Deans' stroke musings: 3-Minute Brainwave Test Detects Alzheimer’s Years Before Symptoms

Changing stroke rehab and research worldwide now.Time is Brain! trillions and trillions of neurons that DIE each day because there are NO effective hyperacute therapies besides tPA(only 12% effective). I have 523 posts on hyperacute therapy, enough for researchers to spend decades proving them out. These are my personal ideas and blog on stroke rehabilitation and stroke research. Do not attempt any of these without checking with your medical provider. Unless you join me in agitating, when you need these therapies they won't be there.

What this blog is for:

My blog is not to help survivors recover, it is to have the 10 million yearly stroke survivors light fires underneath their doctors, stroke hospitals and stroke researchers to get stroke solved. 100% recovery. The stroke medical world is completely failing at that goal, they don't even have it as a goal. Shortly after getting out of the hospital and getting NO information on the process or protocols of stroke rehabilitation and recovery I started searching on the internet and found that no other survivor received useful information. This is an attempt to cover all stroke rehabilitation information that should be readily available to survivors so they can talk with informed knowledge to their medical staff. It lays out what needs to be done to get stroke survivors closer to 100% recovery. It's quite disgusting that this information is not available from every stroke association and doctors group.

Wednesday, September 3, 2025

3-Minute Brainwave Test Detects Alzheimer’s Years Before Symptoms

With your risk of dementia post stroke, do you really think your competent? doctor has EXACT PROTOCOLS TO PREVENT DEMENTIA? Rather than confirming it after the fact? Incompetent doctors will do the confirmation rather than the prevention. I would fire anyone doing biomarker research! It does nothing to get survivors recovered!

The reason you need dementia prevention:

1. A documented 33% dementia chance post-stroke from an Australian study? May 2012.

2. Then this study came out and seems to have a range from 17-66%. December 2013.

3. A 20% chance in this research. July 2013.

3-Minute Brainwave Test Detects Alzheimer’s Years Before Symptoms

Summary: A team of researchers has developed a simple three-minute brainwave test called Fastball EEG that can detect early signs of memory impairment linked to Alzheimer’s disease. Unlike traditional memory tests, it is passive and requires no active participation, making it more objective and accessible.

The study showed Fastball could be successfully used outside clinical settings, including in people’s homes, opening the door for wider use in GP surgeries and memory clinics. This breakthrough offers a practical and affordable way to diagnose Alzheimer’s earlier, just as new treatments are becoming available.

Key Facts:

Early Detection: Identifies memory issues years before standard clinical diagnosis.
Accessible Tool: Works reliably at home and in non-clinical settings.
Treatment Relevance: Enables earlier use of breakthrough Alzheimer’s drugs.

Source: University of Bath

A simple brainwave test developed at the University of Bath has been shown to detect signs of memory impairment linked to Alzheimer’s disease years before clinical diagnosis is typically possible.

Published in the journal Brain Communications the study by academics from the University of Bath and the University of Bristol, reports that Fastball EEG, a three-minute passive test that records electrical activity in the brain while participants view a stream of images, can reliably identify memory problems in people with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) – a condition that can lead to Alzheimer’s.

This follows the group’s previous study in 2021 that demonstrated Fastball was sensitive to memory impairment in Alzheimer’s disease.

Crucially, the research team has demonstrated for the first time that the test can be administered in people’s homes, outside of a clinical environment. Researchers say this opens the door to wider screening and monitoring using accessible, low-cost technology.

With the development of the breakthrough Alzheimer’s drugs, donanemab and lecanemab, an early diagnosis is more important than ever before. The drugs are clinically proven to be the most effective in the early stages of Alzheimer’s.

Despite this, in England, it is estimated that as many as 1 in 3 people do not currently have a dementia diagnosis, delaying treatments, support and research opportunities to tackle the condition.

The study was led by Dr George Stothart, a cognitive neuroscientist in the Department of Psychology at the University of Bath. He said:

“We’re missing the first 10 to 20 years of Alzheimer’s with current diagnostic tools. Fastball offers a way to change that – detecting memory decline far earlier and more objectively, using a quick and passive test.”

How the test works

Fastball is a passive EEG test that monitors the brain’s automatic responses to images – without requiring participants to follow instructions or recall information. This makes it more objective and accessible than traditional memory tests.

Key findings:

Detected early memory issues in people with MCI likely to develop Alzheimer’s.
Delivered reliable results in real-world home settings.
Showed reduced memory responses even in patients who later progressed to dementia.

Researchers say Fastball could be scaled for use in GP surgeries, memory clinics, or at home – helping deliver earlier, more accurate diagnoses.

Dr Stothart added: “There’s an urgent need for accurate, practical tools to diagnose Alzheimer’s at scale. Fastball is cheap, portable, and works in real-world settings.”

The study was funded by the Academy of Medical Sciences and supported by dementia research charity BRACE.

Chris Wiliams, CEO of BRACE Dementia Research, said: “Fastball is an incredible tool that could offer anyone who, for whatever reason, cannot access a dementia diagnosis in a clinical setting.

BRACE has been supporting the development of Fastball for several years, and we are excited to see what Dr Stothart’s team will achieve over the next few years with ongoing support from the charity.”