Blood Tests for Alzheimer's: A New Study Shows 83% Accuracy
Can a Simple Blood Test Detect Alzheimer’s Disease?
Yes. A multinational study of 605 participants across Latin America found that blood tests measuring three key proteins detected Alzheimer’s disease with 83% accuracy and frontotemporal dementia with 88% accuracy. When combined with brain scans and cognitive tests, accuracy rose to 89% for Alzheimer’s and 95% for frontotemporal dementia.
Right now, diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease usually requires expensive PET brain scans or painful spinal taps. These tests cost thousands of dollars and are not available in many parts of the world. This study shows that a simple blood draw could do much of the same work, and it holds up across populations with wide genetic and racial diversity.