Researchers from Lund University in Sweden have made a major discovery that could change how doctors find and treat Lewy body disease—one of the most common causes of dementia.
Until now, the only way to be completely sure someone had Lewy body disease was to examine their brain after they had died. But the new discovery means that doctors might soon be able to diagnose the disease while the person is still alive.
Lewy body disease is not a household name, but it causes serious conditions like Lewy body dementia and Parkinson’s disease. These illnesses affect a person’s ability to think, remember, and move. The disease happens when abnormal clumps of protein, called Lewy bodies, build up in the brain and damage nerve cells.
In the past, diagnosing this disease was very difficult. Doctors had to rely on symptoms alone and couldn’t be certain until an autopsy was done. But now, scientists have developed a test that checks the fluid that surrounds the brain and spinal cord. This fluid, known as cerebrospinal fluid, can reveal signs of Lewy bodies.
The researchers tested this new method on more than 1,100 people who didn’t have any memory or movement problems. To their surprise, about 10% of these people already had signs of Lewy bodies. This means it might be possible to find the disease early—before any symptoms show up.
Early detection could make a huge difference. If doctors can spot Lewy body disease early, they may be able to treat it sooner and slow down how quickly it gets worse. Right now, new drugs are being tested that might stop or delay the disease, but they will likely work best if given before major brain damage happens.
The study also found something interesting: many of the people who tested positive for Lewy bodies already had a weaker sense of smell. Even though they felt healthy, their ability to smell was already going down.
This discovery has led scientists to suggest a new approach: people over the age of 60 could take a simple smell test. If the test shows they have a poor sense of smell, doctors could then follow up with the spinal fluid test to check for Lewy bodies.
This two-step method—first a smell test, then a spinal fluid test—might help catch the disease early, before symptoms like memory loss or movement problems appear.
The study also showed that some people with Lewy body disease also had signs of Alzheimer’s disease. This is important because it might help doctors understand how fast someone’s condition could get worse and what kind of care they might need.
The scientists say that creating a blood test for Lewy body disease will be more difficult. That’s because there are fewer Lewy body proteins in blood compared to brain fluid. But this new test is still a big step forward and gives hope to many people.
The research was published in the well-known medical journal Nature Medicine. It adds to the growing number of studies focused on early detection of brain diseases. For example, scientists are also looking at how changes in walking style or high blood pressure might be early signs of dementia.
Thanks to this new discovery, doctors might soon have better tools to find Lewy body disease early—and help people get the treatment they need before it’s too late.
If you care about dementia, please read studies about Common drug for constipation is linked to higher dementia risk and findings of Scientists find link between heartburn drugs and increased dementia risk.
For more about dementia, please read studies about Scientists find a drug related to Viagra may help treat vascular dementia and findings of link between body inflammation and dementia risk.
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