Research

  • Half of people stop taking weight-loss drug within a year, study finds

    Half of people stop taking weight-loss drug within a year, study finds

    Half of adults without diabetes who begin taking the weight-loss drug semaglutide stop within a year, according to a Danish population-wide study. The research tracked 77,310 first-time users in Denmark between December 2022 and October 2023. More than half (40,262; median age 50 years, 72 per cent women) had discontinued after 12 months. At three, [...]

  • Researchers uncover potential new early warning sign for Alzheimer’s

    Researchers uncover potential new early warning sign for Alzheimer’s

    High levels of iron in the brain could act as an early warning sign for Alzheimer’s disease, with scans showing links to later cognitive decline, new research has revaled. Excess iron can boost brain toxins and drive nerve cell damage, particularly when combined with amyloid and tau - proteins that disrupt communication between brain cells [...]

  • Odds of dementia strongly linked to number of co-existing mental illnesses, study finds

    Odds of dementia strongly linked to number of co-existing mental illnesses, study finds

    The odds of developing dementia double with one psychiatric disorder and rise to 11 times higher with four or more, new research has revealed. The study tracked 3,688 patients aged 45 and over diagnosed with one or more common psychiatric disorders – depression, anxiety, psychosis, substance misuse, personality disorder and bipolar disorder – and assessed [...]

  • Almost half of adults with diabetes are undiagnosed, study finds

    Almost half of adults with diabetes are undiagnosed, study finds

    Forty-four per cent of adults aged 15 and over with diabetes do not know they have it, according to a new global data analysis. The study reviewed data from 204 countries and territories between 2000 and 2023. It found younger adults were least likely to be diagnosed, with only 20 per cent of young adults [...]

  • NHS trials £100 blood test in bid to revolutionise Alzheimer’s diagnosis

    NHS trials £100 blood test in bid to revolutionise Alzheimer’s diagnosis

    Doctors have launched a clinical trial of a £100 blood test for Alzheimer's, aiming to speed up diagnosis of the condition within the NHS. More than 1,000 patients with suspected dementia are being recruited from memory clinics across the UK to test whether the approach provides quicker and more reliable results, and improves care for [...]

  • Difficulty reading faces could be early warning sign of dementia, researchers say

    Difficulty reading faces could be early warning sign of dementia, researchers say

    People who see smiles in neutral or negative faces may be showing early dementia signs, with brain scans linking this bias to cognitive decline. Around 944,000 people in the UK live with dementia, and experts predict the number will pass one million by the end of the decade. Alzheimer’s is the most common form of [...]

  • NHS drones could deliver defibrillators faster than ambulances

    NHS drones could deliver defibrillators faster than ambulances

    NHS drones could soon deliver defibrillators to cardiac arrest patients more quickly than ambulances, with trials showing they may cut response times in rural areas. Researchers at the University of Warwick tested a drone delivery system in countryside locations. Backed by the National Institute of Health and Care Research, the trial found drones could deliver [...]

  • Air pollution can drive devastating forms of dementia, study suggests

    Air pollution can drive devastating forms of dementia, study suggests

    Fine-particle air pollution can trigger toxic brain protein clumps that drive Lewy body dementia, researchers say. The particles, known as PM2.5, cause proteins in the brain to misfold into clumps that damage nerve cells. These clumps are a hallmark of Lewy body dementia – the third most common type of dementia after Alzheimer’s and vascular [...]

  • Switching off specific protein could reverse brain ageing and prevent Alzheimer’s, study finds

    Switching off specific protein could reverse brain ageing and prevent Alzheimer’s, study finds

    Lowering levels of a protein called FTL1 in the brain may reverse memory loss and help prevent Alzheimer’s disease, a study suggests. The research points to therapies that could ease what scientists describe as the “worst consequences of old age” by targeting a molecular mechanism behind cognitive decline. Ageing takes a heavy toll on the [...]

  • Brainwave test spots early Alzheimer’s signs years before diagnosis

    Brainwave test spots early Alzheimer’s signs years before diagnosis

    A three-minute brainwave test can spot Alzheimer's-linked memory problems long before diagnosis, and has now been shown to work in patients' homes. The Fastball EEG test records electrical activity in the brain while participants view images. It identifies memory impairment in people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), a condition that can lead to Alzheimer’s. Unlike [...]