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It is normal to forget things as you age. But many older people worry that they are getting Alzheim­er’s disease when they can’t remember things.

A new drug, used with a PET scan of the brain, can help diagnose Alzheimer’s. But before getting this scan you should have a complete medical exam. If your exam shows serious memory loss and your doc­tor cannot find a cause for it, then you should have the scan. Otherwise, the results can be misleading and you should not get the scan. Here’s why:

The scan does not prove that you have Alzheimer’s.

Alzheimer’s can be found in the brain because it involves abnormal cell clumps. These clumps are called plaques. A PET scan—which is an imaging test—can show these plaques, using a radioactive drug. During the test, the drug is injected into your body, where it attaches to the plaques. Then pictures are taken of your brain. The drug highlights the plaques so they can be seen on the scan.

If the scan does not show any plaques in your brain, then it is much less likely that you have Alzheimer’s. However, you can have plaques in your brain but not have Alzheimer’s. And having plaques does not mean that you will get Alzheimer’s in the future.

Alzheimer’s is not the only cause of forgetting things.

Alzheimer’s is the leading cause of memory loss and thinking problems among older people. But other medical conditions, such as strokes, thyroid prob­lems, drug interactions, alcoholism, and vitamin deficiencies, can cause the same symptoms. Unlike Alzheimer’s, these may be treatable.

Medicines can also cause memory loss and thinking problems. So if you have symptoms, it is important to find out what the cause is.

Finding the cause starts with a medical evaluation.

A doctor who works with older people and is an expert in diagnosing and treating dementia should examine you. The doctor will take a medical history and do a physical exam and other tests to see how well you can remember things and solve problems. You may also need blood tests to look for other conditions that can cause memory loss.

The doctor will ask about all the medicines you take, including over-the-counter drugs and herbs. Some can affect your memory and thinking. You may also have an MRI or CT scan to rule out other things that can cause Alzheimer’s-like symptoms, such as a stroke or a blow to the head.

If your exam and tests show that you have memory loss and your doctor still cannot find the cause, then a PET scan may help diagnose your condition.

The new scan can pose risks.

If the PET scan is done before you have a complete medical evaluation and it shows plaques in the brain, it can cause unneeded anxiety. It can also lead to a wrong diagnosis. Your doctor may assume you have Alzheimer’s and not look for other causes that might be treatable.

The scan exposes you to a small amount of radia­tion. And it is sometimes combined with a CT scan, which increases the amount of radiation exposure. The harmful effects of radiation can add up over time, so it’s best to avoid radiation when you can.

It can be expensive.

A PET scan of the brain can cost several thousand dollars. Medicare and private health plans do not pay for it now, though that may change one day.

When should you have the scan?

If you have had a complete medical evaluation without finding a cause for your memory loss, a PET scan may be the next step. When all other causes have been ruled out, seeing plaques in the brain can help your doctor diagnose Alzheimer’s.

In this tutorial, you'll launch an EC2 instance into a default subnet, connect to the instance,. Learn more about VPCs: Virtual private clouds (VPC).

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There is no definition of Other Backward Classes in the Constitution. In April 1993, the Government enacted the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) Act in response to the Supreme Court’s decision in Indira Sawhney’s case. “Backward classes,” according to Section 2 of the NCBC Act, refer to those backward classes of citizens not belonging to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.

The list of Castes and Communities that are considered Other Backward Classes has been made public by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.

The Indian government uses the collective phrase “Other Backward Classes” to categorise castes that have social and educational disadvantages. Along with Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, it is one of the official classifications of India’s population (SCs and STs).

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Both the Central Government and State Governments are conducting numerous programmes and plans to elevate Other Backward Classes (OBC). Several advantages include

The UPSC offers accommodations for the OBCs, in the IAS Exam. Additionally, the board places some restrictions on some groups of persons and offers some flexibility in others. The applicants for the exam should therefore make sure they meet all requirements for admission before submitting their applications.

The UPSC typically gives each candidate who is taking the exam six chances to pass. For other kinds of candidates, the commission also offers some flexibility. As a result, depending on which group each candidate falls under, their total number of attempts is different from one another.

The information in the table above about OBC candidates’ UPSC efforts was obtained from the UPSC’s official website, and it is clear that the number of attempts given for OBC applicants is greater than the attempts made by candidates in the general category.

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