A NEW laser test could detect dementia in just seconds years before symptoms set in, scientists have said.
The project has been a collaboration between experts at University Hospital Southampton and the University of Southampton.
The new test could offer early diagnosis[/caption]
Initial tests have shown it can detect Alzheimer’s disease with an average accuracy of more than 93 per cent, they added.
Professor Chris Kipps, consultant neurologist at University Hospital Southampton, said the new technique represents “a breakthrough in medical technology” and could “change the way we approach dementia diagnosis”.
He said: “This innovation is not just a leap in healthcare quality; it’s a paradigm shift, redefining our approach to neurodegenerative disease in the clinic.”
Dementia, a group of conditions that compromise the brain and rob sufferers of their memories and independence, is on the rise.
More than 850,000 people are living with dementia in the UK, with numbers expected to rise to 1.4 million by 2040.
There are many different types of the condition, such as Alzheimer’s and vascular dementia, which is progressive and gets worse over time.
Diagnosing dementia can take up to two years with current diagnostic tools, which can include brain scans and memory tests.
The researchers said many people do not receive a diagnosis until a much later stage in the disease when treatment options are less effective.
They said one of the main challenges is distinguishing between closely related dementia types.
The hope is that the new technology, known as multi-excitation Raman spectroscopy (MX-Raman), will create what the researchers call a “biochemical fingerprint” of a person to help pinpoint the type of dementia.
Professor Sumeet Mahajan, professor of molecular biophotonics and imaging at the University of Southampton, said: “Our integrated approach has the potential to revolutionise dementia diagnostics.
“There is an urgent unmet clinical need for more discriminatory, efficient and cost-effective solutions.
“Our holistic MX-Raman technique is uniquely equipped to address these challenges and we want to see this technology lead to vastly improved patient outcomes.”
The test will go through further development over the next couple of years, before entering clinical trials.
The aim is to develop something that could be made available to patients in a clinic or GP practice, the BBC reported.
Other major Alzheimer’s breakthroughs
While experts have warned that dementia diagnoses in England have reached record numbers, there have been a number of recent advances against brain robbing diseases.
From “game-changing” drugs gaining approval to blood tests that can spot the condition years before symptoms, here are other major Alzheimer’s breakthroughs.
- A “game-changing” Alzheimer’s drug called donanemab, that slows mental decline by up to 60 per cent has been approved in the United States. A UK decision on whether the drug will become available to patients in the UK with early symptoms is expected imminently.
- A blood test that detects Alzheimer’s up to 15 years before symptoms emerge is set to be made free on the NHS within a year. The new test is cheaper, easier and at least as accurate as the current diagnosis options and works by measuring levels of a protein in the blood called p-tau217.
- Researchers have developed a first-of-its-kind test that could predict dementia up to nine years before a diagnosis, with 80 per cent accuracy. It involves analysing network of connections in the brain when it’s in “idle mode” to look for very early signs of the condition.
- Scientists have also put AI to the test, developing machine learning models were able to spot early warning signs of the memory-robbing condition up to seven years before Alzheimer’s symptoms appear.
- A woman who has evaded Alzheimer’s disease despite half her relatives getting it could hold the clues to how to prevent it, with scientists pinpointing a particular gene which they think could help prevent Alzheimer’s from progressing.
