Tuesday 8 September 2015

Blood test for dementia claims are premature

Blood test for dementia claims are premature "Simple blood test … could predict if you'll suffer dementia," the Daily Mail reports.

This study aimed to identify a genetic score that could be used to indicate an individual's biological age. Using muscle and tissue samples from young and old adults, they identified the set of genetic markers that could best differentiate between the young and old samples.

They further tested this "healthy ageing gene score" using other tissue samples, including blood of people with and without Alzheimer's disease. They found that the score was lower in those with Alzheimer's. Overall, this score is suggested as a marker for healthy ageing.

However, it is important to realise this study is in the early experimental stages and the score has so far only been tested in small groups of people with known disease status. It is not known how well it could predict future disease development. NHS Choices

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