Chinese scientists report ‘promising results’ from novel Alzheimer’s surgery

Chinese researchers have reported the first results of an experimental surgical procedure that they say aims to treat Alzheimer's disease by controlling the brain's waste disposal system.

In their findings, published in General Psychiatry, the team described the results of what the researchers described as “promising” results of a “cervical” operation on a patient with Alzheimer's disease.

Alzheimer's disease gradually damages brain cells, mainly affecting memory and cognitive functions. The condition occurs when proteins called beta-amyloid and tau accumulate abnormally in the brain, forming plaques and plaques that disrupt normal brain function. Like a city's garbage disposal system, the mind has its own cleaning mechanism.–The glymphatic system–It removes these harmful proteins during sleep.

“We estimated the lymphatic trunk and uterine lymphatic degeneration–The researchers hypothesized that venous anastomosis (LVA) may facilitate the flow of cerebrospinal fluid in the cranial glymphatic system, which may accelerate the clearance of harmful beta-amyloid and tau proteins.

The study, a collaboration between the Shanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital and Shanghai Jiao Tong University, included patients who met the strict biological diagnostic criteria set by the National Aging-Alzheimer Association. These criteria require evidence from a brain scan showing both memory loss and protein deposits that are biological markers of the disease.

The surgical team said the procedure connects the lymphatic vessels in the neck to the blood vessels, theoretically creating a new way to flush toxic proteins out of the brain. According to their report, the patient showed cognitive improvements five weeks after the surgery, as measured by standard tests.

The Mini-Mental State Test, which assesses cognitive function, increased from 5 to 7 points. . to 0

The patient's daughter said four months after surgery, “My mother's memory is stable and improving, and she can complete household chores every day.”

Brain scans taken before and after the procedure have been reported to show changes in protein concentration and metabolism, although the significance and durability of these changes remains to be determined. The patient's daughter noticed improvements in memory, the researchers said.

Is this a cure for Alzheimer's, as some say? Not yet and probably never. The researchers definitely did not make such a claim and the research is still ongoing. It is also important to replicate such results in a larger population to claim that a cure has been found.–And that is still far from happening.

“Once the cortex is damaged, it does not regenerate, so while the hypothesis of improving lymphatic drainage is interesting, it is not sufficient to reverse irreversible damage.” Alberto Martínez, an occupational physician in Ensalad, Ecuador, told Decrypt. “While the hypothesis is interesting, until more rigorous data and analysis are presented, it is not possible to say with certainty that unblocking the lymphatic vessels will improve Alzheimer's.

Decrypt spoke with Dr. Li and Dr. Ren, along with other neurologists, to try and gather more insights to get more feedback.

Hold your horses… but don't stop them

Although this surgical method represents a new direction in Alzheimer's treatment research, it is at a time when experts in the field describe it as a new era. There are currently 171 ongoing studies and 134 drugs being tested in clinical trials, with more than 77% of new treatments targeting disease-modifying approaches.

Recent advances have shown promise in slowing cognitive decline. Donanemab, a drug recently approved and marketed as Kisunla, has shown a 35% cognitive decline in clinical trials. For patients who received the drug at the beginning of the development of their disease, this figure rose to 60%.

Other new treatments include ALZ-801, the first potentially disease-modifying oral Alzheimer's drug, and lecanumab, which has shown promising results in clearing amyloid proteins from the brain.

Researchers are also exploring alternative approaches, such as semaglutide, a diabetes drug with potential benefits for mental health, and even lifestyle interventions through the US POINTER Study, which examines the effects of exercise and diet on cognition in at-risk populations.

But until a proven cure is found, the best thing to do is to stay healthy and avoid overstating the small victories shared by researchers.