Alzheimer's and Dementia

This fall, nationally renowned Alzheimers and dementia expert Lori La Bey joins Suzanne from Minneapolis at Alzheimer's Speaks. Lori talks about her personal experiences with her mom, who was first diagnosed in the 1980s. La Bey is a passionate advocate who searches for ways to shift our dementia care culture from crisis to comfort around the world.

Amy Schenk, community engagement lead at the Neuropsychiatric Research Center of Southwest Florida, joins Suzanne courtesy of Athira Pharma to talk about handling caregiver...

Certified Dementia Practitioner Amy Schenk joins Suzanne from Cape Coral, Florida, courtesy of Athira Pharma to talk about the difference between normal memory issues as a result of aging and abnormal issues, and indicators to watch for. What happens to our brains as we age normally, as well as what happens when it's not so normal. If you are seeing things that are different in the person you're concerned about, things that make you think "That's not like them," listen to your intuition.

Amy Schenk, community engagement lead at the Neuropsychiatric Research Center of Southwest Florida, joins Suzanne courtesy of Athira Pharma to talk about cutting-edge clinical trials. She educates, represents, supports and encourages people to take care of their brains. They talk about the stress of caregiving and risks for Alzheimer's disease. Preventative measures that are good for your heart are also good for your brain. Adequate sleep, a good diet, and hydration are important. Set healthy boundaries for yourself as a caregiver.

Certified Dementia Practitioner Amy Schenk joins Suzanne from Cape Coral, Florida, courtesy of Athira Pharma to talk about the impacts of the pandemic on families and people with Alzheimer’s disease. Amy also educates in both Assisted Living and Long Term Care environments.

Athira Pharma has a clinical trial right now for patients that potentially could treat people with any type of degenerative brain disease. It is being tested now with people who have Alzheimer's disease in mid stages and also with people who have Lewy body disease and Parkinson's disease. The medication speeds up thinking and processing and a long-term effect of increasing connections between brain cells. Suzanne Newman talks with Dr. Michael Mega, Director of the Center for Cognitive Health in Portland, Oregon. The center helps patients maximize their cognitive function as they cope with Alzheimer's disease and disorders of thinking.

This segment focuses on medical diagnoses for Alzheimer's disease, Lewy body dementia and Parkinson's. The field is rapidly changing. We now have biological markers for Alzheimer's: mis-folded proteins in the brain is the common thread for all degenerative diseases, including Parkinson's disease, Lou Gehrig's disease, and frontotemporal degeneration Pick's Disease. Being able to visualize these in PET scans (Positron Emission Tomography) lets us make a definitive diagnosis 15 years before someone begins having memory problems.

Suzanne Newman is joined by Dr. Michael Mega, Director of the Center for Cognitive Health in Portland, Oregon. Dr. Mega answers: How do you tell the difference between normal age-related forgetfulness and the beginnings of Alzheimer's?

This segment focuses on misconceptions of clinical trials and who qualifies for the Lewy body dementia clinical trial. Dr. Daniel Burdick, a physician's investigator at Evergreen Hospital Medical Center in Kirkland, Washington, covers these topics with Suzanne Newman.

This segment focuses on what doctors test in the Lewy body dementia clinical trial, as well as the importance of the study participant's care partner. Dr. Daniel Burdick walks Suzanne Newman through these aspects of the clinical trial. In the shape trial, doctors are looking at elements of safety and efficacy. Safety issues include studying bloodwork, physical exams, and checking things like changes in mood. The efficacy of the medication is studied by assessing the participant's cognition: the person's ability to remember, recall, fluidly use words, retain their focus and comprehension, and plan and follow events. They'll be asked to recall words and draw figures, and these are compared from the beginning to the end of the trial. Doctors also measure brain waves with EEG to get more objective data than they can from asking questions.