NEW TEST DETECTS EARLY ALZHEIMER'S
(World Entertainment; 09/14/98)

SEP. 14) WENN - BULLETIN - ONE  -  NEW TEST DETECTS EARLY ALZHEIMER'S A new 
 test for Alzheimer's disease can detect those at risk two years before they 
 develop definitive symptoms. But the computer- based test will only be useful 
 once effective drugs are available to slow the course of the disease. Currently 
 it would give those about to suffer crippling memory loss an unwelcome warning. 
 The test, conducted on a touchscreen computer, measures the ability to lay down 
 new short-term memories, something that declines in those developing 
 Alzheimer's. The test was developed by Britain's Cambridge University. It is 
 being commercialised by a spin-off company, CeNes, which claims it can 
 distinguish from normal ageing as well as other forms of dementia and 
 depression. Variations of the Alzheimer's test can also be used to check 
 patients with Parkinson's disease and Huntington's chorea.