Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive and fatal form of dementia, frequently seen in the elderly altering their cognition, thought process and behavior. AD is reported in about half of patients that have a dementia diagnosis; one study states that about 10.3% of the population over 65 years is affected by dementia with an increase to almost 50% over the age of 8 (Beattie, 2002). Alzheimer’s disease is not a normal part of the aging process in humans, but rather found in a group of diseases that affect the brain leading to a decline in mental and physical control. AD when diagnosed has a very slow and gradual course, initially affecting the individual’s short term memory (Beattie, 2002). Alzheimer’s disease is the 6th leading cause of death, affecting more than five million people in the United States and is also one of the most common forms of dementia. Dementia can be defined as a disorder of progressive cognitive impairment severe enough to affect daily functions of an individual’s life (Fillit, et al., 2002).
Alzheimer 's is a slow and debilitating disease that generates multiple problems with cognitive skills including; memory, thinking and behavior. (MedlinePlus, 2015) It is especially painful for friends and family members who see their loved ones progressively lose their memory and ability to function as they normally have. Symptoms typically develop gradually and progressively get worse over time, becoming severe enough to put the person afflicted with the disease unable to complete daily tasks and placing themselves at risk. (MedlinePlus, 2015) Alzheimer’s is the most common diagnosed condition of dementia. (MedlinePlus, 2015) Sixty to eighty percent of dementia cases are designated as Alzheimer’s. (MedlinePlus, 2015) Although the greatest known risk factor for Alzheimer’s is increasing age, it is not considered a normal part of aging. The majority of those diagnosed with Alzheimer 's are approximately sixty-five and older. However, Alzheimer’s is not just a disease affected by the older age populations. About 5 percent of people with Alzheimer’s experience early symptoms and the onset Alzheimer 's and most often appears in their forties or fifties. As stated above, Dementia or Alzheimer’s symptoms gradually worsen over time. In the early stages, it is common to experience mild memory loss. Eventually, the ability to carry on a conversation is lost. The sixth leading cause of death in the United States is Alzheimer’s. After Alzheimer’s symptoms become publicly
Alzheimer’s disease is a degenerative brain disease of unknown cause that is the most common form of dementia. Alzheimer’s usually starts in late middle age or in old age and results in progressive memory loss, impaired thinking, disorientation and changes in personality and mood. It is an irreversible, progressive disorder that slowly destroys memory and thinking skills which leads to the eventual inability to carry out the simplest tasks. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia among older adults.
Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive degenerative disease that attacks the brain and results in impaired memory, thinking and behavior. Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia. Dementia is the lost of thinking, remembering and reasoning so bad it screws up ability to do daily functions and eventually resolves in death. Dr. Alois Alzheimer’s first discovered the disease in 1906. Since then research has developed a deeper understanding of the changes in the brain. Warning sign’s of Alzheimer's are memory loss that affects home and job skills, problem in speaking, poor judgment, and difficulty in learning. The last stage of Alzheimer's disease is when you’re unable to take care of
Auguste Deter was the first patient who had such a serious case of dementia that Alois Alzheimer decided to look at her brain when she died. Deter was 51 years old when she began to show signs of what is now considered Alzheimer’s Disease or AD. When she died, Alois Alzheimer, a German physician, decided to look into her brain. He wished to see what was causing her to act so wild and uncontrollable. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, he found that parts of her brain and the cells seemed to be dead. The disease soon was named after Alzheimer because of his discovery and has grown to be recognized throughout the world. While there are other diseases in need of research, Alzheimer's is a growing disease that is in need of more research
Alzheimer’s, the most relevant cause of Dementia, is a disease that affects as many as 4.5 million Americans per year (WebMD 2005-2014). Alzheimer’s is a disease that is an irremediable, continuous brain neuron degenerative disease that can be asymptomatic at first and then overtime becomes symptomatic. Alzheimer’s is a gradual disease that advances in three phases: mild, then moderate, and, finally, severe (1). Symptoms appear after the age of 60 and include: the slow destruction of memory and thought processes, and ultimately ends with the absent ability to do normal everyday duties. These symptoms can be anything from forgetting a recent event, or can be as problematic as forgetting the name of a family member. There are many daily
Alzheimer’s disease is the six leading cause of death in America with its major cause still unknown. Scientist understand that even before early onset symptoms appear there are communication errors between the neurons of the brain. As the disease progresses, family members often notice that their loved ones are more forgetful then normal. The disease progressively worsens until one is unable to recognized loved ones, has difficulty speaking, walking, and even swallowing. The brain of one with advanced Alzheimer’s is actually radically different from that have a healthy brain.
Alzheimer’s is a progressive mental breakdown of the brain that can occur in an elderly person.
Alzheimer’s disease (AD), is a type of dementia that no one would ever want their grandmother or grandfather to suffer from, as it destroys memory and other important mental functions of its sufferer. Alzheimer's disease is currently ranked as the sixth leading cause of death in the United States. While the age 65 and older is its target age, it has consumed the lives of over 1.9 million people. The brain begins to show signs of damage in the hippocampus, the part of the brain essential in forming memories. As more neurons die, parts of the brain then begin to shrink. By the final stage of Alzheimer’s, damage is widespread, and brain tissue has shrunk significantly. The idea that Alzheimer’s disease is related to age in 1974 was introduced
Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) is characterized by gradual cognitive decline that beings with the inability to create recent memories or thoughts, which then proceeds to effect on all intellectual functions (Mayeux & Stern, 2012). AD affects an estimated 5.5 million people in the United States, and 24 million people worldwide (Mayeux & Stern, 2012). The incidence of Alzheimer’s disease is rising in line with the aging population, therefore; AD is most common in older patients around the ages of 60-85 (Mayeux & Stern, 2012). Alzheimer’s Disease is the sixth most common cause of death ("Latest Alzheimer 's Facts and Figures", 2015). Therefore, in the United States, one individual will develop the disease in every 67 seconds ("Latest Alzheimer 's Facts and Figures", 2015).
It is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States, and is the third leading cause of death for Americans over the age of sixty-five. Almost two thirds of all Alzheimer’s patients are women, and though it seems to be much more common in females than in males, no one has discovered why. Those who are diagnosed with Alzheimer’s experience an array of troubling symptoms. It usually begins with the person forgetting their short term memory. Because Alzheimer’s begins in the hippocampus – the learning part of the brain- they may have trouble remembering names when they are introduced to new people. In the second stage of Alzheimer’s disease, patients can expect to be disoriented at times, have sudden mood and behavior changes, and often develop suspicions about their family, friends, or caregivers. During the end of this stage, they may also experience hallucinations, delusions, and have extreme paranoia. During the third and final stage of Alzheimer’s, patients have difficulty speaking, walking, and swallowing. In this final stage, the brain shrinks to about one-fourth the size of a normal brain, and the person will most likely pass away. Those who have been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease are expected to live only about eight years after their diagnosis, due to its progressive nature and worsening over
Neurodegeneration in the central nervous system can lead to a wide assortment of cognitive dysfunctions as the system itself consists of the brain and the spinal cord in its entirety. In a multitude of cases, Alzheimer’s disease has led to eventual deterioration of the cerebrum, the frontal lobe in particular. The disease has, in the utmost severity, led to the loss of reasoning skills, learning ability, sensory awareness, and has even gone as far as negatively impacting emotional response.
In 1906, Dr. Alois Alzheimer had a patient named Auguste D. He described this patient by saying she had “profound memory loss and unfounded suspicions about family” (Alzheimer, 1906). After his patient had died, he performed an autopsy to rule the cause of death. Alzheimer claims he found “dramatic shrinkage and abnormal deposits in and around the nerve cells”. His findings set new standards for understanding neuro-degenerative disorders around the world. In 1910, this newly discovered abnormality was coined as “Alzheimer’s Disease” (healthline.com). Researching soon ensued and scientists now had more information than ever. In 1976, Alzheimer’s was recognized as the most common cause of dementia. By 1984 Beta-amyloid was found present in brain
Alzheimer’s disease is an irreversible, progressive brain disease that slowly destroys memory and thinking skills. “Its onset is generally insidious, with gradual deterioration of cognitive function, eventually resulting death.” (Falvo, D. 2009, pg. 226). Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia among people age 65 and older. “Nearly 70 percentages of all dementias are Alzheimer’s, and over 4.5 million Americans have Alzheimer’s.”(www.alz.org). This disease is not just a disease that happens to older people, but there is a small percentage that can also affect those in their 30s.
As the leading cause for dementia, Alzheimer’s disease –AD-, effects more than 25 million people in the world (Perrone & Grant, 2015, p. 1).The neurodegenerative disorder, results in behavioral changes, as well as cognitive including, loss of memory and language skills ( Mayo Clinic Staff, 2014). Researchers have tracked two leading abnormalities resulting in Alzheimer’s. These two are, amyloid plaques-clumps of protein which form in and around the neurons- and neurofibrillary tangles- insoluble fibers made up mostly of tau protein- (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2014). Although both are a prevalent indication of AD, scientist have not been able to indicate whether these are merely a byproduct or a cause. Hence, call for epidemiological research is ongoing. Earlier studies have suggested a link between diabetes- specifically, Type 2 diabetes mellitus- and AD (Paddock, 2015). These observations suggest the metabolic processing of glucose is abnormal, and this plays a role in AD pathogenesis (Macauley et al., 2015).Recently, studies have linked, a dietary relevance of advanced glycogen end products, or AGEs, to the incidence of AD (Perrone & Grant, 2015, p. 2). AGEs are also called glycotoxins, because they increase the risk of diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and several other aging related-diseases, such as AD (Perrone & Grant, 2015, p. 2). More on, as with diabetes and AGEs , researchers have directly linked high blood sugar to the production of beta-amyloid, in