Vascular changes in neck may link to Alzheimer’s

The jugular venous reflux (JVR) occurs when the pressure gradient reverses the direction of blood flow in the veins, causing blood to leak backwards into the brain. A small pilot study has found an association between JVR and white matter changes in the brains of patients with Alzheimer’s disease and those with mild cognitive impairment. This suggests that cerebral venous outflow impairment might play a role in the development of white matter changes in those with Alzheimer’s.

JVR occurs when the internal jugular vein valves don’t open and close properly, which occurs more frequently in the elderly. The study involved 12 patients with Alzheimer’s disease, 24 with MCI, and 17 age-matched controls. Those with severe JVR were more likely to have hypertension, more and more severe white matter changes, and tended to have higher cerebrospinal fluid volumes.

Further research is needed to validate these preliminary findings.

http://www.futurity.org/vascular-changes-neck-may-alzheimers-role/

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-11/uab-aav112513.php

Chung, C-P. et al. 2013. Jugular Venous Reflux and White Matter Abnormalities in Alzheimer’s Disease: A Pilot Study. Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, 39 (3), 601-609.

Related News

Here’s a different aspect to

More findings from the long-running Mayo Clinic Study of Aging reveal that using a computer plus taking moderate exercise reduces your risk of mild cognitive impairment significantly more than you would expect from simply adding together these two beneficial activities.

The study involved 4,134 people (average age 59) who worked at the French national gas and electric company, of whom most worked at the company for their entire career.

I’ve mentioned before that, for some few people, exercise doesn’t seem to have a benefit, and the benefits of exercise for fighting age-related cognitive decline may not apply to those carrying the Alzheimer’s gene.

Data from the Women's Health Study, involving 6,183 older women (65+), has found that it isn’t the amount of fat but the type of fat that is associated with cognitive decline.

Interpreting brain activity is a very tricky business. Even the most basic difference can be interpreted in two ways — i.e., what does it mean if a region is more active in one group of people compared to another?

Damage to the retina (retinopathy) doesn’t produce noticeable symptoms in the early stages, but a new study indicates it may be a symptom of more widespread damage. In the ten-year study, involving 511 older women (average age 69), 7.6% (39) were found to have retinopathy.

Older adults who sleep poorly react to stress with increased inflammation

Data from the very large and long-running Cognitive Function and Ageing Study, a U.K. study involving 13,004 older adults (65+), from which 329 brains are now available for analysis, has found that cognitive lifestyle score (CLS) had no effect on Alzheimer’s pathology.

Previous research has been equivocal about whether cognitive training helps cognitively healthy older adults.

Pages

Subscribe to Latest newsSubscribe to Latest newsSubscribe to Latest health newsSubscribe to Latest news