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As
surprising as it may seem, we
still do not know what changes
occur in the brains of healthy
individuals as they age. Without
the brain tissue of normal elderly
to compare with tissue of elderly
affected by Alzheimer’s
Disease (AD), scientists cannot
determine which changes are caused
by the disease and which are
due to aging. Although there
have been adequate numbers of
brains donated from individuals
with AD, there is a chronic national
shortage of brain tissue donation
from individuals known to be
free of cognitive dysfunction
prior to
death. The
Community
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Brain
Donor Program helps to alleviate
this chronic shortage.
Volunteers
involved in the Community Brain
Donor Program are 55 years
of age and older. They are
contacted by telephone each
year for a structured interview
reviewing vital status, verifying
addresses, funeral home arrangements,
health status, and administration
of the Blessed Orientation
Memory Concentration Test.
In addition to the telephone
evaluation, an update form
is sent through the mail to
each donor six months following
the
telephone |
assessment.
For all volunteers age 80 and older,
a more in-depth home
interview is conducted.
This
study establishes for
the first time the feasibility
of using newly established
telephone health screening
methods to confirm the
health and cognitive
status of a panel of
community dwelling individuals
consenting to brain donation.
It suggests that obstacles
to obtaining clinically
characterized control
brain tissue can be surmounted
in an efficient manner. |
Community Brain Donor Program
(CBDP)
