13th Annual Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) Symposium and The Annual Early Alzheimer's Diagnostic an

BACKGROUND and NEED

It is projected that nearly 14 million people in the United States and nearly 120 million people worldwide will have dementia caused by Alzheimer’s and non-Alzheimer’s conditions by the year 2050, with about two thirds of affected individuals being 85 years of age and older. All forms of dementia have a major impact on the quality of life and productivity of affected individuals, their caregivers and the community in general.  

Individuals with dementia suffer from cognitive and functional impairment, social isolation, problematic behaviors and significant deterioration in over-all quality of life. Many will need long-term care and caregivers of the patients are often affected by emotional distress, physical and psychological burden of providing care and major financial hardships. Major advances have be made in identifying the earliest clinical features of AD and other causes of dementia in recent years.

This has led to improvements in clinical assessment and the use of brain imaging methods, which have enabled clinicians to diagnose each cause of dementia more reliably and at an earlier stage of illness. As a result, the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases has improved considerably.  International workgroups, including those convened by the Alzheimer’s Association and the National Institute on Aging (NIA), have provided new criteria and guidelines to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease, Lewy Body Dementia and Frontotemporal Dementia more accurately.

The criteria for diagnosing a pre-dementia condition known as Mild Cognitive Impairment have also been refined. People with MCI are at increased risk for progressing to AD or other dementias. The early diagnosis of dementing illnesses can lead to earlier pharmacological treatment and non-pharmacological interventions (e.g., caregiver education, legal and financial counseling). Nevertheless, studies have shown that physicians often lack knowledge of these diagnostic guidelines, resulting in delays in diagnosis  and inaccurate diagnoses and interventions.

Many physicians are also unaware of the advantages and limitations of new methods for clinical assessment and biomarkers using blood, CSF and imaging tools, or how to interpret their results in clinical practice. Clinicians also need information about the newer research in the field and how to respond to patient questions and when and why to refer patients to clinical trials. In addition to the diagnosis there has been a major growth in our understanding of the genetics and biology of Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative disorders. Because of similarities and overlap in biological mechanisms and pathology, it is highly likely that the advances which have been made in the diagnosis, as well as the genetics and biological mechanisms among non- Alzheimer’s diseases will also have application in a better understanding  of Alzheimer’s disease. Accordingly, it is the goal of this year’s MCI Symposium to summarize the major research advances which have been made in non-Alzheimer neurodegenerative conditions.