Worried About Those 'Senior Moments'?

Chicago - A study found that in a disturbing number of cases, embarrassing "senior moments" such as forgetting a recent conversation or drawing a blank on a name may really be a sign of Alzheimer's after all.

Chicago scientists reached that conclusion after reviewing autopsies on the brains of 134 older people who had appeared to be mentally normal, apart from some subtle forgetfulness.

Occasional forgetfulness is often written off as part of growing old and nothing to be alarmed about. In most cases, that is probably true.

But the scientists found, to their surprise, that the brains of more than one-third of the participants were riddled with waxy protein clumps and other signs of degeneration that are hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease.

The study "questions the acceptability of minor episodic memory loss in older adults as normal," said Dr. Carol Lippa, the director of the memory disorders program at Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia, Pa. She had no part in the study.

The study appears in last week's issue of Neurology, the American Academy of Neurology's scientific journal.

Dallas Anderson, an Alzheimer's scientist at the National Institute on Aging, which funded the research, called the results "very plausible and hopeful." Anderson noted that scientists are trying to pinpoint the earliest point in the Alzheimer's disease process, which could lead to earlier treatments.

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