As uncommon as the name of the disease sounds, its prevalence and incidence rates are not. In fact, almost four million people in the United States are affected by this problem. All can be affected, men or women, across all social status and economic position in life.
Alzheimer’s is a progressive and degenerative problem under the umbrella of diseases called dementia. It is characterized by disorientation and impaired memory. It is apparently caused by an attack in the brain, affecting one’s memory, thinking skills and judgment. Most patients will experience a change in language ability, in the way they use their mental processes and of course their behavior.
While anybody can be affected by this problem, only those that are older than age 65 experience the lagging in their thinking skills. Still, there are some who gets Alzheimer’s even when they are just 30 years old but these cases are very rare and can only account for a small percentage of the total number of cases. One out of 10 people over the age 65 has Alzheimer’s and nearly half of these patients are over 85 years old. In a national survey conducted in the United States, almost 19 million Americans have one family member who suffers from this dreaded problem.
In addition to old age, family history of dementia can also predispose someone to the disease. This is because Alzheimer’s is said to be caused by a problem in the genetic mutations. Still, when you study the cases, Alzheimer’s is commonly the result of a host of other factors besides genes. In fact, environmental factors such as hobbies and mental pursuits are things that can help prevent the onset of the problem.
What is difficult with Alzheimer’s is the fact that its symptoms are basically the same with ordinary signs of old age. At the beginning, there will be some memory loss. The person with Alzheimer’s will also experience confusion and disorientation even with things that they are used to doing. The trick is to make sure that one can recognize what a normal memory loss is against something of Alzheimer’s caliber.
Often, there will be a gradual memory loss. They will find it hard to read or to write or to think clearly. After which they will experience a decline in the ability to perform tasks that are already automatic and routinary. Believe it or not, in cases that are already in the terminal stage, the patient may even forget how to brush their teeth or how to use a spoon and fork, something that is really pretty basic with a lot of people.
This is one example of the difference of Alzheimer’s from ordinary memory loss. Forgetfulness will not affect tasks that are routinary. There will also be difficulty in learning new things and in memorizing things. Some patients may even forget the language that they are speaking with while others will no longer recognize their family. Personality will change in terms of the way they communicate with other people and the way they behave.
There is actually no change in personality per se but because of the problems in their memory, they may appear aloof and suspicious perhaps because they cannot recognize the people that they know before. Some may even become extremely fearful and passive for the simple fact that they cannot remember you. As the disease worsens, the patient will then become so incapable of taking care of themselves that they will require help even in eating and in sleeping.
Living With Alzheimers
There are drugs in the market that can help ease the pain ...
living_with_alzheimers.php
Alzheimers Care Facility
People who are diagnosed with the disorder do not have to be confined in the hospital. The best Alzheimer's...
alzheimers_care_facility.php
Alzheimers Treatment
People with Alzheimers have abnormal deposits...
alzheimers_treatment.php
Cause Of Alzheimers
Alzheimer's is especially one of the most d...
cause_of_alzheimers.php
Early Sign Of Alzheimers
Within the course of the disease, the sufferer will go through a w...
early_sign_of_alzheimers.php
Alzheimers Memory Loss
There are a number of symptoms which help diagnose t...
alzheimers_memory_loss.php
Activities Alzheimer
It is one of the most debilitating disea...
activities_alzheimer.php
Alzheimers-Resource-Partners
...
Alzheimers-Resource-Partners.php
Symptoms Of Alzheimers Disease
The root cause of this phenomenon in Alzheimer's d...
symptoms_of_alzheimers_disease.php
Alzheimers Prevention
That is the sad fact about aging. Things will slow ...
alzheimers_prevention.php
Alzheimers Early Symptom
Doing the math, you could have more than 4.5 m...
alzheimers_early_symptom.php
Activity For Alzheimers Patient
Alzheimer's is a progressive disease that is irreversible with no known cause or cure. The disease af...
activity_for_alzheimers_patient.php
Alzheimers Drug
What is known for a fact is that individuals begin to become susceptible to the ...
alzheimers_drug.php
Sign Of Alzheimers
It is a very difficult circumstance to be in, to watch a family memb...
sign_of_alzheimers.php
Alzheimers Dementia
Alzheimers and dementia are attributed with progressive memory loss and other functions that are attributed to bra...
alzheimers_dementia.php
Stages Of Alzheimers
Alzheimer's is considered to be a disorder that will affect one's mental and physical state. It normally happens to peo...
stages_of_alzheimers.php
Alzheimers Test
For a long time, most people believe that there is nothing that could be done to preven...
alzheimers_test.php
Alzheimers Disease History
Dr. Alois Alzheimer presented his findings on a woman who had died after years of having memory problems and co...
alzheimers_disease_history.php
Alzheimer Care
With Alzheimer’s disease, the patient need to be taken cared of all the time. This is because the memory loss ...
alzheimer_care.php
Symptoms Of Alzheimers
There are many symptoms of Alzheimer's and doctors often associate it with the seven stages. There is no caus...
symptoms_of_alzheimers.php
Understanding Alzheimers Better
To understand Alzheimers more, we need to look at and understand dementia. Dementia is a mental disorder character...
understanding_alzheimers_better.php
Alzheimers Disease
Alzheimer's disease is a disorder in the brain. In time, the patient will gradually lose both the in...
alzheimers_disease.php
Alzheimers Medication
There are currently five drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that can b...
alzheimers_medication.php
Early Stage Of Alzheimers
Because of the long development stage of the disease, Alzheimer's has been categorized into three levels w...
early_stage_of_alzheimers.php