She Painted Bolero

But seems to speed progress of disease once it sets in

(NEWSER) - Higher levels of education help delay the onset of Alzheimer's, but once the disease takes hold, mental decline is faster among those with more schooling, researchers have found. Each year of education is linked to a 2.5 month delay in accelerated memory loss, according to the study in Neurology. But once it begins, mental deterioration progresses 4% faster for each year of education. More»

Frontotemporal dementia strikes early and fast

(NEWSER) - A little-known form of dementia can turn sufferers into completely different people, leaving spouses and children struggling to cope with someone who's still there in body but not in mind. Frontotemporal dementia bears some similarities to Alzheimer's—but it can hit patients who are younger and it develops faster. The New York Times tells a tragic and touching story of one couple brought to the brink of divorce before Michael French was diagnosed with the disorder; now, Ruth French has devoted her life to caring for a man who can no longer speak. More»

(NEWSER) - The Alzheimer’s patient had forgotten nearly everything, including his own name, but the sound of Frank Sinatra moved him to grab his wife and dance. The phenomenon demonstrates how deep-seated music is in the human brain, Sara Davidson writes for the New York Times’ New Old Age blog. “If someone sang to you as a baby, before you even knew words, you’ll respond to music after words are gone.” More»