1. Can we find dementia in the skin?
Paul Donaghy
Academic Clinical Lecturer
Institute for Ageing/Institute of Neuroscience
10 minute talk then some questions

2. Dementia with Lewy bodies
Cognitive Impairment
Whole body symptoms of DLB/PD In

3. Dementia with Lewy bodies
Cognitive Impairment
Visual Hallucinations
Fluctuations
Acting out dreams
Parkinsonism
Whole body symptoms of DLB/PD In

4. Dementia with Lewy bodies
Cognitive Impairment
Visual Hallucinations
Fluctuations
Loss of sense of smell
Difficulty swallowing
Acting out dreams
Drops in blood pressure
Change in handwriting
Tremor
Constipation
Incontinence
Muscle stiffness
Whole body symptoms of DLB/PD In
Shuffling walk
Instability/falls

5. α-synuclein Image: Suraj Rajan (CC License)
I will present just a few slides of background on dementia with Lewy bodies
It is a common form of dementia, ……
The pathological hallmarks are Lewy bodies and Lewy neurites, seen here with aSyn staining
Image: Suraj Rajan (CC License)

6. Diagnosing DLB
Important to identify as certain medication should be avoided in DLB
Can be difficult to identify clinically

7. Diagnosing DLB Cognitive Impairment Visual Hallucinations Fluctuations
Loss of sense of smell
Difficulty swallowing
Acting out dreams
Drops in blood pressure
Change in handwriting
Tremor
Constipation
Incontinence
Muscle stiffness
Whole body symptoms of DLB/PD In
Shuffling walk
Instability/falls

8. PuSkAS Study
A pilot study looking at skin biopsy in DLB and Parkinson’s disease (PD)
10 DLB, 10 PD and 10 healthy control volunteers
3mm skin biopsies from upper back and arms
Hypothesis: α-synuclein will be detectable in PD and DLB volunteers, but not healthy older people

9. Possible future use More accurate diagnosis Earlier diagnosis
Identification of volunteers for early intervention studies

10. Progress so far 15 volunteers have completed baseline (50%)
Further 6 awaiting baseline assessment
Final 8 volunteerrs to be recruited prior to September 2018 (2 DLB, 2 PD, 4 conntrol)

11. Results - Tolerability

12. Was the procedure painful?

13. If so, how severe was the pain in the days following the procedure?

14. Are you happy with how the wound is healing?

15. Procedure acceptable for use in the diagnosis of dementia/PD?

17. Further Information