Latest News

• share
• favorite_border

A new study shows that people with Parkinson’s disease who eat a diet that includes three or more servings per week of foods high in flavonoids, like tea, apples, berries and red wine, may have a lower chance of dying during the study period than people who do not eat as many flavonoids. The research is published in the January 26, 2022, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The study looked at several types of flavonoids and found that higher consumption of flavan-3-ols and anthocyanins, both before and after a Parkinson’s diagnosis, was associated with lower risk of death during the study period.

• share
• favorite_border

A new study suggests that people with early-stage Parkinson’s disease who regularly got one to two hours of moderate exercise twice a week, like walking or gardening, may have less trouble balancing, walking and doing daily activities later. The research is published in the January 12, 2022, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Researchers found that those who exercised regularly over five years did better on cognitive tests and had slower progression of the disease in several aspects.

• share
• favorite_border

Who gives consent for treatment when a person with stroke cannot? The American Academy of Neurology (AAN) is issuing a position statement for neurologists on how to navigate consent issues for people who have experienced acute ischemic stroke. The statement is published in the January 10, 2022, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology, and was developed by the Ethics, Law, and Humanities Committee, a joint committee of the AAN, American Neurological Association and Child Neurology Society. This position statement replaces the American Academy of Neurology’s 1999 position paper as well as a 2011 policy statement on this topic.

• share
• favorite_border

A new study suggests that even though men may be more likely to have cardiovascular conditions like heart disease and stroke and risk factors like diabetes, high blood pressure and smoking in middle age than women, the negative impact of most of these conditions on thinking and memory skills may be stronger for women. The research is published in the January 5, 2022, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

• share
• favorite_border

Diabetic neuropathy refers to nerve damage due to diabetes and it may lead to pain and numbness, most often in the hands and feet. To help neurologists and other doctors determine the best treatment for people with diabetic neuropathy, the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) has issued a guideline on oral and topical treatments for painful diabetic neuropathy. The guideline is published in the December 27, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the AAN, and is endorsed by the American Association of Neuromuscular & Electrodiagnostic Medicine. This guideline updates the 2011 AAN guideline on the treatment of painful diabetic neuropathy.

• share
• favorite_border

A variety of jobs expose people to formaldehyde, a strong-smelling gas used in manufacturing wood and chemical products, plastics and in other applications. A new study suggests that long-term exposure to formaldehyde during work may be associated with cognitive impairment later on. The research is published in the December 22, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

• share
• favorite_border

The worldwide incidence and mortality rates for stroke decreased slightly from 1990 to 2019, but the overall numbers are still high, especially in high- and middle-income countries, according to a study published in the December 15, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The study focused on ischemic stroke, which is caused by blood clots and makes up 85% of stroke cases.

• share
• favorite_border

A new study suggests that children, teens and young adults who spend more time outdoors during the summer months and live in areas of the country that expose them to greater amounts of ultraviolet light have a lower risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS) as children. While rare, MS can develop in children, although most people start to get symptoms of the disease between the ages of 20 and 50. The research is published in the December 8, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

• share
• favorite_border

A new study shows that people who do vigorous physical activities, like jogging or playing competitive sports, in areas with higher air pollution may show less benefit from that exercise when it comes to certain markers of brain disease. The markers examined in the study included white matter hyperintensities, which indicate injury to the brain’s white matter, and gray matter volume. Larger gray matter volumes and smaller white matter hyperintensity volumes are markers of overall better brain health. The research is published in the December 8, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

• share
• favorite_border

Certain markers of injury to the brain’s white matter, called white matter hyperintensities, can be seen on brain scans. A new study finds that brain scans taken during the lifetimes of athletes in contact sports, compared to changes in their brains at autopsy, showed that white matter hyperintensities were associated with neuropathological changes. The research is published in the November 24, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The study also found that white matter hyperintensities were more common in athletes who played contact sports longer or had more head impacts during their careers.

• share
• favorite_border

The American Academy of Neurology (AAN) has issued a guideline providing recommendations for treating movement symptoms, called motor symptoms, in people with early Parkinson’s disease. The guideline is published in the November 15, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the AAN, and is endorsed by the Parkinson’s Foundation. This guideline updates recommendations on dopaminergic medications that were published in the 2002 AAN guideline on the initiation of treatment for Parkinson’s disease.

• share
• favorite_border

As people age, inflammation within their immune system increases, damaging cells. A new study shows that people who consumed an anti-inflammatory diet that includes more fruits, vegetables, beans, and tea or coffee, had a lower risk of developing dementia later in life. The research is published in the November 10, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

• share
• favorite_border

A new study found that people with higher cumulative estrogen exposure over their lifetime had greater brain volumes and fewer indicators of brain disease on their brain scans in midlife . The research is published in the November 3, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

• share
• favorite_border

A new study suggests that healthy older people who eat two or more servings of fish a week, including salmon, tuna and sardines, may have a lower risk later in life of developing vascular brain disease, a group of conditions that affect blood flow and blood vessels in the brain. The research is published in the November 3, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The study found that eating a diet rich in fish had the greatest protective effect on people younger than 75 years old.

• share
• favorite_border

The number of people experiencing numbness, tingling and pain in their feet with no known cause has been increasing over the last two decades, according at a new study published in the October 27, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Called small fiber neuropathy, the condition has different symptoms than large fiber neuropathy, which can cause weakness and balance issues. But in many cases people have both types of neuropathy.

• share
• favorite_border

A new study shows that in the last two decades the death rate from Parkinson’s disease has risen about 63% in the United States. The research is published in the October 27, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The study also found that the death rate was twice as high in men as in women, and there was a higher death rate in white people than other racial/ethnic groups.

• share
• favorite_border

There is debate over whether vigorous physical activity is a risk factor for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). A new study suggests it depends on whether that vigorous activity you get over your lifetime happens on the job or during leisure time. The research is published in the October 20, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

• share
• favorite_border

A new study shows that women are underrepresented in stroke clinical trials relative to the number who have strokes in the general population. The research is published in the October 13, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

• share
• favorite_border

Clot-busting drugs are the main treatment for stroke, but they have often not been recommended for people who have an aneurysm in their brains that has not ruptured. An aneurysm is a bulge in the wall of a blood vessel in the brain. A new study finds that these aneurysms rarely burst after treatment with clot-busting drugs, so the drugs may be safe for use. The study is published in the October 6, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

• share
• favorite_border

The American Academy of Neurology (AAN), the world’s largest association of neurologists with more than 36,000 members, is issuing a position statement which considers the ethical implications related to high drug costs. The statement is published in the October 4, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology, and was developed by the Ethics, Law, and Humanities Committee, a joint committee of the AAN, American Neurological Association and Child Neurology Society.

• share
• favorite_border

Blood sugar control has always been important for people with diabetes when it comes to preventing a stroke. But a new study finds for people with diabetes who have a stroke, there may be an ideal target blood sugar range to lower the risk of different types of vascular diseases like a stroke or heart attack later on. The research is published in the September 29, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

• share
• favorite_border

Adults with neurologic conditions are more likely than the general population to have had adverse childhood experiences such as abuse, neglect or household dysfunction, according to a study published in the September 22, 2021, online issue of Neurology® Clinical Practice, an official journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

• share
• favorite_border

Adults and children with migraines may get less quality, REM sleep time than people who don’t have migraines. That’s according to a meta-analysis published in the September 22, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Children with migraines were also found to get less total sleep time than their healthy peers but took less time to fall asleep.

• share
• favorite_border

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) who are diagnosed with colorectal cancer may be at a higher risk of dying from cancer or other causes over the next six months to one year than people with colorectal cancer who do not have MS, according to a study published in the September 15, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

• share
• favorite_border

Various strategies can help people with Parkinson’s who have difficulty walking, but a new study finds that many people have never heard of or tried these strategies. The research is published in the September 8, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The study also found that how well different compensation strategies worked depended on the context in which they were used, such as indoors versus outdoors, under time pressure or not.