Ron Petersen, M.D., Director of the Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center at Mayo Clinic, will participate in a Twitter chat on Wednesday, March 10 from 11 a.m. to noon to discuss Alzheimer’s Disease and the latest annual statistics from the Alzheimer’s Association, as reported today in USA Today.
As deaths from heart disease and many types of cancers have dipped, living longer is putting more people at risk for Alzheimer’s disease, the brain-wasting condition that a new report shows African-Americans and Hispanics are particularly vulnerable to as they grow older.
According to the Alzheimer’s Association’s report released today, “2010 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts and Figures,” 5.3 million people are living with Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. African Americans are almost twice as likely as whites to have Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia, and Hispanics are about one and a half times more likely to be stricken with it.
The #MayoUSAToday Twitter chat will include Dr. Petersen (@RonPetersenMD), who has been named a Rock Star of Science for his Alzheimer’s research, reporter Mary Brophy Marcus (@BrophyMarcUSAT) and representatives from the Alzheimer’s Association (@AlzAssociation).
To participate in the chat, click this #MayoUSAToday link to view others’ posts, and to join the discussion simply add this “hashtag” – #MayoUSAToday – to your “tweets.” If you are unfamiliar with Twitter, this post gives step-by-step instructions.
Here for additional background is a video featuring Dr. Petersen describing a Mayo Clinic study on Mild Cognitive Impairment, a precursor to Alzheimer’s.
Click this link to follow and join the conversation on Twitter.
