Cerebrospinal Fluid Analysis Should Be Considered in Patients with Cognitive Problems

Hepatologists assay liver enzymes and cardiologists structural heart proteins in serum to diagnose and monitor their patients. This way of thinking has not quite made it into the memory clinics yet, in spite of the availability of validated cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers for key pathological events in the brain in neurodegeneration. Here, we argue that a spinal tap should be considered in all patients who seek medical advice for memory problems and list the highly relevant clinical questions CSF analyses can address.