An Alzheimer’s marker in fluid drawn from the spine can reveal early signs of the disease in healthy adults years before any symptoms appear, new research suggests.

The spinal tap test was 90% accurate in identifying Alzheimer’s in patients already diagnosed with the disease.

But it also produced positive readings in 72% of people with mild mental impairment, and 36% of apparently normal individuals showing no signs of dementia.

The test relies on three protein “biomarkers” linked to Alzheimer’s in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).

Scientists found that people with different levels of mental impairment had different amounts of the proteins.

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To read more, see the full article. (Herald Scotland. 10 August 2010)