fu adni-2, play music, bb

FU ADNI-2
had testing yesterday as part of the adni-2 alzheimers
research study

so thats what its like to do a pet scan
like it better than  a mri
its like riding in an lexus on a smooth road vs the mri which is
more like riding in a log truck on a rough road

got an iv infusion of radioactive glucose
had to lay in the dark for 15 minutes then went to
the pet scan room
the table looked like the beam that a gymnastic uses
glad im skinny
had to lay still for 50 minutes while the lexus rode down
the road
uneventful test
ok ill do that one again any time

just wish i could get the results as it measures glucose
metabolism in the brain which is decreased in areas affected
by alzheimers
alzheimers usually starts in the hippocampus in the temporal lobe
of the brain
but thats part of the deal in doing the study
the results stay anonymous and will not ever see the results

then i had the neuropsychological tests
the tester sure has a poker face
but she is good at administering the test
have had 5 different people administer these tests and she
is the best one

this test was not as involved as the first one i took in november
that got me into this mess
that one seemed to have  more testing for short term memory
than this one did
but this one had enough for me to know i still have a problem but
think that in the last 6 months my symptoms have not changed or
worsened

the brain is interesting
i notice the short term symptoms
they are subtle
others dont notice them but might if they paid attention
its easy to compensate by moving the conversation along

then other parts of the brain work better than a lot of people
my wife she is always amazed at my ability to remember things
she cant remember things as well from the past
maybe wrong person is being testing
we always joke about that

next week have a spinal tap for spinal fluid analysis of tau protein
and amyloid
these levels are abnormal in alzheimers and can be abnormal in
mild cognitive impairment due to alzheimers disease
these results will be sent off as research also however i will be
able to obtain extra spinal fluid to send off for testing for myself
and will get those results this summer

after the spinal tap will have a new experimental pet scan that will
radioactively label amyloid deposits in the brain (amyloid is thought
to be the culprit or end result of alzheimers)
if there are deposits already in my brain they will show up

hope i dont glow in the dark like my watch and the butterfly
curtain we have

PLAY MUSIC
now wish i had played a musical instrument when i was younger
and even through out adulthood

apparently a new research study shows that people who have
played musical instruments in childhood can get a lifelong boost
in brain functioning later in life

ok my two boys now you know why we made you take piano
lessons and play in the band in middle school
we just did not want to tell you at the time

now everyone has an excuse to give their kids who dont want
to take music lessons
itll make you smarter when you get older

even better is playing a musical instrument over a life time
guess willie wont get alzheimers
he is also protected from anxiety by the weed

BB
it was overtime night in the playoffs last night
the heat are on a mission
took an overtime to win

rondo is one tough player
bet that elbow is sore as much as it got banged around last night

reminds of chickens where if one gets an open sore the rest of the
flock will peck on it and make it worse
well they pecked on rondo all night but he took it
one tough kid

those grizzlies and thunder went into 3 ots last night
they are going to wear each other out while dallas rests

the organicgreen doctor