New Program for Alzheimer’s Patients, Caregivers Offered by George Washington University

Muses Labs has partnered with the George Washington Center for Integrative Medicine (GWCIM) to offer Alzheimer’s disease (AD) patients in the Washington, D.C. area the MEND Protocol (Metabolic Enhancement for Neuro-Degeneration), a comprehensive adherence program supporting patients and their caregivers that helps to improve patient outcomes.

The MEND Protocol is a data-driven, technology-enabling, personalized methodology designed to accurately identify and treat a series of drivers of age-related cognitive declines.

The program is designed to help patients who are at the threshold of age-related cognitive decline, those with a family history of dementia or patients with mild Alzheimer’s.

The new method reflects a new approach to address cognitive degeneration-related complex issues and has the potential to improve memory and cognitive function for pre- and early-symptomatic patients.

This is how the MEND Protocol works:

1. Collecting medical data: Doctors, together with other healthcare partners, will evaluate a patient’s cognitive function and collect information through genetic testing, lab work, lifestyle, medical history and current medications.
2. Pinpointing the causes of cognitive decline: There are about 50 known causes of cognitive decline; the active causes vary from person to person. The MEND Protocol studies the information a patient provides to identify the unique combination of their own underlying causes of cognitive decline.
3. Creating a personalized treatment plan: Once the unique causes of a patient’s cognitive decline are identified, the comprehensive program pinpoints the best treatment options, which may include U.S. FDA-approved medications, supplements, and lifestyle changes. This will become the MEND Personalized Treatment Plan, which will then be provided to the patient’s doctor so that both can review the results together. In addition, patients will undergo tests every three months and treatment plans will be updated accordingly;
4. Supporting patients to follow treatment plans:  Finally, through the MEND Care Program, a person will be assigned a health coach to help them follow the tailored treatment plan. The coach will speak to the patient on a regular basis to set goals, check on them, measure changes, and celebrate accomplishments.

“Our guiding principles center on personal empowerment and responsibility, helping our team of providers develop care plans tailored to fit individual needs,” Mikhail Kogan, M.D., medical director of GWCIM, said in a press release. “These principles are a natural fit with Muses Labs’ mission and vision of working collaboratively with patients, caregivers, and providers in a data-driven manner to address the underlying drivers of cognitive decline unique to each patient — to improve outcomes.”

The adherence program will be available through GWCIM’s Mental Health program, operated in collaboration with the George Washington University Memory Clinic, including multidisciplinary teams of doctors, nutritionists, physical trainers, coaches, and lifestyle medicine experts.

“The Center for Integrative Medicine extends leadership in their community through their work with Muses Labs,” said Muses Labs CEO Vik Chandra. “Our work with the GWCIM and Dr. Kogan benefits patients today and will further enhance the MEND Protocol to provide treatment and support to those who may have lost hope in finding solutions for cognitive decline, and for additional complex, chronic diseases.”