Does it pass the 'smell test'? Seeking ways to diagnose Alzheimer's early

Kirsten Ircha

September 15, 2016

Current Events

Citation:

"A Smell Test May Diagnose Alzheimer's Early." CNN. Cable News Network, n.d. Web. 13 Sept. 2016. <http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/26/health/alzheimers-eye-and-smell/index.html>.

The article Does it pass the 'smell test'? Seeking ways to diagnose Alzheimer's early

by Susan Scutti from CNN outlines new scientific studies that have been working to detect Alzheimer's disease early on. Alzheimer's itself is the most common type of dementia and causes people to have thinking problems, experience memory loss, and have unusual behaviors. Early detection is essential, as it prevents symptoms from worsening. Sadly, tests to detect these problems are both expensive and invasive. Currently, scientists are working on methods to find  the causes of Alzheimer's in less expensive ways. Some of these studies involve studying odor detection as a possible test for the disease. At Columbia University, Seonjoo Lee, an assistant professor of clinical biostatistics, and her colleagues tested 397 nondemented people around the age of 80. The studies showed that participants with lower scores on odor test were more likely to develop mental decline in later years. Next, Dr. William Kreisl, an assistant professor of neurology performed a second unrelated study at Columbia University and examined smell scores in combination with brain scans and cerebrospinal fluid. The researchers found that signs of plaque in the brain or spine were signs of Alzheimer's development and the smelling abilities were not a factor. Other studies have looked at retina thickness as a possible symptom of Alzheimer. Dr. Fang Ko of the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology in London explored the retinal nerve fiber layer and found a link between thinner retina layers and mental decline. In the last study detailed in the article, Melanie Campbell, a professor of physics at the University of Waterloo, and her colleagues studied amyloid protein deposits in the retina, and found a relation between protein deposit build-up in the eyes and the beginning stages of the disease. Overall, these scientists are working towards a future with better detection methods for Alzheimer's.

This article is extremely relevant to society, as Alzheimer's disease and dementia affect many elderly people worldwide. The disease is very debilitating and can cause many adversities for patients in day to day life. A cure or way of early detection for the disease can be critical for the quality of life for many senior citizens. Alzheimer’s affects me greatly, as my grandfather was diagnosed with dementia shortly after he had open heart surgery a few years ago. He now has to have a full-time caregiving staff and is unable to perform many everyday activities on his own. He no longer remembers my name or who I am. He also has many odd behaviors due to his disease and often wakes up in the middle of the night to unplug every electronic in his home or forgets about a conversation in five minutes. This disease has greatly changed my life and relationship with my grandfather and can be emotionally harmful for the person with Alzheimer's along with their closest friends and relatives.

The article does a great job of stating each scientific study in a clear an organized format. Also, the subsections allow for the material to be understood very well. The language is not overly advanced and broadens the audience to younger readers. Also, the article was a manageable length that provided an abundance of information but was not unbearable long to read. Although this article was informative, some of the sentences were phrased oddly and were confusing to read. At some points, I had to reread a few of the statements to completely see what the author was attempting to convey. I also feel that some of the information became very repetitive and too many studies were stated. If I wrote the article, I would have fewer studies mentioned but with greater detail. Also, I would advise the author to make some of the sentences phrased more simply so they can be fully acknowledged.