Last week we talked about using Gene Therapy to potentially reverse aging and cure dementia. While the treatment is showing promising signs in mice, there's still much research to go before human trials can begin. However there's another treatment that is moving to human trials very soon!
Anyone who started a family or is familiar with the process, you might be aware of ultrasounds. For those who don't, Ultrasound devices use vibration at super high frequencies to create an image based on the bounce back of the sound waves, like a miniature sonar. Typically these are just for seeing into the abdomen to check on the development of a baby or for abnormalities in a patients body (it has more uses than just looking at babies). This ultrasonic frequency has a shocking benefit. When applied to the head, the frequency vibrates just high enough to stimulate the proteins in your brain that target the plaques associated with dementia!
Initially this procedure was conceived to stimulate blood flow for dementia medications, but science has stumbled on the added benefit of being a drug free treatment! Since this technique was discovered in 2015, scientists in The University of Queensland have had successful tests in using this method on various animals, and the board of ethics has approved human trials.
While this is excellent news in being one step closer to the potential cure for dementia, science is a slow and methodical process, and we may not see the results for at least a decade. But we will keep our eyes on the studies and results as they develop!
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