Dr. Tariot shares if there is a test to check for a predisposition to Alzheimer's disease.
Dr. Tariot:
There are genetic tests available now that we don’t deploy in the clinic; they are research tools. There are also brain imaging techniques that seem to hold the promise of identifying the disease process decades before it becomes manifest. We don’t use that in the clinic yet either, but I suspect we're within five or ten years of having those tools fully refined and having plausible preventive therapies so that if you find that you’re at risk you can do something about it.
Even if we had the tools now I would still say we can do things, these lifestyle variables that are so important, and furthermore, I am going to quote a recent acquaintance of mine, “If I knew that I was destined to develop Alzheimer’s disease - I am 56 now - if I knew that my chances were 50:50 of having Alzheimer’s in let’s say 15 years, I might become more Carpe Diemish, a little less future oriented, more likely to say you know what, more time with the children and a little less work focused.”
About Dr. Tariot:
Dr. Pierre Tariot is board-certified in internal medicine and geriatric psychiatry at Banner Alzheimer’s Institute. He has devoted his career to helping thousands of patients and families cope with dementia. He is also a world leader in the development of new treatments for Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of memory loss.
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Visit Dr. Tariot at the Banner Alzheimer's Institute