Changes in the residents' functioning were compared to changes in functioning among over 3,000 nursing home residents who were taking an Alzheimer's medication but not an incontinence drug.The results were startling. Those taking both Alzheimer's and incontinence drugs showed a 50% faster decline in functioning compared to those who were taking only an Alzheimer's medication.
There's a good reason why those taking both medications declined more rapidly. Alzheimer's medications such as Aricept, Exelon, and Razadyne increase levels of acetylcholine in the brain; on the other hand, incontinence drugs such as Ditropan actually block acetylcholine. In essence, the drugs work against each other.
If you're scratching your head at this point, you're not alone. I'm trying to figure out why approximately one third of people taking an Alzheimer's medication are also prescribed drugs for urinary incontinence.
Dr. Kaycee M. Sink, the lead author of the study, recommends that when treating people with Alzheimer's, "clinicians should continue to try non-drug management strategies for incontinence before beginning therapy with one of these common drugs." I couldn't agree more.
The good news: This study was conducted from 2003-2004, before newer incontinence medications became available. These newer drugs may have less of an effect on acetylcholine levels than older medications -- but this still needs to be researched.
What are your thoughts on this study? Post a comment to this blog, or start a new discussion in the forum.
For more information:
Photo of Ditropan © Gold Standard
Researchers Discover More About Memory
Researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine have learned by studying mice that protein-destroying "machines" hovering in the connections between brain cells might impede the formation of memories.What's interesting is that these cylinder-shaped machines -- called proteasomes -- are helpful to memory when they occur in a cell's nucleus. It's only when they linger in the dendrites -- the branches at the end of a nerve cell that transmit electrical signals to other cells -- that they interfere with memory.
The study, which was funded by the National Institutes of Health, is important because it could pave the way to future treatments for Alzheimer's and other dementias that focus on blocking the activity of proteasomes in the dendrites with the goal of improving memory.
Illustration of Neurons in the Aging Brain © A.D.A.M.
Does Anesthesia Increase Alzheimer's Risk?
Considering that over 200 million people undergo surgery each year, it's important to know whether common anesthetics could increase one's risk for Alzheimer's or other cognitive disorders.Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School recently studied human brain cells subjected to the common anesthetic desflurane for six hours in order to simulate a surgery situation. They found that when oxygen levels were normal, desflurane did not adversely affect the brain cells. However, when the cells were subjected to low oxygen levels, the desflurane was associated with increased production of beta amyloid, a protein found in elevated quantities in the brains of those with Alzheimer's. Low oxygen alone did not increase beta amyloid production.
What does this mean? The researchers say that because the study used cell cultures, their next step is to test the findings in animal models. It's not certain that anesthesia and low oxygen actually increase beta amyloid production in humans during surgery, but this is an important area of study given the prevalence of anesthetic use in medical care.
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Illustration © Alzheimer's Disease Education and Referral Center
Florida Congressman Wants Silver Alert Program
We've all heard of Amber Alert, the highly successful program designed to find missing children before it's too late. But have you heard of Silver Alert? Modeled after Amber Alert, Silver Alert notification systems help locate missing individuals who have Alzheimer's disease or related dementias.Five states currently operate Silver Alert programs: Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, North Carolina, and Texas. Florida Congressman Gus Bilirakus wants every state to have the resources to start Silver Alert programs.
Bilirakis recently introduced the Silver Alert Grant Program Act of 2008 (H.R. 5898). If passed, the program would provide state legislatures with seed money to implement their own Silver Alert systems. The congressman recently told the St. Petersburg Times that "states should make this a priority, and we don't want them to have any excuses."
I applaud Congressmen Bilirakus for introducing this bill, which was referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary. I'll be sure to keep you posted on its status.
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