"Doctors at Ohio State University explain the hope: that constant electrical stimulation of brain circuits involved in memory and thinking might keep those neural networks active for longer, essentially bypassing some of the dementia's damage." Associated Press
This does not sound like something for the faint of heart, nor for someone beyond early-onset dementia. Holes are drilled in the skull, and tiny wires implanted into the brain where they give off electrical stimulation. This research does herald a new horizon, though, where researchers are looking for something besides medication. More than 5 million Americans have some type of dementia, and that number is expected to rise dramatically as baby boomers age. Electrical stimulation will not attack the source of dementia, just as medications do not, but it may help the brain to work better. The premise is that a healthy brain is a connected brain. Dementia destroys the connectivity of the brain by depositing gunky plaque. The electrical stimulation helps the brain reactivate those silenced circuits. So far, the results look optimistic.
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