Contributing Authors: Pedro Rosa, MD and João Paulo de Aquino, MD
Date Posted: December 22, 2017
Overview: Consistent with the “Neuroscience in the Media” overview and teacher’s guide [3], the class begins by reviewing recent coverage of the possible transmissibility of Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) within the popular media. We have identified two recent media sources on the topic: a publication in The Economist, “Chain Reaction” [4] and a video from CBC News, “Alzheimer’s traces found seeded in autopsied brains, scientists report” [5]. We then use a structured format to critique the media coverage and appraise relevant scientific literature [6]. Trainees then role play what they might say to a patient inquiring about the possible iatrogenic transmission of AD. When combined with a recent review article [2], the topic of the overlap in the pathophysiology of AD and spongiform encephalopathy can also become a platform for reviewing basic neuroscience.
Author Affiliations: Dr. De Aquino is from the Department of Psychiatry at Yale. Dr. Rosa is from the Department of Psychiatry at the University of São Paulo. David Ross, MD, PhD, and Joseph Cooper, MD, are the Contributing Editors for this publication. The National Neuroscience Curriculum Initiative is a collaborative effort with the American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training (AADPRT) and the American Psychiatric Association (APA) Council on Medical Education and Lifelong Learning and receives support from the NIH (R25 MH101076 02S1) ©National Neuroscience Curriculum Initiative.
