Alzheimer’s disease is a chronic illness which degrades the neural ganglia of effected individuals. This typically results in a rapid decline of the individual’s mental health. Behavioral, cognitive, and emotional changes will be noticed within the individual at varying levels of severity. However, there is no cure in order to prevent the progression of the disease. Today, it is estimated that about 5.5 million Americans suffer from this degenerative disease. It is a growing area of concern which needs rapid medical attention. Research on Alzheimer’s disease has been increasingly published in hopes of gaining an understanding of the disease in order to develop treatment or prevention plans. Health psychologists can assist the individual by allowing them to learn to live with the disease. This is seen through the use of psychological theories which allow the individual to understand their behavior in terms of their health. …show more content…
While suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, both the patient and caregiver are experiencing elevate amounts of stress. This stress can be furtherly damaging to the body as it increases one’s blood pressure as well as increases the risk of heart related diseases. One study showed that through teaching self-efficacy to both the patient and the caregiver, a short term effect was a lowered blood pressure as well as decrease risk of heart conditions (Harmell, et al., 2011). Self-efficacy teaches the individual the potential they have at succeeding. For the patient, this shows them the control they still have over their health. This allows the individual to put an idea into action by strengthening their mind and mental capability. This theory can be applied by starting with a small goal of remembering the name of the individual’s caregiver or loved one’s while eventually working their way towards a bigger
In this detailed thesis, it defines what the Alzheimer's disease is, it also discusses the possible outcomes if the disease progresses and the potential treatments to aid this issue. It also highlights the impacts that Alzheimer's has on the individual and others who are connected to said individual.
Everyday more and more people are effected by dementia. This disease is taking over the lives of innocent people around the world. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Resources have designed The National Plan to Address Alzheimer’ Disease. This plan focuses on many important areas greatly affected by this irreversible disease and concentrates on the struggles one faces during its presence. I found three areas to be very important to the future of Alzheimer’s and other dementias; Expand research aimed to identify and treat Alzheimer’s, Educate and support people with Alzheimer’s and their families upon diagnosis, and Enable family caregivers to continue to provide care while maintaining their own health and well-being.
Alzheimer’s Disease is a progressive disease that destroys memory and other important mental functions. Brain cells in Alzheimer’s disease dies and degenerate causing the loss of memory and mental functions. Alzheimer’s is the sixth leading cause of death in the U.S.A. Alzheimer’s Disease is named after Dr. Abis Alzheimer. In 1906, Dr. Alzheimer noticed changes in the brain tissue of a lady who had died of an unusual mental illness that was very unknown. The woman 's’ symptoms included memory loss, language problems, and unpredictable behavior that people with Alzheimer’s have almost often of times. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia in this world and it’s thought to be the most progressive disease of all diseases. Also this disease gets progressively worse over time. The majority of people with Alzheimer’s are sixty-five years old or older, however, almost five percent of the people have early-onset Alzheimer’s. Early-Onset Alzheimer 's is known as Alzheimer 's at a younger age which appears at the ages of forties and fifties. In early stage Alzheimer’s, memory lost is very mild. With late Alzheimer’s, individuals lose the ability to carry on conversations and respond to their environment. People with Alzheimer’s often live an average of eight years after their symptoms become noticeable to others.
Alzheimer’s disease currently represents the second leading cause of death in people older than 65 years residing in the modern world. (1) Census records attest to this assertion, which has prompted medical researchers to further investigate the etiology and course of development of the disease in order to better treat the debilitating condition. This paper investigates how Alzheimer’s entered the medical lexicon and how its definition has shifted over the past century in psychiatric discourses. It is clear that as a neurodegenerative disease, older people are more likely to incur the condition. However, a small number of people develop it at an early age as well. While the cause of Alzheimer’s disease remains somewhat uncertain, experts can still pinpoint contributing factors that better illuminate the possible etiology. Future research is necessary in order to ascertain the particular causes. It is clear that aging is the most significant risk factor. This paper contributes to the large corpus of literature on Alzheimer’s and pinpoints various avenues for future research in order to enhance medical epistemologies. Hopefully, a cure for this debilitating disease will be discovered in order to abate rates of death it causes.
While the person with the disease is slowly losing themselves and their independence, their family has to deal with the burden of caring for their deteriorating family member, which can be both physically and emotionally draining. The hardships of taking care of a loved one with a disease like Alzheimer’s is the reason why patients are said to make up about two-thirds of those in nursing homes (Prigerson, 2003, as cited in Feldman, 2014). It is important for family members of the afflicted to realize there is help available for those having to deal firsthand with slowly losing their loved one. The Alzheimer’s Association, for example, is there to provide caregivers and family members support and information (http://www.alz.org). While dementia is something everybody fears of possibly developing later in life, it is reassuring to know that scientists are working hard to find new treatments for these diseases, and possibly a cure. As someone who is working towards a career to help elderly patients, I hope I will be learning more on this subject, so that I may effectively help patients diagnosed with diseases like Alzheimer’s, and their
Alzheimer’s disease slowly steals a person’s dignity and erases precious memories. The “Alzheimer’s Disease Guide”, found on WebMD explains that tasks become more difficult to do often leading to confusion and behavior changes. The article further explains the progression of the disease also brings hardship to family and friends (1). To best cope with Alzheimer’s we must better understand the disease.
Did you know that Alzheimer’s disease kills more people than both prostate and breast cancer put together? This neurodegenerative illness is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States, but not only does Alzheimer’s affect the five million Americans living with it. People caring for those with the disease gave up around eighteen billion of their own hours this past year to provide the needed service. What’s even more staggering is that these caregivers put in these hours without pay. Alzheimer’s is a serious concern to scientists, but the disease is rooted in the most complex, confusing part of the human body, the brain. This is a reason why an effective cure for the disease has been unavailable in the past, but new developments
Alzheimer’s is a type of dementia that causes problems with memory, thinking, and behavior. The purpose of this paper is to discuss medical definition, etiology, signs and symptoms, stages of disease progression, risk factors, diagnosis, and treatment. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia. Alzheimer’s disease is Ultimately fatal.
They know that there is no current cure for Alzheimer’s Disease, at least not for the time their relatives are alive or them themselves. They cope to keep a state of balance, especially in this stressful situation. The implications of our research towards the future is possibly having more research done on the reasons why caregivers sometimes feel stressful or how Alzheimer’s Disease affect them in a more personal level. We would also like to propose more research in this topic and bring awareness to it.
Alzheimer’s was only a medical term known to me for several years. I did not have the slightest of idea that I will have to face this dreaded word in my personal life. It was my 15th birthday when my grandmother was diagnosed with this debilitating disease. At times, she was walking barefooted on the road in chilling winter and at another, she undressed before people. Watching her slow deterioration was distressing. Gradually she transformed into a mute, emaciated and cranky individual. I felt helpless. Due to this personal experience, my interest to study the complexities of the brain increased substantially and I made up my mind to pursue a career to bring about tangible change in the lives of such diseased people.
Alzheimer is a disease that affects the elderly most. The disease was discovered by Dr. Alois Alzheimer in the year 1906 when he was examining a female’s brain. He found out that the woman displayed memory loss, language problems and some inexplicable changes in behavior. The disease was named after the doctor who was a German psychiatrist and a neuropathologist. Alzheimer’s disease is a degenerative brain disorder that leads to memory loss, personality changes, and language problems (Gilbert & Julie 2). The disease is mostly diagnosed in people over the age of 65 years, though there is a small minority of people under the age of 50 who get the disease. Studies show that 1% of a whole population aged between the ages 65-75 have severe
Alzheimer’s Disease is a chronic neurological disease characterized by memory loss, behavioral changes, and a progressive loss of intellectual function. This disease has a wide array of symptoms and effects that vary greatly from person to person throughout the three stages of disease progression. The three stages are classified as mild, moderate, and severe. It is tough to give an accurate prognosis with Alzheimer’s patients seeing as everyone reacts differently to the disease and the medications. According to Gould and Dyer (2011), about 4.5 to 5.4 million Americans experience the effects of Alzheimer’s disease. When a patient is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, it has the potential to turn their loved ones’ worlds upside down. Since there is no cure for Alzheimer’s, loved ones have to constantly monitor and help the person affected. Treatment is a group effort consisting of using doctors and therapists for guidance while family members take care of the person affected.
Alzheimer’s disease affects 1 out of every 8 people in the United States. It is a long and debilitating disease that affects every aspect of a person’s life from the way they preform daily tasks, to the physical and mental abilities that are diminishing. Along with the lifestyle changes that Alzheimer’s disease presents, it also affects one’s psychological perspective as well their view on what they can offer their family and society. There are some ways to maintain a level of independence with a disease of this magnitude but there are also factors in lifestyle choices that can make it worse. Alzheimer cannot be cured, it cannot be slowed, but there are ways to keep the effected person at a certain level of comfort, independence and safety
Alzheimer’s disease is defined as a progressive disease that destroys memory and other important mental functions. This progressive disease consists of memory loss and the loss of cognitive abilities serious enough to interfere with daily tasks of everyday life. Common things patients with Alzheimer's might forget are their loved ones, how to dress themselves, using the toilet, or feeding themselves. This heart breaking diseases causes brain tissue break down and, generally 1 in 10 people who are over 65 get diagnosed with it. Getting diagnosed with Alzheimer’s is not a normal part of aging. There is not enough research to know why some people get it and others don’t. This disease kills more than breast cancer and prostate cancer
In 1906, Dr. Alois Alzheimer recognized a change in a fifty-year-old woman’s brain tissue post mortem now known as Alzheimer’s disease. Today, Alzheimer’s is the most prevalent form of dementia affecting about 5.3 million people in the United States (Alzheimer’s Disease International, 2015). This disease gradually destroys memory and thinking skills, eventually preventing the ability of simple tasks to be performed. In this research paper I will first discuss my personal reason for researching this topic and give a description of Alzheimer’s disease. I will also go through the history and important demographics behind this disease and describe three purposed hypothesis behind the cause of Alzheimer’s. Next I will describe the various symptoms