my story revisited #67-alzheimers quiz

MY STORY REVISITED #67-ALZHEIMERS QUIZ 

over the last 10 years since i was diagnosed i have recommended to folks that they fill out the alzheimers quiz thats linked here and below 
they had usually asked me about a loved one that they were worried about having alzheimers disease

this alzheimers quiz is easy to do 
you just answer the questions yes or no
then
score it yourself to see where the loved one scored
if they are not in the normal range i always recommended they be seen for a memory evaluation

i scored myself on the quiz and i score a zero which is normal

i looked back at an acquaintance that died with alzheimers disease
i scored that person this morning based on what i noticed back then when i recommended to their spouse that they have that person evaluated

they scored a 6 which would put them in the category of
    memory loss may be an early warning of alzheimers

i also scored that person like they were just a couple of years later
they scored a 16 which put them in the category of
     alzheimers may have already developed

that person within a month of my visit was diagnosed with alzheimers disease

i recommend that folks fill it out on their loved ones
score it
if its abnormal then have that person evaluated for memory loss
bringing a copy of the quiz with them and you to their office visit
make the office visit only for memory loss

this quiz puts in black and white what you probably already know about your loved ones 
but
you and they may not want to admit it

if the aducanumab i am about to restart next month turns out to be slowing down my disease then having an early diagnosis allowed me to be aggressive about my health and to began this possible treatment study

dont be afraid to get your loved one diagnosed
__________
06-22-2012
ALZHEIMERS QUIZ
a recent study showed that the 21 question alzheimers quiz has
a very good diagnostic accuracy
its one you can fill out for a family member or friend and hand
it to their doctor
remember many times early on people can be having problems
that in a few minutes of a doctors office will not be recognized

dont be afraid to be aggressive and do this for their doctors
i like others feel the earlier you know theres a problem
the better

it takes 3 minutes to complete and is easy to interpret
you can probably do it on yourself
it will pick up most cases of mild cognitive impairment and
almost all cases of alzheimers disease

now a days if you find a positive alzheimers quiz
you can do a neuropsychological test and
do screening labs and
do a beta amyloid pet scan (first available commercial one
is amyvid)
if the labs are negative and the neuropsych test is positive and
the amyvid scan shows there are significant amyloid deposits
then you or the patient probably have alzheimers disease

one thing ive told people who ask is dont be passive about all
of this with family members or friends
dont be afraid to hurt their feelings
get them evaluated
treatment available like aricept (donepezil) can slow things down
and
the social side of this terrible disease can be attacked early
there is a window of time between early diagnosis and full blown
disease that can be a time to be enjoyed by the patient and their
family
like someone with terminal cancer who is on chemo to slow the disease
down so that they can have more time with their family

dont be shy about getting evaluations done
 __________ 
i dont ever regret knowing my diagnosis years before most people do 
its been a good ten years

the organicgreen doctor