Falling may be an early sign of Alzheimer's, a new study suggests.
Older people whose brain scans showed signs of amyloid, an early indicator of Alzheimer's disease, but who were otherwise healthy had twice the risk of falls as people without brain amyloid, a study reported Sunday at the Alzheimer's Association's annual International Conference in Paris.
"To our knowledge, this is the first study to identify a risk of increased falls related to a diagnosis of pre-clinical Alzheimer's disease," says Susan Stark, an assistant professor of occupational therapy and neurology at Washington University in St. Louis. She says the results are consistent with other studies that show mobility problems in people who have very early Alzheimer's or mild cognitive impairment.
"It suggests that higher rates of falls can occur very early in the disease process," Stark says.
For the eight-month-long study, Stark and colleagues measured the rate of falls among 125 older adults, some of whom were cognitively healthy and who showed no memory problems day to day but whose brain scans revealed presence of amyloid.
Positron emission tomography (PET) scanning -- which uses a tracer that lights up areas with amyloid -- was used to detect the presence of amyloid.
The participants also contributed samples of cerebrospinal fluid and were asked to keep a journal that tracked how many times they fell.
Forty-eight people experienced at least one fall. Those with a positive PET scan image had more than double the risk for falls.
The findings add another piece to the puzzle of understanding Alzheimer's in its earliest stages, says Jeffrey Burns, director of the Alzheimer and Memory Program at the University of Kansas School of Medicine.
"It's a small study, but certainly an interesting finding and likely to be of clinical importance down the road if these scans become available," Burns says. Someone at an increased risk for falls may benefit from bone medication, physical therapy to help with balance, and be a candidate for early Alzheimer's drug studies, he adds.
"The fall is due to some change that's disease-related," says William Thies, chief medical and scientific officer for the Alzheimer's Association. "We talk about memory, but that's not the presenting problem for everybody. For a pretty big-size group, it's spatial orientation." Thies says the take-home message is that if an elderly loved one starts showing up with bruising and has unexplained falls, it's worth a trip to a health care provider.
Stark says falls remain the leading cause of long-term disability, premature institutionalization and injury-related deaths in the older population.
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