A spinal fluid tap may be 100% accurate in predicting whether a patient will develop Alzheimer’s disease, according to a study published in Archives of Neurology.

According to the New York Times, until now the presence of the disease could only be confirmed after an autopsy, although it begins ten or more years before symptoms appear. But a simple spinal tap could predict whether someone has the progressive and incurable brain disease and identify them as potential subjects for research into cures. “This is what everyone is looking for, the bull’s-eye of perfect predictive accuracy,” said Dr Steven DeKosky, dean of the University of Virginia medical school.

The news was widely reported in the media and shot to the top of the most-read articles in the Times. The conumdrums of a screening test for Alzheimer’s were clear to everyone. Would healthy people want to know that they have a disease… click here to read whole article and make comments