Publications by authors named "Laura J Jakimovich"
Importance: Age-associated changes in brain imaging and fluid biomarkers are characterized and compared in presenilin 1 (PSEN1)E280A mutation carriers and noncarriers from the world's largest known autosomal dominant Alzheimer disease (AD) kindred.
Objective: To characterize and compare age-associated changes in brain imaging and fluid biomarkers in PSEN1 E280A mutation carriers and noncarriers.
Design, Setting, And Participants: Cross-sectional measures of 18F-florbetapir positron emission tomography, 18F-fludeoxyglucose positron emission tomography, structural magnetic resonance imaging, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), and plasma biomarkers of AD were assessed from 54 PSEN1 E280A kindred members (age range, 20-59 years).
Background: Fibrillar amyloid-β (Aβ) is thought to begin accumulating in the brain many years before the onset of clinical impairment in patients with Alzheimer's disease. By assessing the accumulation of Aβ in people at risk of genetic forms of Alzheimer's disease, we can identify how early preclinical changes start in individuals certain to develop dementia later in life. We sought to characterise the age-related accumulation of Aβ deposition in presenilin 1 (PSEN1) E280A mutation carriers across the spectrum of preclinical disease.
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- The study tested whether divalproex sodium (valproate) could prevent or delay agitation and psychosis in individuals with moderate Alzheimer's disease, enrolling 313 participants.
- After two years of treatment, results showed no significant difference between the valproate and placebo groups regarding the time to development of agitation or psychosis.
- Additionally, the valproate group experienced more side effects and showed greater reductions in brain volume, indicating potential adverse effects of the treatment.
Valproate therapy for agitation in dementia: open-label extension of a double-blind trial.
Am J Geriatr Psychiatry
November 2003
Objective: The authors describe an open-label extension of a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study of divalproex sodium in 56 nursing home patients with agitation and dementia.
Methods: Participants (N=46) were treated for 6 weeks in an open fashion with clinically optimal doses of divalproex sodium (range: 250 mg/day-1,500 mg/day; mean: 851 mg/day). Behavior was assessed with the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS) and Clinical Global Impression of Change (CGI) by new raters.