New brain scan 'detects Alzheimer's in 24 hours'

Brain scans could be used to detect Alzheimer's disease and deliver results within just 24 hours, scientists have said.

The new technique, being tested in NHS memory clinics, uses a computer programme to compare the brain scan of a patient with 1,200 images of brains with Alzheimer's.

Preliminary tests have shown the method to be 85 per cent accurate.

According to the BBC, Professor Rob Howard of Maudsley Hospital, said that the earlier Alzheimer's disease is diagnosed, the quicker treatment can begin.

"The earlier we are able to give our patients either reassuring news that they don't have dementia, or we're able to confirm they do have the diagnosis so they can make the appropriate plans to put their lives in order and seek the help that may be available," he added.

Meanwhile, the Alzheimer's Society has claimed that more than half a million cases of dementia will go undiagnosed by 2021.

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