Palm Beach Post Health Beat
Category: Dementia
FAU aims to prevent dementia with new program
Post-mortem studies confirm that 30 percent of Alzheimer's disease case can be prevented.
Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton is aiming to find how – and will give patients a plan to follow.
FAU will launch the Dementia Prevention Initiative at the Comprehensive Center for Brain Health. It will take a genetics, biology and the molecular approach to the disease, as well as a personalized approach and precision medicine to reduce risk.
The belief is that the innovative approach developed at Florida Atlantic University turns the "one-size-fits-all" approach on its head when it comes to battling Alzheimer's disease, Lewy Body Dementia, Parkinson's disease and other related disorders.
This center is one of only a handful of centers around the world that focuses on dementia prevention.
Dr. James E. Galvin, M.D., M.P.H., a world-renowned neuroscientist, designed the program to deliver a personalized prevention plan, tailored to each individual's risk profile based on their genetic traits, biomarkers, socio-demographics, lifestyle choices, and co-existent medical conditions.
Galvin's work supports the idea that there may be multiple pathways to develop neurological disorders –and therefore multiple ways to treat and prevent these diseases.
The photo above shows Catherine Robson, a nurse practitioner observing as Dr. James Galvin administers a test using to measure eye movement. is used as an early biomarker sign of Parkinson's disease.
Author By John PacentiPosted on June 26, 2017 July 6, 2017 Categories allpbc, Alzheimer's, Dementia, health, newsfeed, parkinson's, pbpmobile, prevention, Scientific research, UncategorizedTags allpbc, ALS, alzheimer's disease, Boca Raton, Dementia, Florida Atlantic University, health, life, news, newsfeed, pbpmobile, prevention, Research, taxon: allpbcLeave a comment on FAU aims to prevent dementia with new program
Facing questioning, guardian Savitt resigns from controversial case
When it came to deceased senior Frances Berkowitz, professional guardian Elizabeth "Betsy" Savitt appeared ready to fight until the bitter end despite efforts to remove her from her position.
But last week she was ready to not only resign as guardian for the late Berkowitz, but as personal representative of the estate. However, the heirs to Berkowitz's depleted estate wouldn't let her completely off a hook at a court on Wednesday.
>> $400,000 allegedly missing in case of professional guardian Savitt
Savitt's decision came after she sidestepped a scheduled deposition on May 23 to answer questions at the behest of a New York family who the court has determined is the rightful heir to Berkowitz's estate. Savitt sought a protective order to keep from answering questions.
Elizabeth Savitt appears at a court hearing to discuss attorney fees in, August 2015. (Madeline Gray / The Palm Beach Post)
And there are plenty of questions for Savitt.
The former attorneys for Berkowitz tried to remove Savitt, saying they were concerned as much as $400,000 was missing from the guardianship. Savitt has denied that any money is missing.
They also told the court that Savitt cost Berkowitz hundreds of thousands of dollars by failing to properly litigate against a caregiver and other parties — including a bank and a Miami lawyer — who took $1.2 million from the senior under false pretenses, court documents allege.
>> RELATED: Guardianships: A Broken Trust
However, Circuit Judge Howard Coates last year found that the attorneys lacked standing to challenge anything that happened in the guardianship once Savitt was appointed.
Savitt used Berkowitz's money to sue the former lawyers — Webb Millsaps and Donna Solomon Greenspan — to recoup fees that Savitt claims were excessive. Still pending is a defamation lawsuit filed by Millsaps and Solomon against one of Savitt's attorneys, as well as an appeal of Coates' decisions.
At a May 24 court hearing, the lawyer representing Berkowitz's heirs, the Kerner family, accepted Savitt's resignation as a personal representative of the estate but said he wouldn't let her out of her fiduciary duty as a guardian of Berkowitz's property just yet.
Attorney John Carter also wouldn't agree to allow Savitt to forgo the final guardianship accounting of her activity in the Berkowitz case. Savitt's attorney said there is no money left, but Carter said he has seen no such proof that is the case.
"I want to make sure I don't waive any rights the Berkowitz heirs have to recoup expenses and fees and wasting of assets intentionally or otherwise caused by Ms. Savitt's professional guardianship," said Carter.
The Kerner family has sought to remove Savitt as personal representative since they learned in January of Berkowitz's death on Dec. 31. The Kerners have asserted in court that Savitt misrepresented to the court that there were no rightful heirs to serve as personal representative even though she knew there were family members who could serve in that capacity.
A Savitt attorney has repeatedly pointed out that the main heir to Berkowitz's estate is facing murder charges for killing the late senior's sister and has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. Another Kerner family member has stepped up to replace Savitt as personal representative, however.
With the deposition pending, Savitt's attorney filed a motion for a protective order to keep her from answering questions about her activity in the Berkowitz case, saying the professional guardian is entitled to be protected from "annoyance, embarrassment, oppression and undue burden."
Berkowitz is just one of Savitt's guardianships in turmoil as families have repeatedly complained about her. Foremost among the complaints was that Savitt took tens of thousands of dollars in fees prior to judicial approval.
Savitt's actions were reported in The Palm Beach Post's series, Guardianship: A Broken Trust. She points out that she has never been removed from a guardianship or sanctioned by a judge.
After the first stories ran, her husband, Martin Colin, announced his retirement as a circuit judge. Chief Judge Jeffrey Colbath then handed down guardianship reforms, many of which addressed family's complaints about Savitt.
Author By John PacentiPosted on May 31, 2017 June 6, 2017 Categories allpbc, Alzheimer's, Dementia, Elizabeth Savitt, guardianshipTags allpbc, courts, crime, Elizabeth "Betsy" Savitt, Frances Berkowitz, guardianship, Judge Martin Colin, life, news, newsfeed, pbpmobile, probate, professional guardiansLeave a comment on Facing questioning, guardian Savitt resigns from controversial case
Study: diet drinks can lead to stroke, dementia
A new study shows people who drink diet sodas may be more at risk for stroke and dementia.
Have a Diet Coke and stroke.
Diet sodas — one of Americans favorite caffeine delivery systems — appears to be just as unhealthy as its sugary cousins
The Washington Post reports that a new study refutes that diet drinks are a better option than those made with sugar or corn syrup.
The new study in the journal Stroke says people who drink diet soda are three times as likely to have a stroke or develop dementia.
"This included a higher risk of ischemic stroke, where blood vessels in the brain become obstructed and Alzheimer's disease dementia, the most common form of dementia," Matthew Pase, a Boston University School of Medicine neurologist told The Washington Post.
Paseo is the lead author of the study.
He stressed the study showed just a correlation and not a causation but that diet pop simply "might not be a healthy alternative."
The study of 2,888 individuals age 45 and overlooked for the development of a stroke and 1,484 participants age 60 and older for dementia over a 10 year period.
There was no association with stroke or dementia found in a parallel study of sugary drinks.
The diet sodas used by those in the study contained the artificial sweeteners saccharin, acesulfame-K, and aspartame.
"So, the bottom line is, 'Have more water and have less diet soda," Christopher Gardner, director of Nutrition Studies at the Stanford Prevention Research Center, said in an American Heart Association news release. "And don't switch to real soda."
He added: "Nobody ever said diet sodas were a health food."
The American Beverage Association said low-calorie sweeteners have been proven safe by worldwide government safety authorities as well as hundreds of scientific studies and there is nothing in this research that counters this well-established fact.
"While we respect the mission of these organizations to help prevent conditions like stroke and dementia, the authors of this study acknowledge that their conclusions do not — and cannot — prove cause and effect," the beverage association noted.
To read the whole Washington Post story click here.
Author By John PacentiPosted on April 21, 2017 April 21, 2017 Categories allpbc, bnblogs, Dementia, diet soda, health, Heart disease, newsfeed, Products, Public Health, taxon: allpbc, UncategorizedTags allpbc, bnblogs, Dementia, Diet Coke, diet drinks, diet soda, health, life, news, newsfeed, Scientific research, stroke, taxon: allpbcLeave a comment on Study: diet drinks can lead to stroke, dementia
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