Five Significant Strides Made in Alzheimer’s Research in 2023
Last year was a major year for Alzheimer’s disease research. After spending decades studying the debilitating neurological condition, 2023 saw scientists make significant advancements that opened the door to an entirely new era of Alzheimer’s treatments.
The condition affects an estimated 6.7 million Americans and is projected to affect close to 13 million Americans by mid-century. It typically affects people older than 65 years of age and compromises an individual’s thinking, memory, judgment, problem-solving, language and personality as it progresses.
Treatments such as cognitive rehabilitation and cognitive stimulation therapy can temporarily improve symptoms, but there currently exists no cure for the condition.
Regulators approved three new Alzheimer’s treatments through the year, and a fourth one is slated to gain approval. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted traditional approval to Leqembi to treat mild Alzheimer’s dementia and mild cognitive impairment in July 2023. The agency also approved brexpiprazole in May to help manage agitation in Alzheimer’s disease patients.
Researchers also made notable advancements in Alzheimer’s blood tests via the development of a simple finger-prick test capable of detecting the neurodegenerative condition. Swedish scientists discovered that they could detect warning signs for Alzheimer’s disease in blood that had been collected remotely and shipped overnight without refrigeration. In another Swedish study, blood tests allowed primary care physicians to identify Alzheimer’s-related changes in more than 85% of cases.
A 2023 study discovered that hearing aids could slow cognitive decline in older adults at much higher rates. The study found that 65% of adults older than 60 years of age suffered from hearing loss. For the study participants with a higher risk of developing cognitive decline, researchers discovered that their risk of cognitive decline was reduced by a whopping 48% when they used hearing aids and attended hearing counseling.
Another study identified an increased risk of death in older adults with dementia who used opioids for the first time. Drawing its data from the entire Danish population of adults aged 65 and older with dementia, the study found that participants’ risk of death increased by four times within 180 days of their first opioid prescription.
Strong opioids, including oxycodone, pethidine, fentanyl, hydromorphone, morphine and ketobemidone, caused a sixfold increase in mortality risk while 64.4% of the participants who used fentanyl patches as their first opioid prescription died within 180 days.
The Alzheimer’s Association released Alzheimer’s prevalence statistics for all U.S 3,142 counties for the first time in 2023. Compared to the U.S. average of 10/7% among adults aged 65 and older, the prevalence statistics showed that several areas in the East and Southeast had a higher Alzheimer’s disease prevalence.
The clinical trials being conducted by numerous enterprises such as Longeveron Inc. (NASDAQ: LGVN) could yield breakthroughs that slow the progression of Alzheimer’s or even reverse its symptoms so that patients can have a new lease of life.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to Longeveron Inc. (NASDAQ: LGVN) are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/LGVN
Please see full terms of use and disclaimers on the BioMedWire website applicable to all content provided by BMW, wherever published or re-published: http://BMW.fm/Disclaimer
Last year was a major year for Alzheimer’s disease research. After spending decades studying the debilitating neurological condition, 2023 saw scientists make significant advancements that opened the door to an entirely new era of Alzheimer’s treatments.
The condition affects an estimated 6.7 million Americans and is projected to affect close to 13 million Americans by mid-century. It typically affects people older than 65 years of age and compromises an individual’s thinking, memory, judgment, problem-solving, language and personality as it progresses.
Treatments such as cognitive rehabilitation and cognitive stimulation therapy can temporarily improve symptoms, but there currently exists no cure for the condition.
Regulators approved three new Alzheimer’s treatments through the year, and a fourth one is slated to gain approval. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted traditional approval to Leqembi to treat mild Alzheimer’s dementia and mild cognitive impairment in July 2023. The agency also approved brexpiprazole in May to help manage agitation in Alzheimer’s disease patients.
Researchers also made notable advancements in Alzheimer’s blood tests via the development of a simple finger-prick test capable of detecting the neurodegenerative condition. Swedish scientists discovered that they could detect warning signs for Alzheimer’s disease in blood that had been collected remotely and shipped overnight without refrigeration. In another Swedish study, blood tests allowed primary care physicians to identify Alzheimer’s-related changes in more than 85% of cases.
A 2023 study discovered that hearing aids could slow cognitive decline in older adults at much higher rates. The study found that 65% of adults older than 60 years of age suffered from hearing loss. For the study participants with a higher risk of developing cognitive decline, researchers discovered that their risk of cognitive decline was reduced by a whopping 48% when they used hearing aids and attended hearing counseling.
Another study identified an increased risk of death in older adults with dementia who used opioids for the first time. Drawing its data from the entire Danish population of adults aged 65 and older with dementia, the study found that participants’ risk of death increased by four times within 180 days of their first opioid prescription.
Strong opioids, including oxycodone, pethidine, fentanyl, hydromorphone, morphine and ketobemidone, caused a sixfold increase in mortality risk while 64.4% of the participants who used fentanyl patches as their first opioid prescription died within 180 days.
The Alzheimer’s Association released Alzheimer’s prevalence statistics for all U.S 3,142 counties for the first time in 2023. Compared to the U.S. average of 10/7% among adults aged 65 and older, the prevalence statistics showed that several areas in the East and Southeast had a higher Alzheimer’s disease prevalence.
The clinical trials being conducted by numerous enterprises such as Longeveron Inc. (NASDAQ: LGVN) could yield breakthroughs that slow the progression of Alzheimer’s or even reverse its symptoms so that patients can have a new lease of life.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to Longeveron Inc. (NASDAQ: LGVN) are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/LGVN
Please see full terms of use and disclaimers on the BioMedWire website applicable to all content provided by BMW, wherever published or re-published: http://BMW.fm/Disclaimer
