Widow Seeks Justice for Veterans with Lewy Body Dementia

Veteran’s death raises awareness of rare disorder 
Park Rapids Enterprise
By Sarah Smith
Feb 18, 2015

“I want the public to know how the military treats active duty soldiers,” she said. “Once they’re injured or sick, they’re trash.”

On a bitterly cold Valentine’s Day in Minnesota, Robin Howard bid farewell to the love of her life.

Her husband, Mikey Howard, passed away Feb. 8 of a neurodegenerative disorder that caused him to experience dementia in his mid-40s.

Symptoms of the disease began to manifest themselves after Mikey’s second deployment to Iraq in 2011.

He and Robin began a nearly four-year-long battle with veterans’ service agencies, who minimized his condition as post-traumatic stress until he was diagnosed one year ago with Lewy body dementia, a somewhat rare form of a Parkinsons-type of ailment his family believes was exacerbated by desert combat.

He retired from the military in July 2014.

His funeral was a tribute to a man from Florida who just happened to be working at a Nevis nightspot 11 years ago when lightning struck.

An official investigation is under way, which limits Robin in the remarks she can say publicly.

But her bitterness at the military, which she claims delayed treatment and a diagnosis, is there.

“I want the public to know how the military treats active duty soldiers,” she said. “Once they’re injured or sick, they’re trash.”
read more here

WHAT IS LBD?
LBD is not a rare disease. It affects an estimated 1.4 million individuals and their families in the United States. Because LBD symptoms can closely resemble other more commonly known diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, it is currently widely underdiagnosed. Many doctors or other medical professionals still are not familiar with LBD.

LBD is an umbrella term for two related diagnoses. LBD refers to both Parkinson’s disease dementia and dementia with Lewy bodies. The earliest symptoms of these two diseases differ, but reflect the same underlying biological changes in the brain. Over time, people with both diagnoses will develop very similar cognitive, physical, sleep, and behavioral symptoms.

Lewy Body Dementia Risk Factors
Advanced age is considered to be the greatest risk factor for Lewy body dementia, with onset typically, but not always, between the ages of 50 and 85. Some cases have been reported much earlier. It appears to affect slightly more men than women. Having a family member with Lewy body dementia may increase a person's risk. Observational studies suggest that adopting a healthy lifestyle (exercise, mental stimulation, nutrition) might delay age-associated dementias.