Alzheimer’s Disease is the most common form of dementia and usually affects people over the age of 65. The symptoms often develop over several years and while some treatments exist to help manage symptoms, it does not stop the underlying disease from getting worse.
Researchers are still trying to understand what triggers the protein buildup that causes Alzheimer’s Disease in the brain. A new study found it could be influenced by routine vaccinations, with some high doses of common jabs offering years of protection. Published in the journal Neurology, the study found that having high doses of influenza vaccine over the age of 65 was linked with a “significantly lower” risk of Alzheimer’s Disease than those who received a standard dose of the vaccine.
The protection lasted for up to 25 months after the vaccine was given and women had a reduced risk for even longer than men. For this study, researchers followed 164797 participants all of which were over the age of 65 and had no previous indicators of cognitive impairment. They followed up with this group for up to three years after they had received their respective flu vaccines.
In total 120,775 participants had the high dose vaccine and 44,022 got the standard dose. However, the researchers admitted their study had some limitations as they had a lack of sociodemographic, lifestyle, biomarker, and mortality data.
The researchers urged future studies to clarify whether this difference shows the protection against influenza is a mechanism related to Alzheimer’s Disease. Previously, research presented at the 2020 Alzheimer’s Association International Conference showed that vaccinating against the flu and pneumonia could help reduce the number of dementia cases.
It also highlighted one study that found people with dementia who visited hospital with an infection were six and a half times more likely to die in a month after the visit than those who didn’t have dementia. Alzheimer’s disease, a specific type of dementia, is a progressive disease meaning symptoms will worsen over time.
Early symptoms may even be difficult to spot at first. Alzheimer’s Research UK notes some of the earliest signs can include simple things like becoming more repetitive, regularly forgetting recent events, names or other information and problems finding the right words.
Some people may develop a low mood or become anxious or agitated as the disease progresses while others may lose their confidence or have less interest in the things happening around them. The charity notes: “No two people experience dementia the same. If you are worried about any of the symptoms mentioned on this page, talk to your doctor.”
This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
