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A patient's
ability to identify smells can accurately discriminate between
dementia associated with Alzheimer's disease or other forms
of dementia, according to researchers in New York.
Their
study included 60 patients, 20 per group, who met criteria
for Alzheimer's, vascular dementia and major depression.
Each was
given the Pocket Smell Test -- a three-item measure of odor
identification -- and the Mini-Mental State Examination.
The researchers,
reporting in the Journal of Neuropsychiatry, found that Alzheimer's
patients scored significantly lower that those suffering from
vascular dementia or major depression.
"Olfactory
assessment may be of diagnostic utility in the differential
diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease versus vascular dementia
versus major depression in elderly patients," the researchers
concluded.
Source:
Alzheimer Week
of June 9, 2002
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