People with atrial fibrillation, a form of abnormal heart rhythm, are more likely than others to develop dementia, including Alzheimer's disease, a new study finds.
The presence of atrial fibrillation also predicted higher death rates in dementia patients, especially among younger patients in the group studied, meaning under the age of 70.
"This leaves us with the finding that atrial fibrillation, independent of everything else, is a risk factor [for dementia]," said Dr. Gary Kennedy, director of geriatric psychiatry at Montefiore Medical Center in New York City. "This is adding one more brick in the road toward understanding that cardiovascular disease is a major risk factor for dementia."
"Alzheimer's disease, in particular, is one where we don't quite understand the risk factors and what causes it, so studies [like this] that try to investigate the causative effect will help us understand that and ultimately design therapies and approaches to prevent or minimize disease," added Dr. Jared Bunch, lead author of a study appearing in the April edition of the HeartRhythm Journal and a cardiologist/ electrophysiologist with Intermountain Medical Center in Murray, Utah.
This study, however, was not specifically set up to establish a direct cause-and-effect relationship.
The authors looked at 37,025 patients without atrial fibrillation or dementia, aged 60 to 90, over a five-year period.
Individuals who developed atrial fibrillation had a higher risk of all types of dementia, even when other risk factors were taken into account. Alzheimer's disease is by far the most common form of dementia.
More surprising was that those in the younger group -- under age 70 -- who had atrial fibrillation had the highest risk of developing dementia, even though dementia is normally associated with aging. People in this group were also at a 38 percent higher risk of dying.
Among the 764 patients who developed both conditions, diagnosis of atrial fibrillation usually happened first, followed by a diagnosis of dementia. Sometimes the diagnoses occurred simultaneously, the researchers noted.
The authors hypothesized that both atrial fibrillation and dementia may arise from the same risk factors, such as hypertension. Another possibility is that atrial fibrillation increases inflammation, and dementia has been shown to be higher in people with signs of systemic inflammation. Investigating whether treatment of hypertension and/or inflammation in AF patients might help curb the risk of dementia is an area of future study, the researchers added.
"From a public health perspective, the best thing we can do to decrease the coming epidemic of Alzheimer's disease is to do a much better, more aggressive job of helping people with heart disease," Kennedy said. "That means diet and exercise, of course -- everyone knows that. We need to look at obstacles that people encounter beyond their own behavior, obstacles we put up environmentally in the workplace, in the school, that keep people from having better diet and exercise. A heart-healthy diet and lifestyle are really the best means we have available to prevent dementia."
About 2.2 million Americans have atrial fibrillation, while an estimated 5.5 million suffer from Alzheimer's.
Source
Alzheimer's Association
Friday, 30 April 2010
Thursday, 29 April 2010
Association Statement On NIH State-of-the-science Report On Preventing Alzheimer's And Cognitive Decline
Alzheimer's disease is one of the most critical unaddressed health issues in America. Yet we are so far from meeting the challenges of this looming crisis.
According to the Alzheimer's Association's 2010 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures, there are as many as 5.3 million Americans living with Alzheimer's, and every 70 seconds someone in America develops the disease. Alzheimer's was the seventh-leading cause of death in the country in 2006, the latest year for which final death statistics are available.
It is critical that we, as a nation, significantly increase investments in Alzheimer research. In addition to the devastating impact on families, Alzheimer's also threatens the nation's healthcare system because of its significant costs.
Again, according to Facts and Figures, the total payments for health and long-term care services for people with Alzheimer's and other dementias will amount to $172 billion from all sources in 2010. The average per person Medicaid payments were nine times higher; Medicare payments were three times higher; and private insurance was 26 percent higher for older people with Alzheimer's and other dementias compared to other older people. If nothing is done to stop this disease, by mid-century as many as 16 million Americans will have Alzheimer's disease. America simply cannot afford this human, social and economic burden.
There are still many unanswered questions about the causes of Alzheimer's disease and cognitive decline in aging. Biomarkers, diagnostics, progression models, quality indicators and longitudinal clinical trials are critically necessary, and are all expensive and challenging areas of science. Unless we dedicate significant funding to these efforts, we will continue struggling to conduct this research.
There is a growing body of evidence that strongly suggests Alzheimer's disease can be prevented in the future. Robust funding to explore this area of science is also necessary. In the meantime, existing evidence-based guidance about brain health and maintaining cognitive abilities as we age must be promoted to the general public today to increase critical knowledge about Alzheimer's and help separate fact from myth.
Discovering effective interventions that prevent onset or delay disease progression takes on an all encompassing urgency as the nation braces for an aging baby boomer generation. Alzheimer's disease, unlike any other, has the power to undermine all of our best efforts to control healthcare costs. We know what the future will bring if we do nothing - more lives lost, overloaded nursing homes, overworked caregivers and an overwhelmed healthcare system.
The good news is that we, as a nation, know how to rise to meet such an overwhelming challenge. Although there is more work to be done, we can learn from the successes as a result of the war on cancer and the concerted effort to understand, prevent and treat HIV/AIDS. In fact, as the panel mentioned, from 2000 to 2006, death rates have declined for most major diseases, including some cancers and HIV/AIDS, while Alzheimer's disease deaths rose 46.1 percent. We must stem the tide. We must create a national, coordinated effort with commensurate, appropriate strategic investment in Alzheimer research funding to meet this crisis. It is the only way forward.
The Association is working to enact critical legislation to address these issues. The Alzheimer's Breakthrough Act will provide $2 billion in Alzheimer research funding at NIH; the National Alzheimer's Project Act will launch a coordinated campaign in the federal government and creates an inter-agency Advisory Council responsible for creating a national plan to overcome the Alzheimer's disease crisis. These solutions are critical to securing necessary resources and providing the strategic planning and coordination to the fight against Alzheimer's disease and meet the burgeoning public health need.
Source
Alzheimer's Association
According to the Alzheimer's Association's 2010 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures, there are as many as 5.3 million Americans living with Alzheimer's, and every 70 seconds someone in America develops the disease. Alzheimer's was the seventh-leading cause of death in the country in 2006, the latest year for which final death statistics are available.
It is critical that we, as a nation, significantly increase investments in Alzheimer research. In addition to the devastating impact on families, Alzheimer's also threatens the nation's healthcare system because of its significant costs.
Again, according to Facts and Figures, the total payments for health and long-term care services for people with Alzheimer's and other dementias will amount to $172 billion from all sources in 2010. The average per person Medicaid payments were nine times higher; Medicare payments were three times higher; and private insurance was 26 percent higher for older people with Alzheimer's and other dementias compared to other older people. If nothing is done to stop this disease, by mid-century as many as 16 million Americans will have Alzheimer's disease. America simply cannot afford this human, social and economic burden.
There are still many unanswered questions about the causes of Alzheimer's disease and cognitive decline in aging. Biomarkers, diagnostics, progression models, quality indicators and longitudinal clinical trials are critically necessary, and are all expensive and challenging areas of science. Unless we dedicate significant funding to these efforts, we will continue struggling to conduct this research.
There is a growing body of evidence that strongly suggests Alzheimer's disease can be prevented in the future. Robust funding to explore this area of science is also necessary. In the meantime, existing evidence-based guidance about brain health and maintaining cognitive abilities as we age must be promoted to the general public today to increase critical knowledge about Alzheimer's and help separate fact from myth.
Discovering effective interventions that prevent onset or delay disease progression takes on an all encompassing urgency as the nation braces for an aging baby boomer generation. Alzheimer's disease, unlike any other, has the power to undermine all of our best efforts to control healthcare costs. We know what the future will bring if we do nothing - more lives lost, overloaded nursing homes, overworked caregivers and an overwhelmed healthcare system.
The good news is that we, as a nation, know how to rise to meet such an overwhelming challenge. Although there is more work to be done, we can learn from the successes as a result of the war on cancer and the concerted effort to understand, prevent and treat HIV/AIDS. In fact, as the panel mentioned, from 2000 to 2006, death rates have declined for most major diseases, including some cancers and HIV/AIDS, while Alzheimer's disease deaths rose 46.1 percent. We must stem the tide. We must create a national, coordinated effort with commensurate, appropriate strategic investment in Alzheimer research funding to meet this crisis. It is the only way forward.
The Association is working to enact critical legislation to address these issues. The Alzheimer's Breakthrough Act will provide $2 billion in Alzheimer research funding at NIH; the National Alzheimer's Project Act will launch a coordinated campaign in the federal government and creates an inter-agency Advisory Council responsible for creating a national plan to overcome the Alzheimer's disease crisis. These solutions are critical to securing necessary resources and providing the strategic planning and coordination to the fight against Alzheimer's disease and meet the burgeoning public health need.
Source
Alzheimer's Association
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