Do you have a loved one who is experiencing memory problems that are affecting his or her daily activities? If so, please read below about a study being funded by the National Institute on Aging (NIA) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). It is a two-year, $24 million study called the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative Grand Opportunity (ADNI GO), and researchers are looking for participants at sites across the country.

From the Study Coordinators:
Have you ever wondered what life would be like if you were unable to recall things which were once so simple to remember? An estimated 5.3 million people in the United States have Alzheimer’s and every 70 seconds another person develops this disease! I am contacting you today on behalf of the Alzheimer’s Disease Cooperative Study (ADCS)  to raise awareness about Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and to encourage otherwise healthy adults with early complaints of memory problems to participate in the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative Grand Opportunity (ADNI GO). ADNI GO will build on the unprecedented momentum and success of the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI), a landmark study to find more sensitive and accurate methods to detect AD at earlier stages and track its progress through biomarkers.

By being able to recognize changes in the brain, scientists hope to treat memory loss and other symptoms of AD before they appear, but the only way to recognize what these changes are and learn more about who is at risk is through the participation of volunteers. “We cannot end this terrible disease unless we know more about it,” says Dr. Paul Aisen, M.D., director of the Alzheimer’s Disease Cooperative Study (ADCS). “That is where the amazing volunteers, their friends and their families can make the difference in our success.”

 Dr. Maya Angelou – the eminent poet, author, educator, historian and professor at Wake Forest University – is working with researchers to ask you and your loved ones to be part of the ADNI GO study. Click here to hear from Dr. Maya Angelou.

If you, a friend, or a family member is experiencing early signs of memory loss, you may be eligible to participate in this groundbreaking ADNI GO study that may help bring us one step closer to finding a cure. Please visit http://adcs.org/Studies/ImagineADNI.aspx or call the Alzheimer’s Disease Education and Referral Center at 1-800-438-4380 for more information on study sites in your area.

It’s common knowledge that high blood pressure can lead to heart attack and heart failure, stroke, kidney failure, and other health consequences. Now new research has found high blood pressure may also make you more prone to dementia as you age.

The research, from the National Institutes of Health, suggests that hypertension – blood pressure readings of 140 over 90 or higher – may cause a kind of scarring that interferes with communication between brain cells. That scarring, known as white matter lesions, has been linked to development of Alzheimer’s and other dementias in the elderly. Researchers have found an increase in white matter lesions with each 20-point jump in systolic pressure above the recommended limit. Systolic pressure is the bigger of the two numbers. Those scars can start building up in middle age, although the resulting memory problems may not appear until decades later.

“If you look … for things that we can prevent that lead to cognitive decline in the elderly, hypertension is at the top of the list,” Dr. Walter Koroshetz, deputy director of NIH’s National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, told The Associated Press. Age is the biggest risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia that affect about one in eight people 65 or older.

This evidence of a link is strong enough that the National Institutes of Health will soon begin enrolling thousands of people with high blood pressure into a major study. The aim will be to see if pushing blood pressure lower than currently recommended might better protect not just hearts, but brains.