Omentum transposition for treatment of Alzheimer disease in China

Abstract

A paper was published in a Chinese medical journal that suggested that the placing of an intact vascularized omental pedicle would increase cerebral blood flow and could decelerate the development of Alzheimer’s disease. However, the paper showed limited support for the operation. The purpose of this paper is to suggest that the lack of enthusiasm for the operation may deserve re-evaluation. The operation that was evaluated required an intact omental pedicle to be placed directly on the brain in order to increase the blood flow to the brain. The omentum is brought from the abdominal cavity up to the brain where it is simply laid resulting in a large volume of blood to flow into the cerebral tissue. The Chinese paper demonstrated relatively poor results in the Alzheimer patients. It is believed that the poor results were probably due to the results of the patients age, the length of time they had Alzheimer disease (5 or more years), but especially their low mini-mental state examination results – some as low as 2. The paper being presented will suggest the possible benefit of omental transposition in Alzheimer patients when there is a successful choice of suitable candidates for the procedure.