科学家们发明了一种快速检测老年痴呆症的方法，只要在40多岁时进行这个耗时仅30秒的检测，就能判断一个人以后是否会患上老年痴呆症。
据英国《每日邮报》报道，由于检测非常方便，而且在症状出现前就能做出警告，这为未来建立常规老年痴呆症筛查带来了希望，或许两年之内这种检测就能投入使用。这项检测在全科医生诊所就可以进行，以后这项检测有望会像测血压一样普遍。
如果能及早发现老年痴呆症发生的可能，就可以提前采取预防措施，例如改变饮食结构，多做锻炼等。快速检测也有助于及早进行干预治疗。一些患者在及时使用新药后，或许能避免发病。英国每年患上老年痴呆症及其他痴呆类疾病的患者超过80万，而且估计在未来这一数字还有翻倍的危险。
主导研究的大卫-邦斯教授说：“这项研究大大增加了及早筛查，诊断，治疗老年痴呆症的可能性。我们越早对可能罹患这种疾病的患者进行干预治疗，预防或推迟患者发病的几率越高。”然而没有人愿意早早听到自己有可能患上老年痴呆症的消息，也有人担心保险公司会借此提高保险费用。
目前通用的检测方式是通过测验记忆时间或者进行昂贵的脑部扫描，患者患病的确凿证据却只能在患者去世后对大脑进行检查才能得到。而新型检测方式是通过计算机程序对人的反应时间进行简单的测试。
伦敦布鲁内尔大学的邦斯教授对目前44到48岁看起来非常健康的男女被试者进行脑部扫描，在被试者的脑白质中发现一些比米粒还小的损伤点。428名被测者有约有15%被查出有这种异常。尽管目前并未证实这些人一定会患上老年痴呆症，但这些损伤与患老年痴呆症去世的患者脑部检查的结果十分相似，损伤出现的部位也相同。
受试人员被要求观察屏幕上的一盏或两盏灯并敲击相应的按钮。研究人员发现脑部有这种损伤的受试者的反应时间与其他人相比明显很不规律。有损伤的受试者的反应时间忽快忽慢，而健康受试者的反应时间则没有明显差异。
目前市场上的药物都是针对已发病病人的，对这种早期发现的病症或无效果。然而目前世界各地的实验室工作人员都在努力寻找能将老年痴呆症扼杀在萌芽状态的新药或者新的治疗方式。同时老年痴呆症相关团体建议人们保持健康饮食，多做锻炼，这样也能延缓或者阻止发病。
老年痴呆症协会的鲁思-萨瑟兰说：“我们知道老年痴呆症患者症状发生前大脑就已经开始产生变化，而对大脑中的早期损伤进行研究至关重要。”
推荐英文摘要：
PLoS ONE 5(10): e13567. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0013567
Cognitive Deficits Are Associated with Frontal and Temporal Lobe White Matter Lesions in Middle-Aged Adults Living in the Community
David Bunce1,2*, Kaarin J. Anstey1, Nicolas Cherbuin1, Richard Burns1, Helen Christensen1, Wei Wen3,4, Perminder S. Sachdev3,4
1 Centre for Mental Health Research, Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia, 2 Department of Psychology, Brunel University, London, United Kingdom, 3 Neuropsychiatric Institute, Prince of Wales Hospital, Randwick, New South Wales, Australia, 4 School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Background
The association between brain white matter lesions and cognitive impairment in old age is well established. However, little is known about this association in midlife. As this information will inform policy for early preventative healthcare initiatives, we investigated non-periventricular frontal, temporal, parietal and occipital lobe white matter hyperintensities (WMH) in relation to cognitive function in 428 (232 women) community-dwelling adults aged 44 to 48 years.
Results
Frontal white matter lesions were significantly associated with greater intraindividual RT variability in women, while temporal WMH were associated with face recognition deficits in men. Parietal and occipital lobe lesions were unrelated to cognitive performance. These findings did not differ when education and a range of health variables, including vascular risk factors, were taken into account.
Conclusion
Gender differences in WMH-cognition associations are discussed, and we conclude that small vessel disease is present in midlife and has functional consequences which are generally not recognized. Preventative strategies should, therefore, begin early in life.
