美国国家公共电台 NPR Is It Alzheimer's Or Another Dementia? The Right Answer Matters

 

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

When older people have dementia, it's commonly assumed that they have Alzheimer's disease, but that is not the only form of dementia. There are other causes. NPR's Jon Hamilton reports on why it's important to get the right diagnosis¹.

JON HAMILTON, BYLINE²: When Julie Schneider was training to be a doctor in the 1980s and '90s, dementia was simple.

JULIE SCHNEIDER: We were taught that almost all dementia is Alzheimer's disease, and that there wasn't other things going on in the brain.

HAMILTON: Today, Schneider is a professor at the Rush Alzheimer's Disease Center in Chicago, and last week she served as scientific chair of a summit on dementias at the National Institutes of Health. Schneider says one key message from that summit is that dementia can have many causes. These include strokes, a form of Parkinson's and a disease that damages brain areas that regulate emotion and behavior.

SCHNEIDER: We still believe that Alzheimer's is important, but these other pathologies are also important.

HAMILTON: Alzheimer's is associated with plaques³ and tangles⁴ in the brain, but Schneider says a different culprit causes Lewy body dementia, which affects more than 1 million people in the U.S.

SCHNEIDER: It's these little aggregates⁵ called Lewy bodies, which were first identified in the brains of people with Parkinson's disease.

HAMILTON: And Schneider says people with Lewy body disease can expect different challenges than people with Alzheimer's.

SCHNEIDER: You're going to be more rapidly declining. You might have more motor problems, more falls, gait changes, balance problems, sleep problems, hallucinations.

HAMILTON: Many of these symptoms can be treated, even though the underlying⁶ disease can't be. Dr. Walter Koroshetz directs the National Institute of Neurological Disorders⁷ and Stroke. He says frontotemporal dementia damages areas of the brain involved in personality and behavior, and he says that can lead to tragic⁸ misunderstandings, if family members don't know the cause.

WALTER KOROSHETZ: Not infrequently, the spouse⁹ thinks that their spouse is just not worth being married to anymore, and they believe it's a psychological thing, and they get divorced. And later, there's a lot of guilt¹⁰.

HAMILTON: One preventable cause of dementia is stroke, says Roderick Corriveau, a program director at the NIH.

RODERICK CORRIVEAU: One-third of the people who have strokes go on to have dementia. Preventing strokes is about preventing damage to your brain.

HAMILTON: Corriveau says people who've had one stroke can often avoid a second by taking blood thinners and controlling their blood pressure.

Jon Hamilton, NPR News.

(SOUNDBITE OF STRFKR'S "SOMETHING AIN'T RIGHT (LINDSTROM AND PRINS THOMAS REMIX)")

1 diagnosis   

n.诊断，诊断结果，调查分析，判断

参考例句：

• His symptoms gave no obvious pointer to a possible diagnosis.他的症状无法作出明确的诊断。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做一次彻底的调查分析。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 plaques   

（纪念性的）匾牌( plaque的名词复数 )； 纪念匾； 牙斑； 空斑

参考例句：

• Primary plaques were detectable in 16 to 20 hours. 在16到20小时内可查出原发溶斑。
• The gondoliers wore green and white livery and silver plaques on their chests. 船夫们穿着白绿两色的制服，胸前别着银质徽章。

4 tangles   

（使）缠结， （使）乱作一团( tangle的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Long hair tangles easily. 长头发容易打结。
• Tangles like this still interrupted their intercourse. 像这类纠缠不清的误会仍然妨碍着他们的交情。

5 aggregates   

数( aggregate的名词复数 )； 总计； 骨料； 集料（可成混凝土或修路等用的）

参考例句：

• Snowflakes are loose aggregates of ice crystals. 雪花是冰晶的松散凝结。
• Our airplanes based in Europe should be included in the aggregates. 我们驻欧飞机应包括在总数内。

6 underlying   

adj.在下面的，含蓄的，潜在的

参考例句：

• The underlying theme of the novel is very serious.小说隐含的主题是十分严肃的。
• This word has its underlying meaning.这个单词有它潜在的含义。

7 disorders   

n.混乱( disorder的名词复数 )；凌乱；骚乱；（身心、机能）失调

参考例句：

• Reports of anorexia and other eating disorders are on the increase. 据报告，厌食症和其他饮食方面的功能紊乱发生率正在不断增长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The announcement led to violent civil disorders. 这项宣布引起剧烈的骚乱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 tragic   

adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的

参考例句：

• The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
• Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。

9 spouse   

n.配偶(指夫或妻)

参考例句：

• Her spouse will come to see her on Sunday.她的丈夫星期天要来看她。
• What is the best way to keep your spouse happy in the marriage?在婚姻中保持配偶幸福的最好方法是什么？

10 guilt   

n.犯罪；内疚；过失，罪责

参考例句：

• She tried to cover up her guilt by lying.她企图用谎言掩饰自己的罪行。
• Don't lay a guilt trip on your child about schoolwork.别因为功课责备孩子而使他觉得很内疚。