Alzheimer’s research funded – renewed Canada Research Chair for award-winning Woman of Distinction
Every 5 minutes, there is a new dementia case reported in Canada. The annual economic burden of Alzheimer’s disease in Canada is currently $4 billion and these rates are expected to double over the next 20 years. Therefore, any method that can help with early diagnosis, slowing of disease progression and/or delaying disease onset will benefit Canada’s economy enormously and ease the stress and strain experienced by families and caregivers.
Canada Research Chair (CRC) in Biomedical Engineering, Dr. Zahra Moussavi, P.Eng., is well on her way to finding innovative ways of detecting early signs of Alzheimer’s in patients with renewed funding of $500,000 over five years as a Tier 2 chair holder from the Canada Research Program.
“Our government is proud to renew funding to top researchers such as Dr. Moussavi. The Canada Research Chairs are driving innovation, addressing health, environmental and social issues, and spurring economic growth in our community—all of which serve to improve the lives of Canadians,” said Rod Bruinooge, Member of Parliament, Winnipeg South.
In addition to detection of early signs of Alzheimer’s, Moussavi is also developing innovative approaches for Alzheimer’s treatment to either improve patient symptoms or slow the disease’s progression. She uses naturalistic virtual reality navigational assessment for Alzheimer’s onset detection and a combination of her own designed mental exercise along with application of repetitive transcranial stimulation (rTMS) to the brain. (in photo Dr. Moussavi demonstrates this device on a volunteer, MP Rod Bruinooge, at Riverview Health Centre)
In May, 2014, Dr. Moussavi received a Woman of Distinction Award from the Winnipeg YM-YWCA in the Science, Technology and the Environment category for her pioneering work in Alzheimer’s research.