The RANZCP TAS Branch welcomes Scientia Professor Perminder Sachdev as our 2023 Travelling Scholar who will be presenting 'Is dementia preventable? Examining the evidence'.

With the rapid increase in the health burden of dementia globally, there is an urgent need to develop and implement strategies to prevent dementia and/or postpone its onset. In the absence of effective pharmacological interventions for primary prevention, the focus has shifted to lifestyle and vascular risk factors. The modifiable risk factors identified in the literature include vascular factors (hypertension, diabetes, atherosclerosis, high cholesterol, mid-life obesity, smoking), low brain reserve (low education, complex mental activity or physical activity and poor social network), nutritional factors (low intake of antioxidants, high homocysteine, high alcohol use) and other (hearing loss, air pollution, depression and head injury). The quality of evidence for these factors is varied, with most evidence being obtained from case control and observational cohort studies. Only some factors have been subjected to randomised control trials. The basic science evidence is not always consistent. There have been some recent large intervention trials for preventing cognitive decline. There is also emerging evidence that the incidence of dementia may be declining in some high income countries. This talk will examine some of the available evidence, identify the gaps in the literature and suggest a way forward. It will also ask the question whether observational evidence is sufficient to support large scale investment in interventions.

Chaired by Professor David Castle.

Pricing

Price: $59.95 which covers the cost of the two-course dinner. Soft drinks provided. Alcohol is at your own cost.

This is an in-person event.

If you are unable to attend in person i.e., for members in the north / north west of the state, there will be an option to view the event via live stream. Please note, as this is an in-person event, attendees will have the priority and their questions addressed first, if there is time, questions may be taken from the online audience.

Registrations for this event close at midnight on Tuesday 13 June. If you want to RSVP after this date, please contact: ranzcp.tas@ranzcp.org.

About the speaker

Perminder Sachdev AM, MBBS, MD, PhD, FRANZCP, FAAHMS is Scientia Professor of Neuropsychiatry at UNSW Sydney (UNSW), Co-Director of the Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing (CHeBA), UNSW, and Clinical Director of the Neuropsychiatric Institute, Prince of Wales Hospital in Sydney, Australia. His early work in Neuropsychiatry was on drug-induced movement disorders, in particular akathisia, tardive dyskinesia and neuroleptic malignant syndrome. His most recent work has been in dementia and pre-dementia syndromes, in particular relating to neuroimaging, neuropsychology, biomarkers and risk factors. He has extensively examined the outcome of psychosurgery and is currently involved in examining brain stimulation techniques (TMS, DCS, VNS and DBS) for psychiatric disorders.

In 2022 Prof Sachdev was awarded the Ryman Prize in recognition of research that has substantially enhanced the life of older people around the world. The Ryman Prize is the world's richest prize of its type and was established to create the equivalent of a Nobel Prize for people working in the field of the health of older people.

Terms and conditions

Cancellation and refund policy

Change of mind cancellations must be made in writing and sent to ranzcp.tas@ranzcp.org for a full refund by 13 June 2023.

Cancellations made after 13 June 2023 will not be refunded.

COVID-19 compliance

All participants attending in person will be required to comply with the COVID Safety Guidelines and protocols in place with the venue/s and the event which will be aligned and compliant with all relevant Commonwealth and state government health advice at that time. By registering for this event, the RANZCP reserves the right to provide your contact details to authorities for the purposes of contact tracing and any other relevant government requirements.

Details of the protocols and requirements will be available on the website and all registrants will be bound by these requirements. The RANZCP reserves the right to update the COVID protocols to ensure the health and safety of participants, including but not limited to event entry requirements. Participants may be excluded if they do not comply with the requirements of the COVID Safety Guidelines and protocols.

Directions

Live stream attendees will be sent the Zoom link prior to the event. Confirmation of start time will also be sent with the link.

Contact

Please contact Jennifer Wehnert if you have any questions.

ranzcp.tas@ranzcp.org

03 6235 1804