HealthScienceDailyThese blood thinners may have an unexpected benefit for Alzheimer’s patients
A Swedish study found that Alzheimer's patients taking newer blood thinners called NOACs experienced slower cognitive decline than those on older medication or none at all.
Newer blood thinners may do more than prevent strokes in people with Alzheimer’s disease and atrial fibrillation. Researchers found that patients taking NOACs experienced a slower decline in cognitive function than those using warfarin or no blood thinners. The effect was modest each year but could add up over time.
Researchers at Karolinska Institutet found that Alzheimer's patients with atrial fibrillation who took newer blood thinners called NOACs declined more slowly than those on warfarin or no medication.
The study analysed 7,308 people from a Swedish dementia registry and measured cognitive change using the standardised Mini-Mental State Examination over time.
The researchers say the difference of 0.2 MMSE points per year is modest but could become meaningful over a longer period, and warrants further investigation.
If someone you care for has both Alzheimer's and atrial fibrillation, it may be worth asking their doctor whether NOACs are the right anticoagulant choice for them.
More from Cuppa
Russians begin voting in parliamentary election set to cement Kremlin's powerRussians have begun three days of voting in a wartime parliamentary election with virtually no opposition, widely expected to cement the Kremlin's grip on power.
Yemen’s anti-Houthi forces launch inquest into sudden military collapseYemen's anti-Houthi forces are investigating how their entire west coast military campaign collapsed, with claims that billions of dollars were paid to persuade fighters to abandon their positions.
Tectonic & Haze Crisis 2026Indonesia is battling a dangerous combination of major earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and El Nino-driven wildfires in 2026, with economic losses estimated up to Rp123 trillion and haze affecting…
How one plume of hot rock built two volcano chains off Australia's coastScientists have worked out why two nearly identical volcano chains sit side by side off Australia's east coast: one deep plume split in two around a stalled slab of ocean floor.
Flight chaos for hundreds of thousands was caused in ‘millisecond’ by software errorA software bug in the UK's air traffic control system caused a six-hour outage in a millisecond, disrupting hundreds of thousands of passengers and prompting calls for the CEO to be sacked.
Human brain is two separate organs, new Stanford research findsStanford researchers found the human brain is actually two ancient nervous systems joined together, which could help treat diseases like ALS and SMA.
Flight chaos caused by software defect, says air traffic control bodyThe UK's air traffic control meltdown that cancelled 2,000+ flights was caused by a software defect that corrupted data in a millisecond, not a cyber attack.
Russian hybrid attacks against Europe intensifying, says MacronFrench President Macron says Russia's hybrid attacks on Europe have intensified and France will not be intimidated, ordering protection of critical infrastructure.
What readers are saying