A recent study from the University of Cambridge suggests that it may be able to identify dementia in patients almost a decade before they are diagnosed.
The discoveries now allow for the screening of at-risk people who may be eligible for early medical therapy to minimize their risk of dementia. Furthermore, new therapies may become more readily accessible for clinical testing.
The research was published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Alzheimer’s Association Journal. Researchers searched the U.K. Biobank database for dementia-related deficits such as problem-solving and numerical recall.
“When we looked back at patients’ histories, it became evident that they were demonstrating some cognitive impairment many years before their symptoms were severe enough to elicit a diagnosis,” research author Nol Swaddiwudhipong told Bloomberg in a statement.
