Neurodegenerative Disorders: A Case Study

Alzheimer’s disease is a complex illness that affects the brain tissue directly and undergoes gradual memory and behavioral changes which makes it difficult to diagnose. It is known to be the most common form of dementia and is irreversible. Over four million older Americans have Alzheimer’s, and that number is expected to triple in the next twenty years as more people live into their eighties and nineties. (Johnson, 1989). There is still no cure for Alzheimer’s but throughout the past few years a lot of progress has been made.

According to data available from the Alzheimer’s foundation every 67 seconds someone develops Alzheimer’s disease and currently at least 5.3 million people are affected by the disease. The numbers are expected to grow as 75 million baby boomers transition into retirement by 2030. Alzheimer disease is a brain disorder that causes decay and dis- function of neurons resulting in memory loss, speech and language impairment. This can also extend to challenges in physical and social behavioural. The brain, consisting of the cerebrum, cerebellum and brain stem is the primary target of Alzheimer’s disease. At three pounds the brain has a network of arteries and a folded cortex that is responsible for memory and movement. These functions are facilitated by a network of neurons. Alzheimer’s disease interferes with these neurons by disrupting electrical transfer; Death of brain cells is inevitable as the cortex shrinks becoming incapable of developing thoughts and memory. The Alzheimer’s patient experiences an altered personality with family members becoming strangers.

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, known as one of the world 's current pandemics, is estimated to be the fourth most common cause of death in the developed country, second only to cardiovascular, cerebrovascular diseases and cancer. With the aging population, dementia has gradually become a serious threat to the health of the elderly people in Australia.

Dementia is a drastic failure of cognitive ability that correlates with shrinkage of the hippocampus; the greater the impairment, the likely the smaller the size of the hippocampus. Alzheimer’s Disease is a neurodegenerative disorder, and a form of senile dementia that is characterized by progressive cognitive and sensory impairment in the form of: having a greater difficulty performing tasks, forgetting material that one just read, memory loss, slowed metabolism and atrophy and loss of awareness. With Alzheimer’s being the most common form of dementia, it is estimated that the disease affects 10% of people by the age of 65 and over 50% of people over the age of 85. This disease

Alzheimer’s Disease Alzheimer’s Disease is a progressive, degenerative disease that attacks the brain and results in impaired memory, thinking and behavior (Internet). It is a degenerative disease affecting nerve cells of the frontal and temporal lobes of the cerebrum of the brain. The disease is the major cause of presenile dementia (i.e., the loss of mental faculties not associated with advanced age) and is thought to be the largest single cause of senile dementia as well (Britannica, 306). It causes the connections between cells to become ineffective and the cells themselves to shutdown and eventually die (Davies, 1). Alzheimer’s is a progressive, irreversible, fatal neurologic disorder that affects an estimated 4 million American adults. It is estimated by 2040,approximately 14 million Americans will be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease. Approximately 9% of the population older than 55 years and 20% of those older than 85 years have Alzheimer’s Disease. The duration of AD averages 2 to 10 years but can be up to 20 years. By 1992, Alzheimer’s Disease was the fourth leading cause of death among adults (more than 100,000 American deaths per year). It is projected that the number of people with Alzheimer’s Disease will triple in the next 50 years. This epidemic of dementia is not confined to sex, race, social, or economic class. The public knows this disorder as “senility”, although the term Alzheimer’s is becoming more common (Rosdahl, 1356). According to a quote from

Dementia is the name for a group of symptoms caused by disorders of the brain, and is not an official name for a disorder. The DSM-5 instead classifies all disorders whose symptoms are Dementia as Major Neurocognitive Disorders (NCDs). There is a specific NCD that can be traced back to a malfunction within the nerve cells that causes proteins to aggregate and develop Lewy Bodies. This NCD, known hereafter as NCDLB, causes Dementia to develop. It is the second most common form of Dementia (Sue et. al.).

This disease is characterized by the destruction of nerve cells and neural connections in the cerebral cortex of the brain and by a large loss of brain mass. When an autopsy is performed on an Alzheimer 's patient, it is the neurotic

Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive degenerative brain disease characterized by progressive memory loss, cognitive impairment, and changes in behaviors and personality which has no cure. It is the most common cause of dementia in older adults and is increasing in prevalence in the younger population (Gosar & Bottomley, 2013). Research has shown that there are more than 5 million people in the United States and over 35 million people in the world who suffer from the disease. The number of Alzheimer’s patients increases steadily as the baby boomers age. Researches predicted that the population with Alzheimer’s disease will be doubled by 2030 (Alzheimer’s Association, 2015; Alzheimer’s Disease International, 2013; Black et al., 2010; Mohamed,

Alzheimer’s is a progressive and currently irreversible brain disease that slowly affects and/or impairs a person’s memory, ability to learn, ability to communicate, personality and movement. It has been over a century since Alzheimer’s was discovered in 1906 and there is currently no cure for the disease. More than 5 million Americans currently have some form Alzheimer’s and the number is projected to grow in the coming decades. The large majority of those who have the disease are over the age 65; although it is possible to develop Alzheimer’s at an earlier age ranging from 30 to 50 years of age. It is currently the sixth leading cause of death in America and costs over 200 billion of dollars a year to care of those who have Alzheimer’s.

It all started when Toronto experimental treatment centers started using deep brain stimulation (DBS) to improve memory in people with Alzheimer’s disease. Progressive loss of memory is the main symptom of this disorder, and while some drugs are available, they provide partial relief, or even less than that.

With an increase in average human lifespan, dementia has become one of the largest global health concerns of this generation. While scientific advancements assist in alleviating the burden of human disease and average life expectancies currently exceed 80 years in many countries, more and more individuals become susceptible to debilitating neurodegenerative diseases (Dobson et al., 2013). It is estimated that the number of people with dementia worldwide will read 76 million in the next fifteen years and as many

It is estimated that currently 5.1 million Americans may have Alzheimer’s disease. [1] 60-70% of dementia cases in the elderly are caused by Alzheimer’s. [2] As the population ages a greater percentage of Americans will be impacted whereas between present time and 2050 it is estimated that 20 percent of the population will be in an age category that puts them at risk. [1] The disease is a progressive, degenerative disorder that attacks the neurons resulting in memory loss, language skills, thinking and behavioral changes. Diagnostic and therapeutic approaches to this disease are changing due to knowledge that the underlying pathology begins 10-20 years before the symptoms appear. [3] Therefore new methods are

To continue, gold has other uses in the medical field along with treating brain disorders. This is because gold is able to absorb radiation. Radioactivity occurs when unstable atomic nuclei decompose to form nuclei with a higher stability. Energy and particles are released during the decomposition process causes radiation. There are three different types of radiation; alpha, beta and gamma. Alpha radiation is when an alpha particle, or helium nucleus, decays into an atom with a mass number that is reduced by four and an atomic number that is reduced by two. Idaho State University (2011) explained that beta radiation is when an electron is released from the nucleus of a radioactive atom, along with a particle called an antineutrino (para.

Neurodegeneration simply refers to the progressive death of neurons. As the condition progresses, the neurons will lose both structure and function. Diseases that are neurodegenerative in nature are incurable and results in the death of neurons; the transmitting and receiving of nerve impulses is accomplished by neurons. The loss of neurons occurs in a plethora of diseases such as: amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, and Huntington's. ALS specifically refers to the death of motor neurons (i.e. neurons responsible for controlling muscle movement) and ability to control your muscles gradually worsens over time (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and