Digital Avatar - DETECT ALZHEIMERS

Marc Agronin, MD

Chief Medical Officer
Frank C. and Lynn Scaduto MIND Institute and Behavioral Health
Miami Jewish Health
Miami, FL

Liana G. Apostolova, MD, MSc, FAAN

Associate Dean of Alzheimer’s Disease Research
Indiana University Distinguished Professor
Barbara and Peer Baekgaard Professor of Alzheimer's Disease Research
Professor in Neurology, Radiology, Medical and Molecular Genetics
Indiana University School of Medicine
Department of Neurology
Indianapolis, IN

Alireza Atri, MD, PhD

Chief Medical Officer, Banner Research
Banner Alzheimer’s and Research Institutes
Pheonix, Sun City, and Tucson, AZ
Director, Banner Sun Health Research Institute
Sun City, AZ

Natalie Christian, MD

Assistant Professor, Geriatrics
Program Director, Geriatric Medicine Fellowship
Tulane University School of Medicine
Southeast Louisiana Veterans Healthcare System
New Orleans, LA

Ariel F. Cole, MD, FAAFP

Program Director, AdventHealth Geriatric Fellowship
Winter Park, FL

Brad Dickerson, MD, MMSc, FAAN, FANPA

Professor of Neurology, Harvard Medical School
Director, Frontotemporal Disorders Unit, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital
Boston, MA

James M. Ellison, MD, MPH

Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior
Sidney Kimmel Medical College
Co-Director, Comprehensive Alzheimer’s Center
Vickie & Jack Farber Institute for Neuroscience
Thomas Jefferson University
Philadelphia, PA

Richard M. Dupee, MD, MACP, AGSF

Clinical Professor of Medicine
Tufts University School of Medicine
Clinical professor, Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, Tufts University
Chief, Geriatrics Service, Tufts Medical Center
Senior Physician, Pratt Diagnostic Center
Dean ex officio, Office of International Affairs, Tufts University School of Medicine
Boston, MA

James E. Galvin, MD, MPH

Professor of Neurology
University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
Miami, FL

David S. Geldmacher, MD

Professor and Director
Division of Memory Disorders and Behavioral Neurology
Department of Neurology
Heersink School of Medicine
University of Alabama at Birmingham
Birmingham, AL

George T. Grossberg, MD

Henry & Amelia Nasrallah Endowed Professor
Director of Geriatric Psychiatry
Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neuroscience
Saint Louis University School of Medicine
St. Louis, MO

Scott A. Kaiser, MD

Director of Geriatric Cognitive Health
Pacific Neuroscience Institute
Santa Monica, CA
Adjunct Professor
USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology
Los Angeles, CA

Lynn E. Kassel, PharmD, BCPS

Associate Professor of Pharmacy Practice
Drake University College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences
Des Moines, IA

Diana R. Kerwin, MD, CPI

President, Kerwin Medical Center
Chief, Geriatric Medicine, Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital
Dallas, TX

Alka Khera, MD

Assistant Professor
UT Southwestern Neurology
Dallas, TX

Chi-Ying (Roy) Lin, MD, MPH, FAAN

Director, CurePSP Center of Care for PSP, CBD, and MSA
Assistant Professor of Neurology
Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Disease Centers
Baylor College of Medicine
Houston, TX

Catherine A. Madison, MD

Founding Director Ray Dolby Brain Health Center
San Francisco, CA

Scott McGinnis, MD

Assistant Professor of Neurology, Harvard Medical School
Center for Alzheimer Research and Treatment
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Frontotemporal Disorders Unit
Massachusetts General Hospital
Boston, MA

Mary Norman, MD

Geriatrician
Cedars-Sinai Medical Group
Los Angeles, CA

Kristin S. Meyer, PharmD, BCGP, FASCP

Professor of Pharmacy Practice
Drake University College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences
Des Moines, IA

Charles Montano, MD

Owner, Principal Investigator
CT Clinical Research
Cromwell, CT

Manisha Parulekar, MD, FACP, AGSF, CMD

Director, Division of Geriatrics
Co-director, Center for Memory Loss and Brain Health
Hackensack University Medical Center
Hackensack, NJ

Giulio Maria Pasinetti, MD, PhD

The Saunders Family Chair in Neurology, Professor in Neurology
Director, Mount Sinai Center in Advance Botanical Research in Molecular Integrative Neuroresilience
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
New York, NY
Director, Basic and Biomedical Research and Training Program, Geriatric Research and Clinical Center
James J. Peters Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center
Bronx, NY

Anton P. Porsteinsson, MD

William B. and Sheila Konar Professor of Psychiatry, Neurology,
Neuroscience, and Medicine
Director, Alzheimer’s Disease Care, Research and Education
Program (AD CARE)
University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry
Rochester, NY

William D. Rhoades, DO, FACP

Chief Medical Officer
Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital
Downers Grove, IL

Barry W. Rovner, MD

Professor, Departments of Psychiatry & Neurology
Sidney Kimmel Medical College
Thomas Jefferson University
Philadelphia, PA

Marwan Noel Sabbagh, MD, FAAN, FANA

Moreno Family Chair for Alzheimer’s Research
Vice Chairman for Research and Professor
Department of Neurology
Barrow Neurological Institute
Phoenix, AZ

Martin J. Sadowski, MD, PhD

Zachary and Elizabeth M. Fisher Professor of Neurodegeneration and Alzheimer's Disease
Professor of Neurology, Psychiatry, and Biochemistry & Molecular Pharmacology
New York University Grossman School of Medicine Director, Fisher Center Alzheimer’s Clinical Trials Program
New York, NY

Angela Sanford, MD, CMD

Associate Professor of Internal Medicine-Geriatrics
Saint Louis University School of Medicine
Ballwin, MO

Sharon J. Sha, MD, MS

Clinical Professor
Clinical Professor Neurology and Neurological Sciences Stanford University Chief, Stanford Memory Disorders Center Stanford Medicine Health Care
Palo Alto, CA

Paul E. Schulz, MD

Rick McCord Professor of Neurology
Umphrey Family Professor of Neurodegenerative Disorders
Director, Memory Disorders and Dementia Clinic
UTHealth Houston
Houston, TX

Neil Skolnik, MD

Professor of Family and Community Medicine
Sidney Kimmel Medical College
Thomas Jefferson University
Philadelphia, PA

Sandra Swantek, MD

Director, Section of Geriatric Psychiatry
RUSH University Medical Center
Chicago, IL

R. Scott Turner, PhD, MD

Professor of Neurology
Director of the Memory Disorders Program
Georgetown University
Washington, DC

Chuck Vega, MD, FAAFP

Health Sciences Clinical Professor
UC Irvine Department of Family Medicine
Director, UCI Program in Medical Education for the Latino Community
University of California Irvine
Irvine, CA

Geoffrey C. Wall, PharmD, FCCP, BCPS

John R. Ellis Distinguished Chair of Pharmacy Practice
Professor of Clinical Sciences
Director, Drake Drug Information Center
Drake University College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences
Internal Medicine Clinical Pharmacist
Iowa Methodist Medical Center
Des Moines, IA

David A. Wolk, MD, FAAN

Professor of Neurology
Director, Penn Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA

Patient Introduction

Question #1

The test results showed amyloid plaques in your wife’s brain and she’s been diagnosed with early stage Alzheimer’s disease. How do you feel about this diagnosis?

Answer

Question #2

Well, let me start by saying that it’s encouraging to have found this at an early stage. That’s a good thing. And hats off to you for seeing a problem and doing something about it. Not everybody does.

Answer

Question #3

We usually start with things like regular exercise, healthy diet, cognitive training, and maintaining social engagement. These are all important aspects of treatment.

Answer

Question #4

Yes, any treatment plan will focus on her quality of life. We’ll keep asking what we can do to provide benefit and maintain autonomy while slowing progression. Are either of you aware of the medications for early-stage Alzheimer’s disease?

Answer

Question #5

There are several medications to help manage her symptoms. Two new agents – donanemab and lecanemab – were specifically approved recently early stage Alzheimer’s disease to potentially slow disease progression: donanemab and lecanemab.

Answer

Question #6

Yes. I’ll give advice on things that may be a good fit. But the biggest part is understanding what matters most to you and your wife. And I most certainly won’t make Anita take anything she doesn’t want to take.

Answer

Question #7

Well, for one thing, they’re disease-modifying when given at sufficient doses for sufficient durations. This means that they actually remove plaques in the brain in patients with early-stage Alzheimer’s disease, rather than just manage symptoms.

Answer

Question #8

They’re generally very safe. They’re given through IV infusion so sometimes mild infusion reactions occur. There is also something called amyloid-related imaging abnormalities, or ARIA. This is usually asymptomatic and resolves on its own.

Answer

Question #9

Serious symptoms – seizures, for example – are rare. We’d monitor Anita closely with MRIs, especially in the first months. We’ll address any significant issues by pausing the agent and re-evaluating. There are recommendations for safe and appropriate use of these agents.

Answer

This activity is provided by Med Learning Group. This activity is supported by an educational grant from Lilly.

Scientific Council

Marc Agronin, MD

Liana G. Apostolova, MD, MSc, FAAN

Alireza Atri, MD, PhD

Natalie Christian, MD

Ariel F. Cole, MD, FAAFP

Brad Dickerson, MD, MMSc, FAAN, FANPA

James M. Ellison, MD, MPH

Richard M. Dupee, MD, MACP, AGSF

James E. Galvin, MD, MPH

David S. Geldmacher, MD

George T. Grossberg, MD

Scott A. Kaiser, MD

Lynn E. Kassel, PharmD, BCPS

Diana R. Kerwin, MD, CPI

Alka Khera, MD

Chi-Ying (Roy) Lin, MD, MPH, FAAN

Catherine A. Madison, MD

Scott McGinnis, MD

Mary Norman, MD

Kristin S. Meyer, PharmD, BCGP, FASCP

Charles Montano, MD

Manisha Parulekar, MD, FACP, AGSF, CMD

Giulio Maria Pasinetti, MD, PhD

Anton P. Porsteinsson, MD

William D. Rhoades, DO, FACP

Barry W. Rovner, MD

Marwan Noel Sabbagh, MD, FAAN, FANA

Martin J. Sadowski, MD, PhD

Angela Sanford, MD, CMD

Sharon J. Sha, MD, MS

Paul E. Schulz, MD

Neil Skolnik, MD

Sandra Swantek, MD

R. Scott Turner, PhD, MD

Chuck Vega, MD, FAAFP

Geoffrey C. Wall, PharmD, FCCP, BCPS

David A. Wolk, MD, FAAN

This activity is provided by Med Learning Group.
This activity is supported by an educational grant from Lilly.