Alzheimer’s, the most relevant cause of Dementia, is a disease that affects as many as 4.5 million Americans per year (WebMD 2005-2014). Alzheimer’s is a disease that is an irremediable, continuous brain neuron degenerative disease that can be asymptomatic at first and then overtime becomes symptomatic. Alzheimer’s is a gradual disease that advances in three phases: mild, then moderate, and, finally, severe (1). Symptoms appear after the age of 60 and include: the slow destruction of memory and thought processes, and ultimately ends with the absent ability to do normal everyday duties. These symptoms can be anything from forgetting a recent event, or can be as problematic as forgetting the name of a family member. There are many daily …show more content…
Alzheimer’s disease usually affects geriatrics that is nearing the age of 60, but there are sometimes rare cases of early-onset Alzheimer’s occurring around the age of 30. Early-onset Alzheimer’s identifies less than 5 percent of all the people who have Alzheimer’s disease (Alzheimer’s Disease Education and Referral Center). According to WebMD (2014), late-onset is the most common form of Alzheimer’s disease that victimizes almost half of all of the people over the age of 65 and may or may not be hereditary. Early-Onset Alzheimer’s Early-onset Alzheimer’s is a rare, but fast stage of Alzheimer’s disease. According to Glenn E. Smith, Ph.D., a neuropsychologist at Mayo Clinic, in Rochester, Minn. (2014), Early-onset Alzheimer’s is an uncommon form of dementia that strikes about 5 percent of patients with symptoms before the age of 65. This form of Alzheimer’s has been known to develop between the ages 30 and 40, but that’s very uncommon (Smith 2014). Scientists do not have an explanation of why people get the disease younger than others. Early-onset Alzheimer’s that is hereditary in family members is connected to three different genes that differ from the APOE gene that can increase your risk of Alzheimer’s in general (Smith 2014). The innate conduit of inheritance is much stronger in early-onset Alzheimer’s (Smith 2014). If one has a genetic mutation
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
In times past many people thought that memory loss was a normal occurrence for elderly people. This thinking was major reason for why Alzheimer’s disease was not caught until very later in the stages. Alzheimer’s disease is not a normal part of aging. After heart disease, cancer, and strokes, Alzheimer’s is the most common cause of death in adults in the Western world. “It is estimated that 4.5 million Americans over the age of 65 are affected with this condition. After the age of 65, the incidence of the disease doubles every five years and, by age 85, it will affect nearly half of the population” (Robinson).
The first of the two types of the disease, Early-Onset Alzheimer’s Disease, is much more rare than its counterpart. Less than five percent of all people living with Alzheimer’s disease have this version. The demographic which it affects is between the ages of thirty and sixty. As this is a genetic disease, this version of
Alzheimer’s is a disease in the brain that affects a person’s memory, thinking, and behavior. It is the most common form of dementia and is common in adults older than 65. More than five million Americans are being affected by Alzheimer’s at this moment. Alzheimer’s comes in three stages; early, middle, and advanced. The disease is caused by the shrinking of the brain due to many risk factors and genetics.
More than five million are living with Alzheimer’s disease in the United States and the number is set to almost triple by the year 2050. It is common in the elderly and generally occurs in persons over 65 years of age, but early onset of Alzheimer’s has also been documented (“Alzheimer’s disease facts,” 2016, para. 1). It starts in the medial temporal area of the brain, usually in the hippocampus, and then spreads to other areas of the brain. Blows (2011) explains, “Alois Alzheimer was a German psychiatrist who in 1906 described a dementia with two specific changes found in the brain after death... these changes were the presence of extracellular plaques and intracellular neurofibrillary tangles and these became the hallmarks of this disease” (p. 286). Loss of neurons takes place and amyloid plaques form. This is due to build-up of non-functioning proteins and can be observed by imaging techniques (Radin, 2003, p. 41). There are many risk factors that increase the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. The greatest risk factor is family history, but other risk factors include diabetes, hypertension obesity, hyperlipidemia, smoking, depression, physical inactivity, low estrogen levels, and head trauma (Huether & McCance, 2014, p. 546). The actual cause of Alzheimer’s is unknown, but there are genes associated with it that make the disease heritable. What is clear is that
The cause of Alzheimer’s is not yet fully understood, yet it is believed to be influenced by a mixture of genetic, behavioral, and environmental factors.
The average life span of a person getting Alzheimer’s is between the ages of 45 and 60. Millions of people are plagued by this heartbreaking disease. Although heredity does not play an obvious role, if one’s parents have it, there is a great chance of the disease appearing in the child during their elderly years. The risk for getting the disease increases with age and is seen more commonly in elderly females. There are a number of theories for the actual cause of Alzheimer’s disease, but at this
Alzheimer’s disease, one type of dementia, is a degenerative disorder of the brain that is slowly progressive. Eventually this disease will result in abnormal brain function that will lead to death. Alzheimer’s is not a normal part of the aging process; symptoms lead to a loss of mental abilities and skills, including the ability of taking care of themselves. Though it is very rare, some people do develop this disease as young as the age of forty. However, the most common age to develop this disease is over the age of sixty-five. Although changes in the brain are similar in different people, the psychological and behavioral symptoms that present may differ from person to person.
Alzheimer’s disease is the top 10 fatal diseases that doesn’t have a cure, no means of prevention, and no disease-modifying treatment. Alzheimer’s disease isn’t just a disease that affects older aged people, there have been hundred, maybe even thousands of patients who have shown symptoms of Alzheimer’s during their 40’s, 50’s, or even in their 30’s. Although it is just about 5% of the time, whenever this happens to someone it’s referred as Alzheimer’s early on-set. In addition, about 700,000 people die from Alzheimer’s and dementia; this makes it the third leading cause of death behind cancer and heart disease. Unfortunately, the only thing we have against Alzheimer’s are treatments that help slow down the symptoms
Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia. When elderly people get to the age of around 65, that is when the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease start to begin. Over 5 million Americans over the age of 65 are suffering from Alzheimer’s disease and it is completely untreatable. The most common symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease is an increase in forgetfulness and mild
These relate to the age at which the disease first manifests itself. The occasion of early-onset is much lower than that of late-onset. There is a 10% occurrence rate for persons over the age of sixty-five, and a 50% occurrence rate for those over age eighty five. Late-onset Alzheimer's is often confused with senility due to old-age. This also makes diagnosis difficult for older patients. However Alzheimer's is not an inevitable part of the aging process, unlike a certain amount of senility. It can be helped and with new research may be prevented.
Alzheimer’s disease is a very slowly progressive disease that occurs inside the brain in which is characterized by damage of memory. Also this type of disease can lead into interruption in language, problem solving, planning and perception. The chance of a person developing Alzheimer’s disease increases enormously after the age of 70 (Crystal, 2009). Also people who are over the age of 85 have over a 50 percent chance of developing Alzheimer’s disease. This type of disease is not at all normal in the aging process and is also not something that happens out of no where in a person’s life.
Alzheimer’s disease is defined as a progressive disease that destroys memory and other important mental functions. This progressive disease consists of memory loss and the loss of cognitive abilities serious enough to interfere with daily tasks of everyday life. Common things patients with Alzheimer's might forget are their loved ones, how to dress themselves, using the toilet, or feeding themselves. This heart breaking diseases causes brain tissue break down and, generally 1 in 10 people who are over 65 get diagnosed with it. Getting diagnosed with Alzheimer’s is not a normal part of aging. There is not enough research to know why some people get it and others don’t. This disease kills more than breast cancer and prostate cancer
Alzheimer's disease is a devastating disorder of the brain, it is the most common cause of dementia, and the leading cause of death in women in the UK (Gallagher, 2014). Alzheimers is a progressive neurodegenerative disease, that occurs in a middle to old age person. Its symptoms slowly deteriorate the brains functions until it eventually results in death. The most common symptom of Alzheimers disease is progressive memory loss. As the disease progresses patients begin to demonstrate poor judgment and their inability to take carry out daily tasks. They develop a strong sense of confusion not recognising familiar people, places or things in their lives and soon develop problems with speech/language and frequent changes in mood. At this point,
The tragic Alzheimer disease affects about 5.5 million people in America. The term “Alzheimer” dates back to the early 1900’s, when German doctor, Alois Alzheimer, presented a case of a 51-year-old woman who suffered from a rare brain disorder that later resulted to her death. Alzheimer's is a brain disease that causes a slow decline in one’s memory, thinking and reasoning skills. This disease attacks the brain cells, which causes them to die out or to be damaged. Unfortunately, researchers still do not know why this happens. The disease hereditary and is common in individuals over the age of 65. It is uncommon for someone to have this disease at a younger age, called on-set Alzheimer, but it is possible. According to the Alzheimer’s association, up to 5%, more than 5 million Americans with Alzheimer’s have younger-onset.