A new noninvasive procedure is safe and effective for treating patients with mild Alzheimer's disease (AD), new research suggests.
Clinicians monitor a trial patient with AD undergoing low-intensity focused ultrasound.
The approach uses MRI-guided low-intensity focused ultrasound (FUS) and injected microbubbles to temporarily open the blood-brain barrier (BBB).
In a small group of patients, the procedure was significantly associated with reduced amyloid plaque and cognitive decline.
Dr Ali Rezai
Being able to cross the BBB "on demand" and in a safe way opens up numerous frontiers for treating not only AD but also other neurodegenerative disorders, co-investigator Ali R. Rezai, MD, executive chair, Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, told Medscape Medical News.
And the possibilities don't end there; the technique may have a role in treating brain tumors and perhaps certain psychiatric conditions, Rezai added.
The findings were presented at the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) 2021 Annual Meeting, which was held online.
Targeted Brain Treatment
An estimated five million Americans live with AD, "and the numbers are rapidly growing," said Rezai. There is no cure or effective treatment for the condition despite more than 1000 clinical trials, he added.
However, that could change with a technique that transiently opens the BBB to allow targeted treatments to the brain.
