Should You Get an Alzheimer’s Test?

A degenerative brain disorder, Alzheimer’s disease is devastating to deal with. Increasing numbers of individuals are stricken by Alzheimer’s every year. How do you know if the behavior you are seeing in yourself or a loved one is normal or the beginning of something more serious? While there isn’t one Alzheimer’s test available that can diagnose the disease for sure, physicians today have several diagnostic tools and criteria that help them accurately assess if someone has Alzheimer’s.

It is valuable to look into getting an Alzheimer’s test for your own peace of mind. Alzheimer’s affects a person’s memory, making forgetfulness so severe that in impacts their daily activities. Alzheimer’s also affects a person’s behavior and personality. Trying to determine on your own what is normal and what is true cause for concern is very upsetting and frustrating. An Alzheimer’s test can alleviate unnecessary anxiety and help you deal with reality, not just speculation.

Getting an Alzheimer’s test can help sort out whether a person has the disease or another form of dementia. Or if the symptoms are caused by something else altogether, testing for Alzheimer’s can help the physician determine what else to do.

What Kind of Alzheimer’s Test?

There are various screenings that the doctor can perform to determine if the symptoms you’re noticing are caused by Alzheimer’s or not. One such Alzheimer’s test is a very sensitive test that can detect small amounts of protein in one’s spinal fluid. Another experimental test is a simple scratch and sniff test that can flag some of the first signs of the disease. Then there is an electrical screening test that scientists are hopeful will be able to detect the very earliest signs of Alzheimer’s, even before any symptoms of memory loss appear.

An Alzheimer’s test regimen might include blood tests, CT scans, urine tests, and other lab and diagnostic tests such as neuropsychological screenings, memory tests, and cognitive function tests.

A psychology professor at Williams College in Massachusetts has developed a new Alzheimer’s test called the 7 Minute Screen which is proving useful in testing people for early signs of Alzheimer’s. It’s made up of four tests that can be administered to a patient in less than ten minutes. While it doesn’t provide a diagnosis for Alzheimer’s, it does show impaired memory function and reasoning, and it does differentiate between normal age-related memory loss and actual dementia.

More and more tests and screenings continue to be researched and developed, too; there is even a smell test that can be performed at home (since loss of smell is associated with the onset of Alzheimer’s disease).

Getting an Alzheimer’s test is all part of early detection of the disease, which is increasingly thought to be critical in minimizing the negative impact this disease has on individuals and their families.