Your annual view exam could detect early Alzheimer's disease, discover scientists
Your retinas share practically the same fabric as your brain.
Did you know that 94% of people with posterior cortical atrophy (PCA) Problems develop Alzheimer's disease? Although the condition is rare, the link between eye changes and cognitive decline is not. Previous studies have examined the impact of retinal vascular health on brain function - which supports theories that eyes are a gateway to better understand the brain. And now scientists say that a routine sight examination could detect early Alzheimer's signs before typical symptoms appear.
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Your eye health can say a lot about brain health.
According to a new study published in the journal Alzheimer's and dementia . Indeed, the retina is an extension of the central nervous system - which means, it shares "essentially the same fabric" as the brain.
"Your retina is essentially your brain, but it is much more accessible because your student is just a hole, and we can see tons of things", author of the co-chief study Alaina Reagan , PHD, a neuroscientist at the Jackson Laboratory (Jax), explained in a press release . "All cells are very similar, all neurons are quite similar, all immune cells are quite similar, and they behave from the same pressure if you have a disease."
All this to say that your examination of the annual view could also, potentially, serve as a brain health assessment.
"If you are at an optometrist or ophthalmologist meeting, and they can see strange vascular changes in your retina, which could potentially represent something that also occurs in your brain, which could be very informative for early diagnoses," noted Reagan.
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Retinal ships that seem narrow or swollen could be an early sign of Alzheimer's.
For the study, the researchers examined the mice with the common genetic mutation "MTHFR677C> TTK", which is a risk variant of known Alzheimer. (The study also stipulates that MTHFR677C> TTK occurs in up to 40% of humans.)
They carried out an examination of the traditional view and found anomalies in the blood vessels and the arteries of the mice. More specifically, the retinas seemed to have "twisted vessels, narrowed and swollen arteries, and less ramification of ships". These changes were detected among young mice from six months.
The twisted vessels "can cause a turbulent blood flow, which promotes changes in blood pressure, degradation of elastin and luminal shear stress", wrote the authors. In addition, it could be an underlying symptom of "bad blood flow and increased risk of cognitive decline".
"We can see these wavy ships in retinas, which can occur in people with dementia," said Reagan. "This testifies to a more systemic problem, not just a specific problem for the brain or the retina. This could be a problem of blood pressure affecting everything. ”
In addition, what female mice have good eye health than their male peers. At one year, they had "reduced the density and branching of ships", which the authors qualified as "progressives". This corroborates a statistics from the Alzheimer's company which Women have an increased risk to develop Alzheimer's disease in their lives, compared to men.
According to Reagan, the results of the study suggest that "these systems in the brain and the retinal tissue work in tandem".
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The point to take away:
Scientists say that unusual changes in retinal blood vessels could serve as a sign of early alert for neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer.
"Most people over 50 have a kind of visual impairment and are checked each year for prescription changes," said Reagan. "Are they more at risk if they have these vascular changes, and this is a point where doctors could start to alleviate brain changes?"
In the future, the research team joins forces with dementia care experts from the Northern Light Acadia Hospital of Maine to study the correlation between the MTHFR677C> TTK change and vascular changes in humans.
