Other studies have found a higher incidence of dementia in those with no education versus those with at least a high school diploma and that an increase in intellectual activity from early to mid-adulthood was associated with a significant reduction in the likelihood of AD onset. Individuals who exhibit several of these symptoms should see a physician for a complete examination. Detection and Diagnosis Scanning. Much effort is going into developing new methods to diagnose AD, because the only current physiological method of diagnosis is postmortem examination of brain tissue. Using positron emission tomography, researchers have determined that in specific regions of the resting brain, an AD sufferer reveals a pattern of metabolic deficits such as decreased glucose metabolism and blood flow, but when the brain is stimulated, it compensates for these deficits.
Work is also underway to radiolabel plaques for in vivo detection.
Today's treatments are predominantly palliative and include such activities as caregiving and psychosocial interventions, as well as antidepressant, antipsychotic, and anxiolytic medications. A number of cholinesterase inhibitors and drugs that boost the production of acetylcholine are in various stages of approval and clinical trials. Unfortunately, these drugs function only to suppress the mental decline of AD and do not appear to reverse the process. Also, estrogen replacement therapy for women has been effective in diminishing the incidence of AD and in improving the cognitive abilities of sufferers. These drugs act by increasing the sensitivity of AMPA receptors in the brain to the neurotransmitter glutamate.