Dementi A Clinical State Caused By Neurodegeneration Essay

Alzheimer’s Disease is a disease of the future. With the growing aged population, this disease, which affects primarily the elderly, will become of increasing relevance to the medical profession. Also, the high frequency of Alzheimer’s, and the high cost in labor, money, and material of caring for its victims shall put considerable burden on the society as a whole. Here, however, these issues are not going to be debated. Instead the pathology of Alzheimer’s will be reviewed to the extent it is known today.

Dementia can be defined as a decline in mental ability severe enough to interfere with daily life (alz.org). More than often, individuals affected by dementia are over the age of 65. In the United States, there are more than three million cases of dementia each year. According to World Health Organization, the number of people living with dementia is currently estimated at 47.5 million worldwide and is expected to increase to 75.6 million by 2030 (World Health Organization 2015). Dementia is caused by physical modifications in the brain and is known for loss of memory and mental abilities. It’s a progressive disease which means it gets worse over time. If diagnosed early on, the quality of life for people with dementia as well as their family members can be significantly improved. There are many different types of dementias although some are far more reciprocal than others. One of the most common types of dementia is Alzheimer’s disease. Other few types of dementias are “Vascular dementia, Mixed dementia, Parkinson 's disease and Frontotemporal dementia (Krishnan, D. S)”. All of the various forms of dementia tend to have similar symptoms which consequently makes it hard to determine the type of dementia a patient may be suffering from.

An estimated 47.5 million people suffer from dementia. Every 4 seconds one new case of dementia is diagnosed. Dementia is a term that describes certain symptoms such as impairment to memory, communication and thinking. It is a group of symptoms and not just one illness. Even though one‘s chance of getting dementia increase with age, it is not a part of aging. Dementia is usually diagnosed after a series of assessments that includes a physical evaluation, memory tests, imaging studies and blood work. It affects three aspects of one’s mental function, cognitive dysfunction (Problems with memory, language, thinking and problem solving), psychiatric behavior (changes in personality, emotional control, social behavior and delusions) and difficulties with daily living activities (driving, shopping, eating and dressing). “The median survival time in women is 4.6 years and in men 4.1 years” (Warren, 2016).

One of the most prominent and perhaps most feared condition associated with aging is dementia. The family of disorders can cause individuals to lose their mind, reducing one from being a complex, thinking, feeling human being to being confused and vegetative, unable to recognize their loved ones. Serious dementia affects nearly 37 million people globally, but predictions of how those numbers will change over the next few decades are conflicting (textbook). Although we know dementia as to do with damage to nerve cells in the brain, there are ongoing studies looking at correlations between other health issues and these types of diseases.

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 is the progressive loss of memory and mental functions. The disease affects memory, thought control, language, and other cognitive functions. The disease typically appears with old age and is often found age 60. Alzheimer’s causes the brain to develop clumps and tangles fibers in the brain tissue along with the loss of neuron connections. Throughout the brain, proteins are abnormally distributed and they form tangled bundles of fibers and amyloid plaques. Some neurons fail to function properly and lose their connections, which are necessary for the transmission of messages to the body. The hippocampus is the key brain structure in the formation of memories and often experiences the first signs of damage.

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia known today. The term “dementia” refers to a variety of conditions that arise from the loss of nerve cell function and/or nerve cell death in the brain, including Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia, Parkinson’s disease, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and other types of mixed dementia. Although all types of dementia arise from neuronal damage and/or death, each form of dementia is associated with distinct brain abnormalities and symptom patterns. Once a patient has been diagnosed with dementia, a physician must conduct further tests in order to determine the exact form of dementia that is present. Recent research indicates that many individuals,

Dementia is a chronic disorder associated with a decline in cognitive functioning typically characterized by memory impairment, increased communication and language difficulty and decreased motor activity that interferes with activities of daily living. Patients with dementia may also experience agitation, hallucinations, paranoia and difficultly with complex tasks. People with a family history of dementia and older adults are more prone to dementia. Dementia can be reversible or progressive depending on the cause. Dementia resulting from infections, reactions to medications, anoxia and poisoning can be reversed with medical treatment.

This disease is not considering to be the part of normal ageing, while it becomes more prevalent when age increases and therefore, it affects older people (“Dementia (AIHW)”, 2016).

Dementia is a disease that is seen to be affecting many of our elderly population nowadays. Dementia patients show progressive symptoms, which become severe with age. Some of the symptoms include memory loss, difficulty performing intellectual activities and overall lose of cognition. There are many causes of dementia so therefore the prevalence rate of it is increasing yearly. Dementia can be caused due to genetic vulnerability such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD), lifestyle choices and from other chronic disorders, which increase your risk of getting dementia. Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia are the two most prevalent forms of dementia (ref). Dementia is also sometimes related to other genetic disorders such as Parkinson’s disease

Dementia is a term to describe symptoms that has a continuous decline that affects in memory and cognition. Dementia is not a disease it is a category for overall symptoms to identify which disease is most likely depending on how it is affecting the ability to do ADL( Activities of Daily Life). (alz.org) There is many types of dementia such as Alzheimer’s disease, which is the most common disease of dementia, Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease, and vascular disease. (alz.org) The cause of Alzheimer’s disease is a spots of amyloid that blocks communication from nerve cells to other cells until they die off. Alzheimer’s symptoms are ongoing memory loss, behavioral changes, and the loss familiar skills or tasks and Alzheimer’s disease has

During the normal aging process cerebral blood flow decreases almost 50%, this decrease reflects an overall decrease in global perfusion, which leads to cerebral atrophy. Cognitive impairment most commonly occurs in patients with cardiovascular disease; individuals with a sedentary lifestyle show a decrease in neuronal plasticity and learning. Subsequently aerobic exercise actually reduces the amount of brain tissue loss, increases memory function and increases gray matter volume in prefrontal areas. In another study men who participated in endurance exercise had increased cerebral blood flow of the middle cerebral artery, which results in lower cerebrovascular risk factors in physically active elderly individuals, providing a protective mechanism against cerebral atrophy (Wiggens, Simovance).

Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and vascular dementia are some of the most common forms of this ailment. Patients with dementia experience a variety of symptoms and presentation can vary from patient to patient. The exact cause of dementia is still widely unknown. However, the disease presents as damage to brain cells that inhibits proper communication between brain cells. Most commonly, individuals with dementia experience memory loss, difficulty communicating effectively, and tasks they have been doing their whole lives suddenly become difficult. Dementia is typically a progressive disease; therefore, onset can sometimes be difficult to pinpoint. There is no specific test available to diagnose whether someone has dementia. Currently, there is no cure and no treatment option that can deter the progression of

Dementia is a neurodegenerative disease most common in senior citizens over the age of sixty-five and mot often the symptoms are forgetfulness, issues recalling personal history, and self-care. It is caused by an accumulation of neurofribrillary and amyloid-beta. Amyloid-beta is a fragment of protein that wasn’t broken down and built up and disrupted transmissions between neurons, causing memory loss (Pizzorno, 3-9)

I have a unique set of experiences interacting with individuals of all ages. From measuring newborn babies as a medical assistant, to teaching 8-year-olds math, to teaching college peers biology and to providing good company to a 99-year-old lady with Alzheimer’s Dementia. My experiences with individuals from a variety of backgrounds have given me a comprehensive outlook on human relationships and interaction, one that encompasses all walks of life. My experiences have fostered leadership, teamwork and compassion, all qualities that can be utilized to address needs of diverse populations and to create new knowledge. In addition to contributing my clinical, volunteer, work, personal and teaching experiences to the diversity of the Jefferson