Eye Exams May Be Able to Detect Alzheimer's

Currently there is no definitive test for Alzheimer's disease. The only way to know for certain if a person had Alzheimer's is through an autopsy after death. Early treatment can minimize secondary risks, slow the progress, improve quality of life, and extend survival, but there is no known cure. Researchers are constantly working on new, better treatments and trying to find a cure.

A living diagnosis would help in finding a cure and could help patients to get treatment early, when it is most effective. Lee Goldstein of Boston University (formerly of Harvard Medical School) may have found the key to diagnosing Alzheimer's years before symptoms start to appear.

Goldstein, a geriatric psychiatrist and a neuroscientist stumbled on the discovery while studying Alzheimer's in mice. He noticed that the mice with Alzheimer's developed cataracts and the normal mice did not. It turned out that these cataracts were formed of amyloid beta proteins, the same proteins which form plaques in the brain leading to the cognitive impairment caused by Alzheimer's.

Dr. Goldstein and his colleague Dr. Leo Chylack co-founded Neuroptix Corporation. Neuroptix is developing non-invasive laser eye scanning technology to detect the proteins. Its goal is to create reliable and affordable Alzheimer's screening which eye doctors can perform during normal office visits.

You can use the links at the bottom of this page to find a qualified ophthalmologist near you.