Given the “warp-speed” development of what appear to be viable COVID vaccines, it would seem that almost anything is possible with enough scientific determination and grit. And yet, for those who are afflicted with dementia or those ultimately determined to have Alzheimer’s, there continue to be no real viable treatments to respond to the diagnosis. Our best efforts remain prevention and diagnosis as early as possible, so that lifestyle changes can mitigate and minimize the onslaught of the disease.

Along these lines, then, it’s important to note new research outlining the clues that hint dementia may be taking hold, if you know where and how to look for it. First, a new study out of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and published in JAMA Internal Medicine examined the money management behaviors of over 80,000 Medicare recipients who lived in single-person households. By examining missed credit account payments and subprime credit scores, the researchers detected a pattern of financial mismanagement among those subsequently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s or related dementias up to 6 years prior to that diagnosis. In essence, what this research suggests is that financial “symptoms” such as missing bill payments could be early warning signs that dementia may be afflicting the person. Furthermore, such a warning may be critical not only to facilitate early proactive steps to limit the effects of dementia but equally important, to preserve and protect the individual’s financial assets, which may be critical once dementia really takes hold. For more on this important research, read here and here.

Another new study out of the Medical University of South Carolina suggests an association between anxiety and Alzheimer’s, indicating that the presence of anxiety among those diagnosed with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) may increase and quicken their progression to Alzheimer’s disease. While not everyone diagnosed with MCI will go on to develop full-blown dementia, it appears that those who have anxiety in conjunction with MCI develop Alzheimer’s faster than those without anxiety. While it’s not clear what this association means, the research does suggest that those patients with high levels of anxiety should be screened and offered interventions to slow their cognitive decline.

Finally, regarding the actual diagnosis of Alzheimer’s, earlier this year we reported on clinical trials involving blood tests to detect the presence of Alzheimer’s. While it was projected that such tests were still several years away, one such test has now come on the market and is available in most states. This new test has not yet received FDA approval and will only be available through a doctor’s office. Nonetheless, this test, from Washington University in St. Louis and C2N Diagnostics of St. Louis, becomes the first actual commercially available blood test to detect whether a patient is afflicted with Alzheimer’s. Offered under the brand name PrecivityAD, this blood test may herald a new era of Alzheimer’s diagnoses and interventions in the hope of minimizing the impact of the disease. For further insights, click here.