Episode 977: Amyloid Therapy and Stroke-like Events

Contributor: Aaron Lessen, MD
Educational Pearls:

The cause of Alzheimer's disease is multifactorial, but the most widely suspected mechanism is the amyloid cascade hypothesis:

Beta-amyloid proteins accumulate in the central nervous system, forming plaques that impair neuronal function.

In recent years, advances have led to the development of targeted therapies with monoclonal antibodies. These drugs:

Work by degrading amyloid plaques Slow the rate of cognitive decline and disease progression Have major side effects, most notably the development of amyloid-related imaging abnormalities (ARIA) ARIA may present as edema, effusion, or microhemorrhages, which are only...