Alzheimer's Disease: Ten Leading Causes Of Death

In times past many people thought that memory loss was a normal occurrence for elderly people. This thinking was major reason for why Alzheimer’s disease was not caught until very later in the stages. Alzheimer’s disease is not a normal part of aging. After heart disease, cancer, and strokes, Alzheimer’s is the most common cause of death in adults in the Western world. “It is estimated that 4.5 million Americans over the age of 65 are affected with this condition. After the age of 65, the incidence of the disease doubles every five years and, by age 85, it will affect nearly half of the population” (Robinson).

c) Age-related cognitive impairment (or mild cognitive impairment MCI) – is when an elderly person’s memory starts to wane and they have problems recalling their short term memories, they have difficulty learning new things, their thinking process starts to become reduced and have difficulty concentrating. It is thought that MCI can develop due to alcohol abuse and cognitive decline (poor diet, chronic inflammation, vascular disease and

Patients who suffer from AD also have their memory, ability to learn and to carry out activities affected. Since, AD is not just dementia related there is also another aspect to the disease that causes “progressive neurodegeneration” (Chen). The symptoms of AD are usually slow, but they get worse over time and start to affect your daily life. The majority of people affected by AD are aged 65 and older. If a family member has AD then future generations from that family member are more likely to have AD. This is a very important disease to try to find a cure because “by 2050 as many as 115 million people worldwide will have developed dementia“ (Chen). As of right now “AD affects more than 5 million people in the U.S. alone” (Chen). This creates a huge burden on the family because it leaves their loved ones unable to function alone or to be able to do anything alone. This puts the burden on the family because then they need to find the patient a home to live in to be taken care of or they have to bring the patient in to their home and take care of the patient 24/7. People suffering from AD need to be attended to at all times of the day and constantly reminded why and what they’re doing. This affects a family because then they’re not able to do their daily routines or continue to live their normal lives. The reason is because all of their energy needs to be focused on the family member suffering form the

Alzheimer 's disease (AD) is a progressive degenerative disease of the brain from which there is no recovery. There are three brain abnormalities that are the hallmarks of the Alzheimer’s disease is initially caused by plaques buildup in the brain’s neurons as illustrated in figure 1. The support structure that allows the flow of the nutrients through the neurons gets damaged and ultimately there is loss of connection among the neurons and they die off (National Institute of Health, 2015). This causes the brain tissue to shrinks, which is called atrophies. All this ultimately lead the victim of this disease to face difficulties in governing emotions, recognize errors and patterns, coordinate movement, and remember. Ultimately, a person with AD loses all memory and mental functioning.

“Who are you?” “Do I know you?” Alzheimer’s disease is a very traumatic and disheartening disease that can affect loved ones in our families and relationships. I will be discussing the causes and prevention of this disease even though scientific facts and research are still being tested for validity.

Intelligence refers to the ability to obtain information and apply skills and consists of different functions, memory, reasoning, logic; these are all controlled by different areas of the brain. Alzheimer’s Disease inhibits short term memory first, before it continually moves throughout the brain, eventually affecting part of the brain that controls involuntary functions. With this in mind someone with MCI would not be able to make clear judgments and recall memory stored in long term memory. The deterioration of short term and working memory will inhibit a person’s ability to

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 disease progresses through many stages, ranging from early to severe. Memory problems are normally one of the first warning signs of cognitive loss, possibly due to the development of Alzheimer’s disease. However, some people with memory problems present with a condition called amnestic mild cognitive impairment (MCI). People with this condition have more memory problems than normal for people their age, but symptoms are not quite as severe as those seen in people with Alzheimer’s disease. Some researchers have found those people with MCI also present with movement difficulties and problems with sense of smell. The ability of people with MCI to perform daily activities is not significantly impaired. Although, older people with MCI when compared to those without MCI, do go on to develop Alzheimer’s disease.

Alzheimer’s disease is ten leading cause of death in women ages 65-74, the five leading cause of death in women ages 75-84, and the four leading cause of death in women ages 85 and older. The rate of Alzheimer's disease with women exceeded men because the women are living longer than men and the different life of women's would raise the incidence of this disease. Also, genetic variation and biological all affects aging of women. The prevention methods of Alzheimer’s diseases are first, lifestyle people who engage in intellectual activates such as reading, playing board games, completing crossword puzzles, and playing musical instruments all this activates reduced risk for Alzheimer’s disease. Second, diet people who eat a healthy and Mediterranean

Alzheimer’s Disease • Alzheimer’s is the most common cause of dementia. • It occurs from changes in the nerve cells of the brain. • No one knows what causes Alzheimer’s. It cannot be cured and will not go away. • Signs include memory loss, confusion, poor judgment, and changes in language.

Alzheimer’s disease is among the sixth top leading causes of death in the United States and even with an estimated 4.5 to 5.4 million suffering from Alzheimer’s disease (AD) not much is known about the causes. Only the symptoms are addressed. The main characteristics of AD are degeneration of the ability to remember, reason, communicate and with loss of motor skills and function (Piazza-Gardner, 2013). Cognitive function that is lost and is accompanied by other physiological conditions such as depression, anxiety, irritability, aggression and inappropriate behavior for a setting or location that occur in most AD suffers (Senie, 2014). AD was noted as abnormal clumps and a bundle of proteins in the brain which was discover in patients with

Q3: Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is a decline in cognitive function that does not meet the standards of dementia but is worse than what is expected for the patient’s age and educational background (Petersen et al., 1999). While a patient with MCI is at increased (10-20%) risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease (AD) compared to the normal population, it is not necessary to classify patients as having MCI until they develop any further preclinical AD symptoms (Petersen et al., 1999). The diagnostic criteria for MCI includes: (1) impaired in memory that is greater than expected for age and general cognition is not effected (2) capable of performing daily activities and (3) not demented (Albert et al., 2011; Petersen et al., 1999).

Approximately 5.1 million adults in the U.S. who are 65 years or older may have Alzheimer’s disease, the most widely known type of cognitive impairment.

Alzheimer’s disease is a very slowly progressive disease that occurs inside the brain in which is characterized by damage of memory. Also this type of disease can lead into interruption in language, problem solving, planning and perception. The chance of a person developing Alzheimer’s disease increases enormously after the age of 70 (Crystal, 2009). Also people who are over the age of 85 have over a 50 percent chance of developing Alzheimer’s disease. This type of disease is not at all normal in the aging process and is also not something that happens out of no where in a person’s life.

The factors associated with decreased risk of acquiring AD are consuming the Mediterranean diet, cognitive engagement and participation in physical activities. The current research does not definitively provide sufficient evidence to substantiate that these risk and protective factors are valid. Further research that addresses the limitations of existing studies is needed prior to making recommendations on these interventions. Weaknesses in the research methodology used in many of the studies reviewed have led to gaps in our knowledge. “Critical improvements that are needed are: more precise, better validated, and more standard exposure measures; more standardized cognitive assessment measures across studies that are appropriate for the functional level of the sample (e.g. cognitively normal, mild cognitive impairment [MCI]); studies of longer duration; and better documentation and reporting of ting of methods and results” (Williams et al.,