Alzheimer's disease and reading speed
Word processing speed may indicate the development of Alzheimer's disease
Anna Kerman, XX2 century, based on Medical News Today: Alzheimer's: Word processing duration may predict onset
Recently, the journal NeuroImage: Clinical published the results of a study that suggests that the speed of the brain processing words when reading can reliably indicate the risk of developing Alzheimer's.
The new study involved patients with mild cognitive impairment (mild cognitive impairment, MCI). This is a condition in which older people (usually over 65 years old) develop small but noticeable memory and perception disorders. Although memory problems in patients suffering from MCI are not as serious as in patients with Alzheimer's, most of them subsequently develop this disease.
According to the calculations of the National Institute on Aging, 8 out of 10 people suffering from MCI are diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease within 7 years of the first diagnosis. But what happens to the brain in the period between the diagnosis of MCI and the development of clinical manifestations of Alzheimer's disease?
Scientists from the University of Birmingham (University of Birmingham) and the University of Kent (University of Kent) of Great Britain together with colleagues from the University of California at Davis (University of California, Davis) decided to investigate this question.
The lead author of the study, Dr. Ali Mazaheri from the University of Birmingham, explained why they took up this work: "A clear sign of Alzheimer's disease is a gradual deterioration of speech; however, the ability to perceive language in the period between the appearance of the first symptoms of Alzheimer's and the full development of the disease has not been studied."
"We wanted to find out," Dr. Mazaheri continues, "whether there are anomalies in brain activity during speech recognition in patients with MCI, which could help to understand how high the risk of developing Alzheimer's is. We focused on speech, as it is an essential aspect of perception, and he especially suffers in the late stages of Alzheimer's disease."
Brain response may be 'extremely important'
Previous studies have shown that it takes about 250 milliseconds for an ordinary person's brain to recognize and process a written word. Brain activity associated with word processing can be viewed on an electroencephalogram (EEG) – this is a procedure for measuring the electrical activity of the brain using electrodes on the scalp.
For the new study, Dr. Mazaheri and his colleagues used EEG to study the brain activity of 25 participants who were shown words on a computer screen.
The participants included elderly people diagnosed with MCI, patients who were diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease within 3 years after MCI was determined, and healthy people.
Study co-author Dr. Katrien Segaert, also from the University of Birmingham, summed up: "The most important thing [that we found] is that in those patients who later develop Alzheimer's, the brain response deviates from the norm. Those whose condition remains stable have no deviations."
"These are unexpected results," she added, "since Alzheimer's usually affects speech at much later stages."
"It is likely that disorders in the brain neurons associated with language perception in patients with MCI may prove to be an important biomarker for identifying patients who may develop Alzheimer's disease," explains Dr. Segart.
She also shared the directions of future research: "We hope to test the validity of this biomarker on a large group of patients in the UK to find out whether it is really specific for Alzheimer's disease, or more broadly indicates dementia involving the temporal cortex.
If we confirm the work of the biomarker, this may open the way for pharmacological intervention at an early stage, as well as for the development of a new, inexpensive and non-traumatic EEG test. Such an examination can become part of a routine medical examination when the patient first complains of memory difficulties."
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