Alzheimer's cases could triple by mid-century.New predictions about the expected increase in Alzheimer's disease patients as the baby boomers age are sure to leave a lasting impression: Without new prevention and/or treatment techniques, the number of Americans with Alzheimer's disease could triple by 2030, according to a study in the August 2003 issue of the Archives of Neurology The Archives of Neurology is a monthly professional medical journal published by the American Medical Association. Archives of Neurology publishes original, peer-reviewed scientific research of the nervous system as well as the various mechanisms of disease. . Funded by the Alzheimer's Association and the National Institute on Aging The National Institute on Aging is a division of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, located in Bethesda, Maryland. Formed in 1974, NIA's mission is to improve the health and well-being of older Americans through research. It is the primary U.S. (NIA), the study found that the biggest increase will be in the growing age 85+ cohort. The financial impact of caring for so many people with the disease--expected to increase from 4.5 million now to 13.2 million by mid-century--is staggering, said Sheldon Goldberg, president and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. of the Alzheimer's Association: "If left unchecked, it is no exaggeration to say that Alzheimer's disease will destroy the healthcare system and bankrupt Medicare and Medicaid Medicare and Medicaid U.S. government programs in effect since 1966. Medicare covers most people 65 or older and those with long-term disabilities. Part A, a hospital insurance plan, also pays for home health visits and hospice care. ." To head off disaster, Goldberg called for more funding for research--the association wants the federal government to spend $1 billion annually, up from the $640 million the National Institutes of Health will spend in 2003. While not undercutting the significance of the future challenges, Marcelle Morrison-Bogorad, PhD, NIA's associate director for the neuroscience and neuropsychology neuropsychology Science concerned with the integration of psychological observations on behaviour with neurological observations on the central nervous system (CNS), including the brain. of aging program, remained "optimistic that current research will lead to strategies for intervention early in the disease so that we can keep these projections from becoming a reality." |
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