Neurodegenerative Brain Diseases Department -Memory Clinic

The Neurodegenerative Brain Diseases Department  -Memory Clinic specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of usually chronic diseases that are the result of the degeneration of brain neurons. The most common of these are dementias (Alzheimer disease, Vascular dementia, Frontotemporal dementias, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, encephalopathies of various etiologies, etc.) and Parkinson’s disease.

The Department  is  staffed by a team of specialists (neurologists, psychiatrists and cognitive neuropsychologists) and offers comprehensive clinical and paraclinical evaluation of patients with cognitive deficits. It is  supported by the laboratory departments of HYGEIA, which offer the world’s most advanced methods of studying these diseases (MRI, amyloid PET, DAT SCAN, genetic testing, detection of biomarkers in cerebrospinal fluid and blood).

The evaluation  includes clinical neurological and psychiatric assessment, as well as specialized neuropsychological testing (tests of memory and other cognitive functions).

Paraclinical examination (blood and biochemical tests, brain imaging, examination of cerebrospinal fluid) is then recommended. Depending on the results , treatment with approved dementia medications is prescribed and an individual treatment plan is drawn up for each patient. In parallel, individualized cognitive training programs are provided to patients as well as psychosocial support sessions to their caregivers.

Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia (70-80 % of all cases) and affects 5% of people over the age of 65. Due to increasing life expectancy worldwide, the number of patients with dementia is expected to rise dramatically in the coming years.

In the brains of Alzheimer patients, clusters of abnormal proteins, such as senile plaques of beta-amyloid and neurofibrillary tangles of tau protein, accumulate in specific areas that control cognitive function. This pathological process leads to the degeneration and death of brain cells, resulting in a reduction in brain volume and impaired cognitive function.

New etiological treatments for Alzheimer disease – Anti-amyloid monoclonal antibodies

Monoclonal antibodies against beta-amyloid are the first etiological treatment for Alzheimer disease. They reduce the burden of amyloid plaques in patients’ brains, resulting in a significant slowing of the clinical progression of the disease, up to 36%. Monoclonal antibodies are indicated for selected patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment or early Alzheimer disease. It requires documented diagnosis with biomarkers (cerebrospinal fluid proteins or amyloid PET).

The monoclonal antibodies Lecanemab and Donanemab have been approved in the United States and in Europe and recently in Greece.

They are administered intravenously (once a month for donanemab, twice a month for lecanemab) in a one-day-clinic setting. Their use demands a strict protocol of handling and monitoring adverse events, such as ARIA (amyloid related imaging abnormalities). Symptomatic ARIA, leading to pause of treatment, arise in a small percentage, <5 %.

For the above reasons, anti-amyloid monoclonal antibodies are administered in specialized and   certified centers including  Memory Clinic of HYGEIA HOSPITAL.  

Amyloid PET imaging

It is an innovative, non-invasive, imaging technique for the early and accurate diagnosis of Alzheimer disease with extremely high sensitivity and specificity.

PET-CT DEPARTMENT, HYGEIA HOSPITAL