The Norman Transcript

Headlines

Discussion

January 21, 2013

Brain pacemakers will be tested to zap Alzheimer’s damage

By Lauran Neergaard Associated Press

WASHINGTON — It has the makings of a science fiction movie: Zap someone’s brain with mild jolts of electricity to try to stave off the creeping memory loss of Alzheimer’s disease.

And it’s not easy. Holes are drilled into the patient’s skull so tiny wires can be implanted into just the right spot.

A dramatic shift is beginning in the disappointing struggle to find something to slow the damage of this epidemic: The first U.S. experiments with “brain pacemakers” for Alzheimer’s are getting under way. Scientists are looking beyond drugs to implants in the hunt for much-needed new treatments.

The research is in its infancy. Only a few dozen people with early-stage Alzheimer’s will be implanted in a handful of hospitals. No one knows if it might work, and if it does, how long the effects might last.

Kathy Sanford was among the first to sign up. The Ohio woman’s early-stage Alzheimer’s was gradually getting worse. She still lived independently, posting reminders to herself, but no longer could work. The usual medicines weren’t helping.

Then doctors at Ohio State University explained the hope — that constant electrical stimulation of brain circuits involved in memory and thinking might keep those neural networks active for longer, essentially bypassing some of dementia’s damage.

Sanford decided it was worth a shot.

“The reason I’m doing it is, it’s really hard to not be able, sometimes, to remember,” Sanford, 57, said from her Lancaster, Ohio, home.

For local news and more, subscribe to The Norman Transcript Smart Edition, or our print edition.

Text Only | Photo Reprints
Headlines
  • Oklahoma Tornado Expert: Schools need shelters

    Ninety-four percent of Oklahoma schools do not have tornado shelters, according to Gov. Mary Fallin, even though at least one weather expert says they should be standard. With two Moore schools destroyed in Monday’s EF-5 tornado — and ...

    May 24, 2013 1 Photo

  • Family shelter saves 11 lives

    MOORE — Ronnie and Sally Horn built their retirement home 15 years ago. It was a vision of comfort set against a wooded background. The yard was well manicured. The picket fence was white. The pond out back was as clear as any in Oklahoma. ...

    May 24, 2013

  • OU ready to keep victims all summer

    Juan Flores moved into the Walker Center dormitory Wednesday at the University of Oklahoma. He was shown to his new room, pre-furnished with a bed, desk and closet. He spent his first evening watching football on one of the communal TVs in ...

    May 24, 2013

  • Tornado took town’s youngest as it swept through Moore

    MOORE — One loved the spotlight. Another was nicknamed “The Wall” because of the force he brought to the soccer field. When a top-of-the-scale EF-5 tornado ripped through Moore, it took with it 24 lives. Seven of them were children at ...

    May 24, 2013

  • Third-grader left school with minutes to spare

    Faces of the storm The Oklahoma medical examiner’s office says it has positively identified all 24 people killed in the tornado that ripped through the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore, including 10 children: Monday’s tornadoes — Terri Long, ...

    May 24, 2013

  • Little Axe Class of 2013 graduates

    The Little Axe Senior Class of 2013 held its commencement exercise Tuesday evening. Graduates include Kaleb Leroy Anderson, Christopher L. Arterberry, Nora Leigh Barnett, Kaila Rae Linn Bopp, Dalton Lynn Branch, Shannon Maree' Brophy, ...

    May 24, 2013

  • House approves new county judge

    OKLAHOMA CITY — Cleveland County is due to get another district judge seat authorized very soon after state representatives approved 78 to 9 on Wednesday the legislation to accomplish such a feat....

    May 24, 2013

  • Third-grader left school with minutes to spare

    Scott Lewis picked up his son, Zack, from Plaza Towers Elementary School as hail pounded the school Monday afternoon. About five minutes after they left, Lewis said, the monster tornado smashed into the building....

    May 24, 2013

  • Mental health clinic offered for children

    In an effort to help local children process their emotions in the wake of tornadoes on Sunday and Monday, the University of Oklahoma’s Center on Child Abuse and Neglect is offering a mental health clinic....

    May 24, 2013

  • Little Axe not forgotten amidst severe weather events

    As the nation focuses on the hardest hit tornado-affected areas of Oklahoma, smaller communities are still asking for help....

    May 24, 2013