Scientists in an MRI control area plan a focused ultrasound treatment at West Virginia University’s Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute. (Victor Finomore/WVU Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute/AP)
In the first study of its kind in humans, researchers have discovered that it is safe to use sound waves fired into specific areas of the brain to open a protective barrier and clear the way for Alzheimer’s medications. The study, reported in the New England Journal of Medicine, involved just three patients, but it raises hope about the long-term potential of the treatment strategy known as focused ultrasound.
[…]Joshua Grill, professor of psychiatry and human behavior at University of California at Irvine, called the study “biologically very exciting,” adding that the research may help scientists understand why some Alzheimer’s drugs work better than others. Scientists want to understand, for example, whether the important factor is how low you can get the amyloid levels, or how fast you clear them away.
Grill also sounded a note of caution, saying that while focused ultrasound may increase the effectiveness of the antibody treatment by allowing more of it to reach the brain, it may also significantly raise the intensity of side effects. In the case of aducanumab, side effects can include seizures, nausea, confusion and headaches.
Read the article here.
