Question: My mother had Alzheimer’s and now that I’m getting up in years (I just turned 70), I’m wondering if my frequent forgetfulness is an early sign that I, too, am going down this difficult road.  How do I know for sure?

Answer: Currently, there is no one test that can diagnose Alzheimer’s Disease  (AD) with 100% accuracy. The only way to know for certain that someone has AD is an examination of brain tissue after death. Computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain are sometimes done to rule out other causes of dementia such as a brain tumor or stroke, but neither provide a definite diagnosis of AD.

Since you are concerned, I suggest you make an appointment with your health care provider, discuss your situation, and let him decide what tests should be done. This will probably include a complete physical, a medical status examination, and a review of your medical history and symptoms. Your doctor will focus on ruling out all other possible causes for your symptoms.

Occasional forgetfulness by itself is not a warning sign of Alzheimer’s. After all, our brain function peaks when we are in our mid-twenties. (And for many of us, that was a long time ago!) Some memory changes are probably age-related, but they shouldn’t interfere with your daily life. Who among us has not misplaced our car keys? But if you put them in the refrigerator, thinking they belong there, you may have reason for concern. All of us struggle to remember a word or name occasionally; a person with AD may not be able to recall a basic word such as “car.” Someone in the early stages of AD may become lost in their own neighborhood or stop in the middle of cooking dinner and wonder what they are doing. You may forget what color of dress your best friend wore at the New Year’s Eve party last week, but a person with AD may not remember going to the party.

My oldest sister, Elizabeth, lives in Ohio and we talk on the phone every week.  During a recent conversation she mentioned that she sometimes wonders if she is developing Alzheimer’s. (I think this is common in people whose mom or dad had AD, as that is a risk factor.) Elizabeth is an extremely talented musician and very intelligent. I decided to give her a quick “test” that is part of the Saint Louis University Mental Status (SLUMS) Examination.

“Name as many animals as you can,” I instructed.

“How much time do I have?” she questioned.

“I’ll tell you when to stop.”

“Aardvark, platypus…” she immediately started her list.

I told you she was intelligent!  Most people begin with dog, cat, bird… She passed with flying colors, naming more than fifteen animals in one minute! Naming twelve animals in one minute is an average score.

While I am definitely not advocating self-diagnosis, the SLUMS Exam and another dementia screening tool, “AD8” are both available on the Internet (just Google the names).  You may find these both interesting and helpful. And don’t forget…armadillo, marmoset, narwhale, sloth, tapir…