Free Essay about Dementia with Lewy Bodies

Analysis

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The paper that I choose to analyze is Lewy Body Dementia, the state of the science by Bod Y (2016). The researchers of the paper seek to understand and treat LBD. The study of the article investigates the Lewy body Dementia Spectrum, its prevalence, the mechanism and the parts of the body that the disorder affects, its diagnosis, detection, and monitoring, risk factors and prevention as well as its clinical trials. Primarily, the report focuses on Dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB). As the author explains, DLB is a neurological disorder that is progressive and affects thinking, movement, behavior, sleep, and the autonomic nervous system. The author asserts that most doctors often misdiagnose the disorder like Alzheimer’s disease. He explains that the symptoms of DLB include cognitive fluctuations, visual hallucinations, and Parkinsonism. The diagnosis of the disease varies between different individuals. The authors hypothesize that a person who has Parkinson’s disease is likely to suffer from Dementia with Lewy Bodies. Additionally, they hypothesize that DLB is more common among men than in women. The author affirms that DLB is a common age-related ailment. More so, he asserts that healthcare providers should be aware of the DLB prevalence to make sure the patients receive proper treatment. The author concludes that contemporary research involves open and coordinated collaborations between academic researchers, pharmaceutical and biotech companies, private foundations, and government agencies. As he explains, the primary collaborators of the research are patients, caregivers, and patient advocacy groups. Lastly, the author avows that a research team should continue with their investigation because of the complex biology and varying symptoms of DLB.

Opinion

Dementia is a serious disease that affects the normal functioning of an individual’s brain. While most medications attempt to reduce the symptoms of Dementia, research is necessary to identify the cure for the disorder. The best way to make it happen is for the researchers to come together and work in unison to determine its treatment. Moreover, researchers have to conduct research on both LBD and Parkinson’s Disease Dementia (PDD) to understand the differences and commonalities between the two disorders. Finding the cure for Dementia with Lewy Bodies should be the top priority for researchers.

Researchers have to come up with new initiatives and achieve scientific advances in the investigation of DLB. The researchers should follow the recommendations outlined in the Alzheimer’s Disease-Related Dementias (ADRD) summit in 2016. Ideally, the research discoveries should help researchers to develop new treatments for the disease. Most importantly, they should concentrate on the LBD and PDD to enable health professionals to diagnose the disease easily.

Apparently, the symptoms of DLB are severe. For instance, the loss of cognitive function is a serious subject. Even so, compared to Alzheimer’s disease, DLB has severe symptoms of visual processing and inability to perform actions. More so, a patient who has DLB suffers from a mental impairment. Other crucial symptoms include rapid eye movement, Parkinsonism, and sleep behavior disorder. On the real sense, comprehensive DLB research is mandatory. Experimental results can directly link symptoms to a particular disease. As well, researchers should work together to reduce the pervasiveness of the DLB.

Research indicates that the prevalence of DLB is high. The article by Bod (2016) shows that DLB is responsible for 4 to 16 percent of dementia cases in the health care facilities. It is a requirement for the health care professionals to diagnose and treat the disorder. The reason is that most professionals misdiagnose DLB with Alzheimer’s disease. The high prevalence of DLB should stimulate research to curb the occurrences. Researchers should look into the regions and processes affected in DLB.

Scientists have to investigate the populations of neurons that are prone to develop Lewy Bodies than others. It is believable that scientists can examine the cell processes that result in DLB. DLB affects the brain severely to the extent that one cannot function properly. If researchers can diagnose the disorder at an early stage, then it is believable that the patient will be in good health. Researchers have to work day and night to find the specific drugs that can cure DLB. There is a need for a broader base of knowledge. Scientists need to investigate both the specific molecular and cellular changes involved in the development of DLB.

In general, research organizations have to work together to find the cure to Dementia with Lewy Body. Just as the author of the article asserts, it is agreeable that a formal research consortium should be available specifically for DLB. The national institute of health in collaboration with the best researchers have to work together to ensure that they find the best treatment for Dementia with Lewy Body. Many research articles talk about the disorder, but none of them outlines that there may be a cure. Even so, researchers should continue with clinical trials to test the effectiveness of the drugs that may cure DLB. Nevertheless, it is believable that someday, scientists will be able to discover the cure to patients who have Dementia. Finally, researchers have to focus on novel treatment approaches, target the early stages of DLB, and develop better clinical trial models.

Reference

Bod, Y. (2016). Lewy Body Dementia: the state of science. Retrieved from https://www.lbda.org/sites/default/files/2016_lbd_state_of_the_science_white_paper.pdf