Research news in brief: Winter 2018

Young blood

A small study at Stanford University suggested that blood transfusions from younger people to people living with dementia might ease day-to-day symptoms of the condition.

However, this didn’t confirm any long-term benefits or show any improvements in the progressive brain damage involved in dementia.

Waist away

Alzheimer’s Society researchers at Cardiff University have found that if your waist is larger than your hips you may have weaker connections between cells in brain regions linked to processing memory and emotion.

Their work continues to investigate whether greater body fat and associated inflammation could increase risk of dementia.

Intellectual disability and dementia

Dr Karen Watchman presented her Society-funded research at the Alzheimer Europe Conference. Her work focuses on the experiences and perspectives of people living with an intellectual disability as well as with dementia, reinforcing that they also need the best dementia care.