Alzheimer's And Race: African Americans More Likely To Have Mix Of Dementia-Related Brain Changes

Statistics show that close to one in three seniors in the United States alone dies with Alzheimer's or another form of dementia, according to the Alzheimer's Association. Now, research at the Rush University Medical center are examining how the neurodegenerative illness can affect some races differently.

During the study, researchers investigated the brain autopsy of 41 African-Americans and 81 deceased European-Americans who had died of Alzheimer's.

While the disease is typically characterized by a build-up of substances known as plaques and tangles inside the brain, other changes may also contribute to the illness.

For instance, for some people with dementia, they may contain infarcts or tiny dead tissue caused by micro-strokes. On the other hand, some may contain Lewy bodies, otherwise known as another form of abnormal protein build-up in the brain that's also seen in patients with Parkinson's disease.

The findings revealed that among the 41 black African-Americans who died, just about 20 percent of them displayed the usual Alzheimer's plaques and tangles. The rest--or just about 70 percent--experienced Lewy bodies and/or infarcts on top of the typical signs seen with Alzheimer's. Overall, the autopsies revealed that African-American participants were more likely to experience a mix of dementia-related changes.

Furthermore, researchers found that African-American participants also had more frequent and severe blood vessel disease in their brains, including hardening of the arteries.

"Indeed, current Alzheimer's drugs primarily target specific Alzheimer pathologies in the brain," said researcher Lisa L. Barnes, neurologist at Rush University Medical Center, in a news release. "Given the mixed pattern of disease that we see in African American brains, it will be important to develop new treatments that target these other common pathologies, particularly for African-Americans."

More information regarding the findings can be seen via the American Academy of Neurology. 

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