Alzheimer’s blood test around ages 53-69 may help detect early cognitive decline

As scientists continue to learn more about the potential causes behind Alzheimer’s disease , some recent research has been focusing on looking for the earliest possible warning signs for this type of dementia . One tool that doctors are beginning to use to help predict a person’s Alzheimer’s disease risk in its earliest stages is through blood tests that search for specific biomarkers in the blood.

Now, a new study published in The Lancet, primarily funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has found that these biomarker blood tests may also help doctors detect very early signs of cognitive decline in midlife adults without a dementia diagnosis. Researchers believe using Alzheimer’s disease biomarker blood tests in this way may give more credence to initiating healthy lifestyle modifications known to help potentially lower dementia risk.

For the study, researchers analyzed data from participants of the U.S. Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) Study .

Researchers selected about 1,300 of these study participants with an average age of 61.