A significant portion of people with mild cognitive impairment or dementia who are taking medication for Alzheimer’s may not actually have the disease, according to interim results of a major study underway to see how PET scans could change the nature of Alzheimer’s diagnosis and treatment. A positive test for amyloid does not mean someone has Alzheimer’s, though its presence precedes the disease and increases the risk of progression. (National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering)“If someone had a putative diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, they might be on an Alzheimer’s drug like Aricept or Namenda,” said James Hendrix, the Alzheimer Association’s director of global science initiatives who co-presented the findings. But spinal taps are invasive, and PET scans cost $3,000 to $4,000 and are typically not covered by insurance. After seeing the PET imaging results, they changed their care plans for two-thirds of the patients in the study.

Source: Washington Post July 19, 2017 07:05 UTC