“I want to tell you how much I miss my mother. Bits of her are still there. I miss her most when I’m sitting across from her,” (Crowley, Candy. October 21st, 2014). This quote refers specifically to Alzheimer’s, which is defined as progressive mental deterioration that can occur in middle or old age, due to generalized degeneration of the brain. It is the most common cause of premature senility. However, Alzheimer’s is merely only a form of many debilitating diseases under the umbrella of Dementia, defined as a chronic or persistent disorder of the mental processes caused by brain disease or injury and marked by memory disorders, personality changes, and impaired reasoning. Some examples of these disorders include: Vascular dementia, Frontotemporal dementia (Pick 's disease), Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, and of course as was previously for mentioned, Alzheimer 's disease. Each form of dementia will be discussed in depth including their symptoms, treatments, and their histories.
Vascular dementia is a decline in thinking skills caused by conditions that block or reduce blood flow to the brain, depriving brain cells of vital oxygen and nutrients. Conditions that can block blood flow to the brain are generally transient ischemic attacks (TIA’s) or strokes. When these occur, often major brain blood vessels are damaged and blocked causing effects on personality, ways of thinking and problem solving, and generally can coexist with changes linked with other types of dementia.
Throughout this line of study, Alzheimer’s disease is a specific form of dementia. According to Alzheimer’s Association, dementia is a general term for a decline in mental ability that is severe enough to hinder daily life. Memory loss is a symptom of dementia and the most common type of dementia is Alzheimer’s. One of the most common and severe symptom of Alzheimer’s is difficulty remembering newly learned information. The changes of Alzheimer’s normally begin in the part of the brain that affects learning (Overview Alzheimer's Association). Some other symptoms of Alzheimer’s include gradual memory loss, the decline in capability to carry out everyday tasks and the loss of their language skills. According to Bialystok the rate of
Vascular dementia is the first form of dementia, which is caused by damage to the brain through deprivation of oxygenated blood. If areas of the brain are not getting oxygen then part of it will die causing the vascular dementia.
Alzheimer’s Disease is a form of dementia affecting more than one third of those over ninety-five years old. Its effects vary per person and become systematically more extreme as time wears on. Alzheimer’s is currently incurable and impossible to slow, destroying neurons and brain tissue, resulting in loss of memory, judgment, awareness, communication, behavior and capacity for emotion. Changes in personality and loss of initiative are also common symptoms of Alzheimer’s.
Alzheimer’s Disease has been one of the top leading causes of death in our country. It is understood that this disease is identified as an excess of the protein amyloid-ß within an increase of plaque (Seneff, Wainwright, and Mascitelli, 2010). Additionally, as the brain ages, it gets used to the inflammation and oxidative stress, so it is important to take the right amount of antioxidant micronutrients like vitamin C and vitamin E as well as anti-inflammatory macronutrients such as omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids to protect the brain from ageing (Whalley et. al, 2004). This is a devastating disease that affects most people over the age of fifty. Recently, there have been many studies done to figure out what causes this disease, if there is anything that can cure it, and how to prevent the disease. Seneff, Wainwright, and Mascitelli, believe Alzheimer’s develops with consuming too many carbohydrates, especially fructose and having a deficiency in cholesterol and dietary fats as well (2010). Whalley, Starr, and Deary have seen that poor diet, poverty, and failing health are links to developing Alzheimer’s Disease (2004). Furthermore, seeing increase in plasma homocysteine concentration increases risk of Dementia, which can result from an inadequate intake of vitamin B12/folate (Walley et. al, 2004). Additionally, Gray supports Walley’s findings and even believes having an adequate intake of vitamin B12/folate will have a positive effect on the overall health
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.
Dementia is a condition resulting from obtained brain disease and distinguished by progressive decay in memory and other cognitive fields such as judgment, abstract thinking, language, and executive functioning. This disease is usually caused by degeneration in the cerebral cortex, the part of the brain responsible for thoughts, memories, actions, and personality. Death of brain cells in this area leads to the impairments that distinguish dementia. Though the cognitive outline of single diagnosed with dementia vary somewhat by etiology, the degree of deterioration stands for a decrease from previous levels of cognitive functioning and is enough to impede with social and occupational functioning. This downfall is beyond what might be expected from normal aging in a person. It can cause impairment with everyday activities such as dressing, feeding, and bathing.
Vascular Dementia can occur after a person has a stroke due to major blood vessels being blocked.
Vascular Dementia is cause by the breaking down of nerves in the brain and does not get enough oxygen and nutrients. This type of dementia often causes a stroke or signs of a stroke. Like Alzheimers, and opposite of Lewy Body, it progresses at a slower rate. Like Lewy body, issues with movement happen earlier in the disease unlike Alzheimer’s that happen later in the
Per the Alzheimer’s Association, Alzheimer’s is “a brain disease that causes a slow decline in memory, thinking and reasoning skills” (CA). It is the most common form of dementia, and accounts for over half of the recorded dementia cases (CA). What most people are unaware of is that there are three different severities to having Alzheimer’s (CB). Alzheimer's disease is a progressive, degenerative disorder that attacks the brain's nerve cells, resulting in loss of cognitive skills and behavioral changes (CE). Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia, or loss of intellectual function, among people aged 65 and older (CE). Alzheimer's disease is not a normal part of aging, despite how common it is among the population (CE).
Alzheimer is a silent disease that primarily attacks the brain having the effect of the gradual memory loss of the patient, what this means is that Alzheimer is the most common form of dementia, which is a loss of brain function that occurs with certain diseases in this case combined with Alzheimer’s patients suffers from memory loss and other intellectual abilities that interfere with daily life. Alzheimer patients cannot follow instructions, suffers confusion and disorientation in time and space, and may even become lost in familiar places for them. In addition, the person may have impaired judgment, confuse their loved ones and in many cases even unknown themselves, in other words, patients
Every single person longs for carrying on with a customary, ordinary life, viewing their youngsters grow up and have groups of their own. Be that as it may, for a few individuals this fantasy can be eradicated alongside their memory. Alzheimer 's sickness is a dynamic infection that differs from individual to individual, burglarizing its casualty of their past and future.
Alzheimer’s is a disease which affects the brain. Being completely irreversible, a person’s memory, thought process, and motor skills become drastically challenged, and eventually taken away. Symptoms will usually appear in subjects around age 60, however, signs have been known to start much earlier. Drastic changes can also occur with the brain, visibly shrinkage occurs, and neurons slowly cut off from each other, and die. In addition to this, unnatural formations of proteins begin forming on the brain. (ADFS)
While vascular dementia develops, it passes out through seven stages which can be divided into three major stages. Those stages are early stage, middle stage, and late stage. First, in the early stage, the cells in the brain receive a constant amount of blood. According to this stage, the person does not suffer from any symptoms and the vascular system works naturally. But at the end of the early stage, the patient starts to be confused and have difficult in thinking. Therefore, the vascular system starts to damage due to some factors. According to Johns Hopkins Medicine “Blood flow to brain tissue may be reduced by a partial blockage or completely blocked by a blood clot” [1]. When this happens, the blood supply becomes less than the
Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive mental illness that occurs in middle or old age, it is considered an age-related disease. The brain shrinks overtime caused by brain cell death over a period of time. When the brain shrinks it causes the tissue to make fewer connections to the brain which damages memory, speech and comprehension. This can be broken down into three stages; preclinical (where there are no signs or
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