The mainstay for many years has been drugs such as donepezil. These compensate for the widespread loss of neurons, characteristic of the condition, by boosting the neurotransmitters in the brain. They are widely prescribed on the grounds that, in theory, they \u201cmight help\u201d. But this has been difficult to demonstrate, and is offset, for many, by the adverse consequences of overstimulation of the nerves to the gut, heart and urinary system.<\/p>\n
The more fruitful approach, it has been hoped, would be to target the aggregated blobs of protein (amyloid) long thought to disrupt the architecture of the brain. These can be partially dispersed by potent drugs such as lecanemab, but the health watchdog, NICE (the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence), is not persuaded, judging them too costly to prescribe on the NHS (more than \u00a310,000 a year) for their (very) modest benefit in delaying progression of the illness by on average just four to six months.<\/p>\n
This is bad news for the pharmaceutical companies who have spent billions on their research and development \u2013 hence the current pressure on NICE to reverse its decision.<\/p>\n
The general view is that the biological complexities of Alzheimer\u2019s defy any realistic prospect of a medical cure, and that financial resources could be more usefully directed at improving social care and support for those afflicted.<\/p>\n
A simple way to cure temporary deafness<\/p>\n
Finally, a further readily treatable cause of deafness, besides ear wax, is the presence of fluid, or catarrhal secretions, behind the eardrum (serous otitis media). This may be remedied by a simple manoeuvre, which the experience of a reader suggests is not as widely appreciated as it should be.<\/p>\n
Having woken deaf in the right ear he consulted his family doctor who duly inspected the ear canals and, finding they were clear and free of wax, referred him to an ear, nose and throat specialist.<\/p>\n
This, however, proved unnecessary as soon after he met an old friend whom he regaled with his deafness story.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat sounds like catarrh\u201d, he said, \u201call you do is hold your nose, close your mouth and blow out hard to make your ears pop. Do that a few times and you will be cured.\u201d He followed the instructions faithfully and sure enough his hearing was rapidly restored.<\/p>\n
This is the Valsalva manoeuvre. It forces air from the lungs up the narrowed Eustachian tube, connecting the middle ear to the back of the throat, opening it and thus allowing the catarrhal secretions to drain away.<\/p>\n