Key points from today’s guests:
Dr. Steve Stites, chief medical officer, The University of Kansas Health System
- There are many different tools aimed at predicting someone's 10-year dementia risk.
- Basically, these are different types of algorithms that account for numerous factors like age, sex, wealth, medical history, etc. The problem is in their current form is that they're not very predictable and they're not very reliable.
- A large cohort study published this last summer in JAMA Network looked the most commonly used risk scores and followed up with patients a decade later. The dementia risk score is only predicted between nine and 16 percent of the dementia cases that develop. The risk scores missed 84 to 91 percent of dementia cases.
- The study authors concluded current risk scores have limited clinical utility -- which is a long way of saying your physician can't really tell how much of a risk you are for dementia using that method.
- Age and genetics are the number one and two most common and strongest risk factors. The older you are, the higher your risk of dementia. And if you have a family history that can increase of your risk. But it doesn't mean you're destined for it.
- Not everybody with a family history develops Alzheimer's or dementia. And not everybody who gets Alzheimer's and dementia has a family history.
Dr. Jeffrey Burns, co-director, The University of Kansas Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center
- It is really hard to predict who's going to get dementia and we are working really hard to get better at that, because we see a future where we're going to be able to predict who can get it and then do something to reduce that risk or stop that risk.
- But it's hard because there are a lot of risk factors for dementia and Alzheimer's disease. Some people have a lot of resilience to these risk factors and some people don't, and we're beginning to understand those factors.
- There is a difference between dementia and Alzheimer’s, but they're interrelated.
- Dementia is a broad term that simply means memory and thinking changes that that are new, and that interfere with daily functions so that people are having more trouble doing the things they've been accustomed to doing their whole life. It's a syndrome and it has many causes.
- Alzheimer's is one of the causes and the most common cause. The number one cause of dementia is Alzheimer's. Probably two thirds of dementia is related to Alzheimer's.
- As we get older, ways to prevent this include avoiding social isolation. We want to have people get out into the world and interact with other people. We also want to have people moving their bodies because moving your body lessens your risk factors for heart disease, which then lessens the factors that can increase your risk factor for cognitive problems with dementia.
- Also, the idea of continuing to use your brain with ongoing learning, whether it's reading or doing crossword puzzles, can help.
Dr. Jessica Kalendar-Rich, geriatric medicine specialist, The University of Kansas Health System
- When I see a patient, I actually take a lot of information to try to figure out that trajectory of how their cognitive health is moving. And in doing so you can see what are some risk factors that they may have that can be lessened, perhaps by lifestyle changes and other things that were mentioned.
- We can also learn about other risk factors such as genetics that we don't have any control over.
- So we do a risk factor analysis, but it relies on habits and history.
- We can do things at all stages to help prevent problems in the future. There are modifiable risk factors here and we should really just do our best to work toward a healthy lifestyle now to prevent potential issues.
Jill Chadwick, recently took SAGE test
- She took the SAGE test (Self Administered Gerocognitive Exam) to evaluate her risk of dementia
- Although she was told in advance the test was easy, she was concerned about a few questions because she wanted to get a perfect score and was not confident on some answers.
- The test allows for different types of thinking for different types of people.
Dr. Dana Hawkinson, medical director of Infection Prevention and Control, The University of Kansas Health System
- The COVID inpatient count is at 19, a slight increase from 17 last week.
- We know that with individual immunity, either through vaccination and/or infection, and also then community immunity can help.
- We know that the people that remain the highest risk of severe disease and hospitalization remain those with comorbid conditions such as heart disease, lung disease, kidney disease, immunosuppression, and of course, age is always one of the biggest factors as well.
- Right now it doesn't look like there's any difference fundamentally in the COVID virus, other than maybe some spike changes, so it’s not really causing any new severe disease.
- We also have to be wary of the other viruses out there. We are always concerned and monitoring for that as our Health System has always prepared for that.
Friday, December 8 at 8 a.m. is the next Morning Medical Update. Kim White knows she may not be alive today if it weren't for her daughter's CPR knowledge and quick action. Hear what led to Kim's sudden collapse.
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