For decades, researchers have been exploring the advancement of Alzheimer’s through a single basic model, even though not all Alzheimer’s diagnoses present with the same symptoms and progression.
However now, a large, new collaborative study between the US, Sweden, Canada, and Korea is revealing some fascinating data to help us more fully understand and treat Alzheimer’s disease. Rather than one universal, dominant diagnosis of Alzheimer’s, researchers have discovered that there are 4 separate variants that occur in as many as 18 – 30% of cases. This change in thinking is helping researchers more fully comprehend the variations in the disease from person to person.
The findings are also significant in that they’re allowing specialists to begin to individualize treatment plans based on the particular subgroup diagnosed.
The study reviewed data from more than 1,600 individuals, identifying over 1,100 who were either in various stages of Alzheimer’s disease or who were not cognitively impaired at all. Researchers followed these participants for more than two years, funneling each person who presented tau abnormalities into four distinct sub-groups:
- Subgroup 1: Occurring in as many as one in three diagnoses, this variant involves the spreading of tau within the temporal lobe. The predominant impact is on memory.
- Subgroup 2: Having an effect on the cerebral cortex, the second variant has less of an effect on memory and more on executive functioning, such as planning and carrying out actions. It impacts about one in five Alzheimer’s patients.
- Subgroup 3: In this variant, the visual cortex is impacted, affecting a person’s orientation to self, ability to distinguish distance, shapes, contours, movement, and an object’s location in relation to other objects. Much like the first variant, it occurs in about one in three diagnoses.
- Subgroup 4: This variant represents an asymmetrical spreading of tau in the left hemisphere of the brain, resulting in the greatest impact on language and developing in about one out of five cases of Alzheimer’s.
Oskar Hansson, supervisor of the study and professor of neurology at Lund University, details next steps: “…we need a longer follow-up study over five to ten years to be able to confirm the four patterns with even greater accuracy.”
Regardless of which type of dementia a senior has, Independence-4-Seniors’ caregivers receive significant training in helping manage any challenges while focusing on his or her strengths. Independence-4-Seniors Home Care provides home care to Hinsdale and the surrounding area. Give us a call at 630-323-4665 and let us customize a plan of care to enhance life for a senior loved one with dementia.