Release date: 2017-08-03
The research team at Ramat Gansiba Medical Center uses non-invasive imaging techniques and new equipment to scan the retina and detect cognitive and structural changes in the brain that can cause Alzheimer's disease, thus identifying and treating Alz in the early stages. Hammer disease.
People often say: "The eyes are the windows of the heart." But now, researchers in Israeli hospitals say that the eyes can also be the windows of the brain. They used advanced imaging technology and new medical devices to detect pupil size in order to detect early symptoms of Alzheimer's disease.
Yigal Rotenstreich, an Israeli retinal disease researcher and ophthalmologist, said his research team at the Sheba Medical Center in Ramat has found that by scanning the retina to determine if it is suffering There is a method of Alzheimer's disease. Researchers believe that the retina connected to the brain can be detected by non-invasive imaging techniques, or it can detect diseases with unclear symptoms.
Alzheimer's disease can bring memory, thinking and behavior problems to patients, and their symptoms often accumulate over the years. According to the 2017 report of the Alzheimer's Association, there are only 5 million Alzheimer's patients in the United States, and this number may increase to 16 million by 2050.
Professor Michal Beeri and Professor Ramit Ravona-Springer participated in the study. Using advanced non-invasive imaging techniques, they looked at indicators of retinal abnormalities (such as the number and size of blood vessels, traces of beta-amyloid deposits, etc.) and predicted the relationship between cognitive function and brain structural changes in Alzheimer's disease.
Technique combinations such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and optical coherence tomography (OCT) measure the parameters of blood vessels through 3D images of the eye, and the special camera device developed by the team is capable of detecting the amount of pupil contraction under various visual stimuli.
“We developed a unique multifocal device that measures the amount of contraction when the pupil is exposed to red or blue light. This allows us to test whether the visual pathway can function at different locations in the retina.†In an interview with the Israel Times, Qi said.
Rotanstitch said the team's preliminary study using new equipment found that the patient's pupil had an "abnormal response" to red and blue light, suggesting retinal nerve cells in elderly patients with "mild cognitive impairment." The function has been lost.
The hospital is currently planning a clinical trial of about 430 offspring of Alzheimer's disease patients to see if they have the same abnormal pupillary response and retinal dysfunction.
"We are conducting a comprehensive analysis of retinal vascular function and structural changes for the first time and studying their relationship with the structure, function and vascular brain biomarkers of the offspring of existing Alzheimer's disease patients, because the risk of these people is also Very high," said Rotanstitch.
Previous treatments for Alzheimer's disease have been failing in clinical trials, "because some parts of the brain have been covered by pathology, and this phenomenon has actually begun decades ago when the disease appeared." Explain, “The new set of test methods we developed is non-invasive, reliable and objective, can be tested repeatedly and is highly reliable. If we can use these methods to detect Alzheimer's disease earlier, then we will be able to detect earlier. Carry out treatment and have a better effect."
Rotanstitch said the study has included 50 patients and will explore different parameters in different locations of the eye to identify distortions that may be associated with Alzheimer's disease.
If the study is successful, the results “may (and enable people) to find disease markers in a unique, treatable, non-invasive and low-cost way during the incubation period of Alzheimer's diseaseâ€. He said: "This may be the basis for ongoing clinical evaluation and monitoring of Alzheimer's disease treatment, and it will be a huge breakthrough."
Rotanstitch established the Retina Research Laboratory at the Goldschleger Eye Institute at the Sheba Medical Center and conducted clinical research with the team to develop new therapies and diagnostic tools to address both retinal and macular degeneration. has a problem.
Source: Israel Times
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