Neuronetrix Showcases New Cognitive Testing Device At The Alzheimer's Association Annual Meeting

Main Category: Alzheimer's / Dementia
Also Included In: Neurology / Neuroscience
Article Date: 20 Jul 2010 - 0:00 PDT

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This week at ICAD 2010, Neuronetrix for the first time publicly demonstrated their COGNISION™ System, an innovative platform which enables objective assessment of cognitive function. The demonstration focused on the COGNISION™ System's ability, using a non-invasive technology called event-related potentials (ERP), to accurately measure the cognitive performance of a patient's brain.

The demonstration was particularly important in light of a report presented by a select group of Alzheimer's specialists from the National Institute on Aging (NIA) and the Alzheimer's Association which proposed new diagnostic guidelines for Alzheimer's disease. The report titled, "Redefining Alzheimer's Disease," proposes a new understanding of the disease which more closely matches clinical progression with a range of disease biomarkers. It also includes patients who meet clinical and cognitive criteria but who are negative for certain genetic, molecular, or structural biomarkers. "This is a tremendous opportunity for Neuronetrix as our test directly measures the electrical activity associated with cognition and is independent of biochemical pathways," said Mauktik Kulkarni, Director of Research and Clinical Studies for Neuronetrix.

The new criteria also facilitates the tremendous drug development effort for disease modifying therapies for Alzheimer's. Drug companies will now have a more reliable way of identifying those Alzheimer's sufferers who might benefit from new drug therapies. The criteria also lays the groundwork for using positive changes in certain biomarkers as measures of drug effectiveness. "Because the COGNISION™ System could be used to measure progressive cognitive as well as drug response, we had tremendous interest from several of the large pharmaceutical companies at the conference," said K.C. Fadem, Chief Operating Officer for Neuronetrix.

Neuronetrix previously completed a pilot clinical study with Alzheimer's patients and healthy controls at the Sanders-Brown Alzheimer's Disease Center at the University of Kentucky. The study validated the high data quality and ease-of-use of the COGNISION™ System in a clinical setting. Neuronetrix will soon be initiating a large multi-center clinical study which will validate their ERP biomarkers as an accurate and reliable measure of cognitive impairment. The company is planning a longitudinal follow up study which will validate their ERP biomarkers as a measure of progressive cognitive decline. "Because of the low cost, ease of use, and measurement potential of the COGNISION™ test, ERP testing could become a standard of care for those patients who develop cognitive disorders such as Alzheimer's disease," said K.C. Fadem.

About Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer's disease is a chronic neurodegenerative disease of the brain which eventually leads to death. Today, Alzheimer's disease affects over five million Americans with 500,000 new cases reported each year. Medicare/Medicaid spending exceeds $100 billion on beneficiaries with Alzheimer's and other dementias.

Source:
Neuronetrix

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