Assessing Parietal Integrity for Alzheimer's Diagnostics
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Diagnostic Utility of Assessing Posterior Parietal Cortex (PPC) Integrity in Alzheimer's Disease
IRAS ID
338674
Contact name
Samrah Ahmed
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Reading
Duration of Study in the UK
5 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
Alzheimer’s disease is commonly linked to changes in memory and this is used as the main indication of the beginning of the disease. However, changes in memory can also occur in other conditions that may look similar in later life, such as certain mental health conditions and other types of dementia. Changes in memory also occur as part of the healthy ageing process. This makes diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease difficult. Often times, relying only on a change in memory as a sign of a problem means that healthy people are misdiagnosed, or those with other conditions miss out on the right help.
This research study aims to identify clinical tests that can measure other symptoms that occur very early in Alzheimer’s disease. For example, people with Alzheimer’s disease often report, finding it harder to navigate new surroundings, coordinating movements to get dressed, and recognising faces. All of these difficulties are related to an area of the brain called the parietal cortex, and not the memory centres of the brain. Scientific evidence suggests that changes to the parietal cortex occur very early in Alzheimer’s disease.
In this study, we would like to see people living with Alzheimer's disease, people with other types of dementia, those with mental health conditions, and individuals with no memory and thinking changes.
We will ask all participants to complete assessments looking at memory and thinking skills, and assessments exploring functions linked with the parietal area of the brain. We will then compare the tests – we expect that tests of parietal function will be better than memory tests at differentiating people with Alzheimer’s disease from all other participants.
With the right diagnosis as early as possible, patients and their families can access the relevant support, medications and help that they need.
REC name
London - Surrey Borders Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
24/LO/0539
Date of REC Opinion
27 Aug 2024
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion