Early Onset Alzheimer's Disease

More than 30 million people are affected worldwide, Alzheimer's is the number one cause of dementia. Alzheimer's is a progressive disease that destroys memory and essential mental functions. The brain cells and the actual cells deteriorate and die; the main symptoms are confusion and loss of mind. Dementia follows Alzheimer's; you can’t have one without the other. Dementia, on the other hand, it is not its own disease, it is a group of thinking and social symptoms that hinder everyday tasks. Over 100 years ago a German physician by the name Alois Alzheimer’s

Alzheimer’s disease is a common problem in today’s society and within the older population this disease makes up the largest form of dementia. Although it is a problem in mainly older people, this disease can still occur in the younger population also. People in their 30s-50s can be diagnosed with this disease, even though it is not as common as people in their 60s-90s. The number of people with Alzheimer’s in the U.S. is close to five million and is expected to double within the next 30 years. With our modern medicine and advancements one would think a cure would be available, however, getting to the cause of the disease is a major factor. The cause of Alzheimer’s disease is one that is very debatable and questionable and most likely is a result of multiple factors rather than one. The main issue with finding the cause is because this disease affects the brain and can

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).

Early-onset alzheimer's disease happens to people under the age of 65 years old. Often, this happens to people in their 40’s and 50’s. Only 5% of patients with alzheimer's have early-onset alzheimer’s. Late-onset alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of this disease. The late-onset alzheimer’s disease happens to patients over the age 65 years old. Lastly, familial alzheimer’s disease is a form of alzheimer’s disease that some doctors know it is linked to genes. FAD makes up less than 1% of all cases of Alzheimer’s. Most patients who have early-onset Alzheimer’s have familial alzheimer’s

It is a disease that we haven’t cured yet but instead have only come up and still coming up with treatment strategies to alleviate its symptoms. AD was first described in 1906 by a German psychiatrist by the name of Alois Alzheimer whilst he was performing a histophathologic study of his patient’s brain, a patient who had been suffering from dementia. His patient’s brain’s autopsy brought to light the presence of two types of lesions, which are senile plaques and neurofibrillary tangles. He saw a visible difference in the brain tissue for it was severely damaged by these lesions. Since then, our knowledge of AD’s cellular and molecular alterations has increased and we have come up with various hypotheses for AD that may soon help in developing effective preventative and therapeutic strategies. One of the most prevailing hypotheses that have already leaded to a number of therapeutic approaches is the amyloid cascade hypothesis. Hence, the following essay will explore the pathology of the amyloid cascade hypothesis and the evidence for and against it. It will also touch upon current progress in clinical trials that test the

Alzheimer's Disease is one of the societal issues that Scientists will be able to address. Most Alzheimer's patients have gotten the disease from their parents, meaning, scientists can study the genome of the patients to understand why it is genetic. Alzheimer's is difficult to understand because someone can get the gene even when no one else in their family has it. Studying the genomes of these patients can also give light on why there is Early-onset Alzheimer's and Late-onset Alzheimer's. Through this study and research, scientists can get a better understanding on how to slow down or even cure the disease.

The movie Still Alice, portrays the life of Dr. Alice Howland and her family, as they deal with the heartbreaking diagnosis and life tribulations of Alice as she deteriorates with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease at 50 years of age. This heartwarming story will touch the hearts and unravel the emotions of its viewers from the beginning until the end.

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

There is evidence from older individuals who are deemed “clinically normal” that the process of Alzheimer’s disease starts way before the clinical diagnosis of dementia, thus suggesting a preclinical stage (Sperling et al., 2011). The criteria for the preclinical stage of Alzheimer’s Disease is broken up in three stages. Stage one consists of the presence of A displacement in the brain, stage two is the displacement of A plus neurodegeneration, and stage three is the displacement of A, neurodegeneration, and subdued cognitive deficiencies. The classification for an individual to be grouped into one of these stages is based on the amount of A levels (low levels in the cerebrospinal fluid, or high levels in the brain) and/or the neurodegenerative process (Burnham, et al., 2016).

Alzheimer’s disease or also known as Alzheimer’s is the neurodegenerative most common type of dementia that usually commences in older people; this is a very complex brain disorder that interferes with the affected individual’s life as soon as it initiates its mission of destroying the brain, it progresses slowly and gets worse over time from mild forgetfulness to brain impairment. Furthermore, scientist do not fully understand what causes this irreversible disease that has no cure or prevention and it may be inherited. Alzheimer’s disease seems to be caused by unusual plaques (beta-amyloid) and tangles in the brain, damaging important areas of memory and learning (Hanyu et al., 2010), together with, dementia is defined as a loss of mental

Alzheimer’s disease is a mental deterioration that can occur in middle or old age. A person with Alzheimer's may live 4-8 years after they are diagnosed. Although in some cases people can live up to 20 years. I was interested in this topic because one of my great grandpas had this disease. He died 6 years after he was diagnosed with the disease.

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

Since 1907, when Alois Alzheimer characterized AD, many hypotheses and theories have been developed. However, there has been little progress toward understanding the pathophysiology that could lead to a cure.

Alzheimer’s disease is a type of dementia. It is a devastating brain disease that gradually ruins the patient’s memory, thinking skills and eventually the ability to perform the simplest task of the life. There are two types of Alzheimer’s; early-onset and late onset Alzheimer’s. Early onset is very rare and occurs in people ages 30-60 years. It is caused by mutation on anyone gene on a chromosome inherited from a parent. These mutations cause abnormal proteins to form which disrupts the function of the body. On the other hand, late onset is most commonly found in people ages 60 or above. A mutation on the gene on chromosome 19, which carries

Alzheimer’s is a disease of the brain that develops slowly and in stages. The exact cause is not known, but the disease is widely believed to be caused by a buildup of the beta-amyloid protein. This protein is said to cause the death of neurons, which make large masses in the brain called plaques. The death of the nerve cells leads to loss of memory and disabled use of intellect, reasoning, and speech, and mood changes. The most prominent symptom, however, is the memory loss or dementia; this is the first stage of Alzheimer’s disease. It later progresses to more deeply rooted intellectual issues and changes in mood, like increased irritability and personality changes. The final stages bring total loss body functions, disorientation,