A new, non-invasive, laser technology may help detect Alzheimer’s disease at its earliest stages, according to researchers.
Researchers at Brigham & Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School developed a technique to detect plaques in the eye of laboratory mice. People with Alzheimer’s have beta-amyloid deposits, or plaques, that appear as unusual cataracts in the lens of the eye. The technology involves directing a brief pulse of infrared light into the eye.
“This makes the [eye] lens an ideal window for early detection and disease monitoring in Alzheimer’s,” said researcher Lee E. Goldstein.
