Lewy Body Dementia ( LBD ) is a neurologic term that dissemble an estimated1.4 million peoplein the U.S. alone , but very few people have ever listen of it . Even clinician scramble to diagnose it because it overlaps with many other like disorder such as Parkinson ’s and Alzheimer’s — in fact,80 percentof LBD case are misdiagnosed as Alzheimer’s — and psychiatric conditions like schizophrenia . Before his death , actor Robin Williams had been name with Parkinson ’s , but anautopsyfound " diffuse Lewy body dementedness " in his brain . Now clinicians have a fashion to diagnose the disease .
Technically , Lewy bodies are abnormal proteins called alpha - synuclein , but they ’re better have a go at it by their eponymic name ; Dr. Friederich Lewy , a German brain doctor , distinguish them in 1912 . When they roll up in neurons , they disrupt nous function , causing cognitive decline , Parkinson’s - comparable shudder and motor job , and memory job .
Since there are no identified biomarkers to easily name LBD , Dr. James E. Galvin , a prof and associate dean for clinical enquiry at the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine at Florida Atlantic University , has created a 3 - minute test forebode the Lewy Body Composite peril Scale ( LBCRS ) , be of 10 question [ PDF ] , to which a patient must only get three “ yes ” result to condition as having LBD . The test is meant to be administered in a Doctor of the Church ’s post .
In a run - running game of its truth in a tangible - world clinic mise en scene , with256 patientsrepresenting a " mixture of gender , teaching , comorbidities , behavioural , affective , motor symptom , and diagnoses , " the LBCRS was capable to single out between Alzheimer ’s disease and LBD with 96.8 percent truth . Theseresultswere recently published in the journalAlzheimer ’s & Dementia .
“ In the absence seizure of a biomarker , you require a tool that can capture these symptoms and entrap them in a style that every clinician can expect every affected role the same questions and either govern it out , or make the diagnosing probable , ” Galvin says .
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Diagnosis of LBD is difficult because some symptoms are hard to measure . “ For illustration , one of the inwardness features of LBD is cognitive wavering , but there is no well - agree upon definition of these , " Galvin explains . " The general consensus is that cognitive wavering is a self-generated change in stratum of attention , alertness , or focus that can vary from minute to minute , minute to hour . So how do you capture that symptom ? ”
To make matters more complicated , Lewy bodies are found in many parts of the body , which can make symptoms that masquerade as other status : “ You ’ll find [ Lewy body ] in the peripheral nervous system , the walls of the gut , the heart , in salivary glands , in sebaceous secreter and more , ” Galvin say . “ Because of this , some of the early symptoms admit chronic constipation , essence arrhythmias , change in salivary secretory organ — drooling — and even dermatitis . ”
Though it ’s often misdiagnosed as Alzheimer ’s due to the deal declination in memory , there are some significant memory board differences between the two illnesses . “ Alzheimer ’s patient have difficulty acquire fresh info , whereas non Alzheimer’s - dementias , include LBD , are good able-bodied to con information but have trouble retrieving selective information , ” Galvin tell .
LBD patients also have more ocular - perceptual problems . “ Many of these patients first go to an eye doctor because they think something is improper with their specs . ”
Though there is not yet a remedy for LBD , early diagnosing is helpful for patients , not the least because it can still the line that uncertainty puts on category . “ [ Not ingest a diagnosis ] create a sense of isolation when no one can explain what ’s going on , ” Galvin sound out .
other diagnosis is also crucial when it fall to treating symptoms with medications . To treat the various symptoms that occur with LBD , Galvin say , “ we borrow medication from other field of operations . We use Alzheimer ’s meds and Parkinson ’s meds , and Master of Education from the psychiatrical field and the cardiology field . ”
Without a diagnosing of LBD , undiagnosed individuals are at risk for a dangerous shape leave from neuroleptic medicine — antipsychotics — which are prescribed for hallucination or schizophrenia - like symptoms . That ’s because they affect the mental capacity of hoi polloi with LBD other than , Galvin state : “ LBD patients have a tenfold increased danger of gettingneuroleptic malignant syndrome , which is characterized by high fever , heftiness breakdown , kidney nonstarter , and even expiry . ” The before the diagnosis , the less hazard of this happening .
Because the Lewy Body Composite Risk Scale is so fresh , it ’s not in consumption much yet . But Galvin is hopeful that finally his test will help millions of mass with the disease get a diagnosing and some form of symptom treatment . He stresses the need for groovy knowingness of the disease — and more enquiry dollars to study it .
