For those who live with it, dementia can be devastating. But year by year, new drugs, technologies and techniques are being developed that not only reduce the likelihood of the condition occurring in the first place, but are also more effective in helping manage it if it does. This means that in terms of alleviating symptoms and slowing the progress of different types of dementia, doctors now have more treatment options than was thought possible, even just a few years ago.
These developments can involve looking at new ways to use existing drugs. For example, an American study has shown that beta-blockers, which are traditionally used to treat high blood pressure, might also be effective in lessening the onset of dementia. At the moment, because of the small size of the research sample, beta-blockers, can't as yet be prescribed for this purpose. However, a much larger study involving another type of blood pressure reducing drug, known as angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB), has been shown to have a similar benefits, which could lead to new range of medications becoming available.
Several other promising treatments are also in the late phases of testing. These include a drug that blocks the build-up of amyloid (the lumps of protein that can stop neurones in the brain from working properly together), while another is aimed at preventing the clumping of tau protein, a primary indicator of Alzheimer's. Initial results suggest that both could be effective lines of research.
No comments:
Post a Comment