ad, review, walk to end alz, duct tape, bb

AD
this is a one minute video on alzheimers produced by the
alzheimers association
take a minute to watch it

REVIEW
the new diagnostic criteria guidelines for alzheimers were
published recently

they are
preclinical alzheimers  there are no outward symptoms but mild
changes on biomarkers such as spinal fluid markers (tau protein,
beta-amyloid protein) and changes on research pet scans
this category is important not clinically but in research to find
individuals who can be used to test preventative techniques to
see if drugs or diet or bp control or cholesterol control can
slow down, stop, or prevent this disease progression

this stage classification is not used in the doctors office for any
reason right now but will be used a lot in research studies

this is where i was before i was diagnosed with the next stage
would have been a good research candidate in my 40s and 50s
if all this stuff was known then

mild cognitive impairment (this is my diagnosis) in which mild
changes in memory and thinking appear but do not impair every
day activities and functioning
i am very early in this phase and although symptoms are not
evident to others they are noticable to me
i feel like these did start to interfere with my practicing of medicine
and the fear of harm to patients is why i discontinued practicing
i have also been placed on aricept (donnepezil) which will slow
down the symptoms over time

the biomarkers mentioned above are positive in this category
i will be tested for all of these outside of the research study i am
in at this time (any studies done in the research study remain
blocked from review by myself or my doctors-part of the deal)
i have to do my testing outside of the research studies in a private
medical practice
i will report them when they come in this summer

remember it was my occupation that was the reason i
stopped working
had i been in another profession i would have continued to work

dementia is the final stage
this is where most people are diagnosed
medications are used to slow down symptoms but the disease will
march on
this stage as it progresses starts to affect the caretaker as well as
the patient

in the intial video above you can see the number of people with
the disease is high
well there is similar numbers in each of these categories so the
numbers of people affected is even greater-most dont know it yet

hopefully a drug can be developed that will slow the disease down
eg a drug to stop amyloid deposition in the brain if thats the cause
of this disease which will prevent or slow down or stop the disease
similar to what the statin drugs have done in slowing down or
preventing the development of arterial blockage in the heart

thats the goal here with these new classifications is to find a
preventive treatment for those at risk eg for my children or
grandkids or nephews and nieces and geat nephews and
great nieces and maybe yours

to be continued

WALK TO END ALZ
go to www.alz.org to locate your local walk to end alz this fall
and donate and plan to walk
or
donate to my team at
the austin walk to end alz team organicgreendoctor.com
and or join us for the walk

DUCT TAPE
whoa man found so many duct tape colors
the uses are endless
have a john deere lawn tractor with a bright yellow seat that has
developed some tears in it over the last few years
well found this nice bright yellow color (call it donal ducks
beak yellow) to use to patch those tears

have discovered that can use duct tape to cover the end of
caulk tubes and glue tubes after using them and they actually
seem to not dry out

BB
well the king james version of the nba finals start on tuesday
this is going to be a great series to watch
it sure took a long time to get to this point
bet players are all beat up

whose going to win
is it dirks time or is it james and wade and boshs time
time will tell

the organicgreen doctor

new guidelines, another study, weather, bb

NEW GUIDELINES
new guidelines came out yesterday in an article on classification
of alzheimers disease
this is significant since the last time this was done was 1984

this article in the ny times on alzheimers guidelines does a good
job describing the new guidelines and why they are important

these guidelines were used when making my diagnosis
mild cognitive impairment amnesic type felt to be secondary
to alzheimers

the testing that is discussed in this article and the guidelines are
not all readily available but i have had them or will have them
this month

these guidelines are important as they will identify people early
with the disease
hopefully these will provide tools for family doctors to use to
identify people earlier
in my case it was good that i was identified so that i could plan
my life and that i stop practicing medicine before some harm
was caused as my disease progressed

some people dont want to know but not me
it has made my life better knowing now (have always feared it
would happen)
luckily i have disability insurance that should kick in soon to help
with my financial situation and i have long term care insurance
to cover long term care later in life and i have health insurance
(notice these need to be obtained before the diagnosis is made as
you cant get life insurance, disability insurance, long term care
insurance or health insurance with my diagnosis)

with these new classifications as more people are identified earlier
then more research can be done on those people with the
disease earlier than before

thats why the study im in now is important as they are looking at
people with normal cognition and with an early diagnosis like mine
now new drugs and new tests can be designed to attack this
disease
it wont help me but it may help you or your kids or my kids

full article if you are interested  is at
http://www.alzheimersanddementia.org/content/ncg

next week i have a mri then will do other tests later

ANOTHER STUDY
next week i will also be involved in another study in which the
university is developing an online neuropsychological test that
your family doctor or neurologist can order on you
you can go online and complete it then it is sent to a
neuropsychologist to interpret
the report is then sent to you doctor

hopefully this online test will make it easier to get tested

i will be taking the online version of the test for the study
they are doing but it may not be available to the general
public without a doctors order

if it becomes available i will blog about it

remember on these genetic tests eg huntingtons, alzheimers, etc
you dont want it done until you have all your insurances lined up as
you wont be able to get them once it is placed in your medical
records

WEATHER
this weather we are having now is scary
its hot in the mid 90s and dry and real windy
there have been fires around here this last week and there are
fires in west texas
this is summer weather in april
it doesnt bode well for this area if this continues into the summer
especially if we have no rain
the fires will only increase if this happens

this is usually the time of the year when we can leave our doors
and windows open until june when it gets hot
its one of the good things of living where we do in the spring
the wind blowing through our house cooling it off during the day
not this year
we are using our air conditioning every day

we need rain

BB
nicks just dont have it this year
mavs may make through the first round
magic won maybe they will kick in now

the organicgreen doctor