On May 11, France Alzheimer hosted its 100% digital conference under the banner "If it's not Alzheimer's, what is it? Diagnostic wandering for related diseases". The event was hosted by medical and social expert Hélène Delmotte (pictured, left) and was attended by more than 700 people. The agenda included round tables, debates, testimonials and question-and-answer sessions with the panel of specialists.
The idea behind the theme of the conference was to explore some of the issues involved in diagnosis of Alzheimer's and other lees well-known/understood types of dementia and neurocognitive disorders. There was a particular focus, in the afternoon, on major neurocognitive disorders of vascular origin. You can download the brochure "Better understanding vascular neurocognitive disorders" (in French) that France Alzheimer has just published on this subject:
Brochure_1erReperes_DemancesVasculaire_2021_Web.pdf (francealzheimer.org)
The morning session kicked off with a welcome speech from Joël Jaouen, President of France Alzheimer. Other highlights of the morning included a testimonial from Michèle Muchenstrum whose long-awaited diagnosis of Lewy body dementia took ten years to reach. Ms Muchenstrum was followed by Prof. Paul Frappe, President of the College of General Medicine in France, who completed the testimonial section of the morning. There was also a Zoom meeting on the topic of "diagnostic wandering", chaired by Guillaume Fernandez, Lecturer in sociology at the University of Western Brittany, and a roundtable on "related diseases", involving three experts, Prof. Mathieu Ceccaldi who spoke about clinical aspects, Prof. Pierre Krolak-Salmon who extolled the virtues of a precise diagnosis, and Prof. Claire Paquet who focused on examining the most useful approaches to diagnosis. Joël Ankri, Professor Emeritus and Scientific Reference of the Neurodegenerative Diseases Roadmap rounded off the morning session.
The afternoon began with a testimonial from Dr Martial Fraysse, a member of the National Academy of Pharmacy. A Zoom discussion followed, focusing on vascular dementia and involving neurologists Dr Marie-Anne Mackowiak and Prof. Olivier Godefroy. Dr Denise Strubel and Judith Mollard then took the floor, to share with delegates what types of support are offered by France Alzheimer. The final session of the conference featured Prof. Audrey Gabelle, President of the Federation of Memory Centres, University Professor and Hospital Practitioner of Neurology at the CHU and the University of Montpellier, in conversation with conference host Hélène Delmotte.
Alzheimer Europe was represented at the France Alzheimer conference by Director for Projects Dianne Gove, Project Officer Cindy Birck and Communications Officer Kate Boor Ellis.
To view videos of the conference sessions (in French), see:
Colloque Maladies apparentées 2021 - 1 - Introduction - YouTube