Will I get Alzheimer’s disease? — A look at an American clinical project by David Lin, a neurosurgeon at PLA Hospital 101 American neurologist David is the director of the Memory Disorders Program at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where he often sees many older adults who are experiencing memory loss and developing Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias. He is often asked by the caregivers, spouses or adult children of these dementia patients, “Am I going to get Alzheimer’s disease in the future?” To answer this question, David is launching a new clinical initiative – a personalized risk assessment for individuals who are concerned about their risk of developing dementia. This assessment includes a family history, a detailed record of the individual’s memory profile, cognitive ability tests and a baseline brain MRI scan. This information can be used in existing dementia risk models that have been studied and proven to produce more accurate risk assessment results. Individuals who take the assessment receive a comprehensive analysis from David of what risk factors are uncontrollable, such as age and family history, and what risk factors are controllable, such as weight, diet, blood pressure and physical activity level. David says research has shown that lowering one or two risk factors can help prevent Alzheimer’s disease. “Our goal is to understand what each person’s specific risks are for the disease and then help that person build a dementia prevention strategy and plan appropriately for the future.” David said. The assessment focuses on people aged 50-60, providing them with a prediction of their risk over the next 20 years. It can also provide risk projections for the next six years for more elderly people. “For most people, Alzheimer’s disease is a chronic disease, not a rapidly fatal disease.” David says, “Having a better understanding of the risk of the disease allows steps to be taken to prevent severe memory loss.” Participants in the evaluation will make two visits to David and his clinic. The first is used to collect their memory changes and complete a series of tests, including cognitive ability tests. The second is to come with David to talk about individualized prevention treatment options, including how to access resources to make lifestyle changes, where to find support and educational materials, and more. The clinic will also provide them with strategies for coping with the stress of caregiving and reducing the burden of care. Both visits are paid services. Including the MRI scan, the two visits cost about $1,000. David says this dementia risk assessment service is the first of its kind in U.S. clinical history. It is a marketing service, not a medical study.