Cold feet

Common infections are more dangerous for patients suffering from Alzheimer's.

Winter bugs worsen the condition of Alzheimer’s patients, a new study warns. Researchers have found that common infections during the cold season such as a simple cold or cough, and even a stomach upset, can double the rate of cognitive decline in those suffering from the disease as opposed to healthy people.

What this means, essentially, is that seasonal infections appear to result in inflammation of the body, and cause greater memory loss. A report published in the journal Neurology summarises research conducted by a team of scientists at University of Southampton, UK.

The team studied patients with mild to severe Alzheimer’s over six months. At the end of six months, patients under observation, who also reported increased levels of TNF-alpha (which is one of the chemicals in the body that helps create inflammation), scored lower on memory and thinking tests. What one can directly infer from this result is that there is a clear indication between common infection and Alzheimer’s. It isn’t, however, confirmed whether the decline in a patient’s condition is a result of such infections or cold, because those suffering from the disease could also be naturally more prone to common infections.

The study is another step towards finding newer treatments for dementia and Alzheimer’s. Drugs to prevent or treat the disease still might not be in sight, but staying away from easy infections is one possible way to keep stable. Doctors advice basic hygiene and care for patients. In many cases, the patients themselves may forget about everyday healthcare and therefore will require assistance.

This study, incidentally, comes at the time when other recent research on the disease has made news on a positive front. This study finds that the memories of Alzeihmer’s patients are, in fact, not entirely “lost”, but merely “forgotten.” The research, carried out by a team at University of California, Irvine, says that memories still exist in the patient’s brain, and further research could lead to ways to retrieve them.