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Alzheimers disease is relentlessly destroying the brains and lives of our nations older adults, robbing them of memory, the ability to reason, and affecting their emotions and behavior. Alzheimers disease is a degenerative disorder of the brain. The longer we live the greater the risk: one out of every two Americans aged 85 and older and one out of every 10 aged 65 and older are afflicted with the disease. It affects two groups of people: those with the disease and the loved ones who care for them. By the year 2050, an estimated 14 million Americans will be in its grip. (Medina xi, 2) Alzheimers disease (AD) is a progressive disease of the brain, which is characterized by a gradual loss of memory and other mental functions. Alzheimers is the most common form of dementia -- a general term referring to loss of memory and the ability to think, reason, function, and behave appropriately. (Medina 4) The word dementia is derived from two Latin words, which mean away and mind, respectively. (Goldmann 2) Its different from the mild forgetfulness normally observed in older people.
Over the course of the disease, people with AD no longer recognize themselves or much about the world around them. (Medina 4) Alzheimers is marked by abnormal clumps, called senile plaques, and irregular knots, called neurofibrillary tangles, of brain cells. The plaque is an accumulation of an abnormal protein, amyloid. One theory regarding the cause of Alzheimers disease suggests that this plaque forms because the processes that normally operate to clear away this protein have become defective. Neurofibillary tangles are skeins of another abnormal protein, but the tangle is found inside the nerve cells. The reason why the tangles develop is not known, but the normal processing of protein by the cell seems to be disrupted. These tangles choke the nerve cells and prevent them for working properly.
For reasons not well understood, these plaques and tangles take over healthy brain tissue, which devastates the areas of the brain associated with intellectual function. (Goldmann 6) There are a number of behaviors which may signal that a person might be in the beginning stages of Alzheimers disease. Here is a list of warning signs: (1) difficulty with familiar tasks, (2) slipping job performance, (3) language difficulties, (4) confusion of place and time, (5) lack of judgment, (6) problems in abstract thinking, (7) misplacing objects, (8) mood fluctuations, (9) changes in personality, and (10) lack of initiative. (Cutler and Sramek 14) The first signs of Alzheimers disease include difficulty in remembering recent events and performing familiar everyday tasks. As the disease progresses, the affected person may experience confusion, personality and behavior changes, impaired judgment, and difficulty finding words, finishing thoughts, or following directions. (Cutler and Sramek 16) In the early and middle stages of AD, people with the illness may be painfully aware of their intellectual failings and what is yet to come. These changes occur at widely varying speeds in different people, and not all changes occur in everyone, but the outcome is always the same. Eventually, people with Alzheimers disease completely lose the ability to care for themselves and must be confined to bed with constant care. In the latest stages of disease the brain can no longer regulate body functions, and victims die of malnutrition, dehydration, infection, heart failure, or other complications.
Alzheimers disease progresses slowly, taking between three to eighteen years to advance from the earliest symptoms to death; the average duration of the disease is eight years. (Goldmann 1) Unfortunately, science has not yet found a cure. Dr. Alois Alzheimer, who discovered Alzheimers disease, was a gifted German scientist who was born in the mid-nineteenth century. Though he will be forever linked to the disease that bears his name, Dr. Alzheimer actually did his landmark work in other areas of research. The sole reason his name became a household word for Alzheimers disease was because of a brief talk he gave in 1906 to a small group of researchers. (Medina 12) Research indicates that there may be certain factors that seem to be more common in people with Alzheimers disease than in the general population.
There is major research into the origin of Alzheimers disease, and explanations include genetic and environmental causes. (Goldmann 66) There are two types of Alzheimers disease - familial AD, which is found in families and follows certain inheritance patterns, and sporadic AD, where no obvious pattern of inheritance exists. Family history is a consistent risk factor. People who have a relative with Alzheimers disease are more likely to develop the disease themselves. (Doraswamy 50) Over four million people in the United States are living with Alzheimers disease. Experts predict that as baby boomers age, Alzheimers may affect as many as 14 million people nationwide.
Alzheimers is widespread, affecting 10 % or more of those over age 65 and nearly half of those over age 85. Slightly more women that men have Alzheimers disease. Its increasing prevalence has led epidemiologists to call Alzheimers the disease of the century. (Doraswamy 22) The risk of Alzheimers disease increases with age. While Alzheimers usually affects those over age 65, a rare and aggressive form of Alzheimers can happen in some people in their 40 s and 50 s. Family history or traumatic head injuries suffered earlier in life may increase the likelihood of developing Alzheimers disease. Since normal aging may also cause a decline in the ability to remember names, places, and objects, as can strokes and heart disease, it is important to be examined by a doctor for a proper diagnosis.
Even though Alzheimers disease is responsible for more dementia than all other causes combined, more than 60 other diseases are capable of causing Alzheimers-like dementia's, that is why AD can be so hard to detect. There is no well-accepted specific test to identify AD during a patients lifetime. Therefore, doctors can diagnose Alzheimers disease only after they have ruled out all other possible causes of dementia. No one test can determine whether Alzheimers actually exists, which is also the reason why a physician must administer an exhausting battery of tests before making an Alzheimers diagnosis. A detailed patient and family history will be taken; a physical exam will be conducted; mental status test will be administered; neurological exam will be completed; laboratory tests will be performed; and an extensive psychiatric exam conducted before a diagnosis can be made. Some doctors may order brain scans to rule out strokes or tumors that could be causing symptoms of dementia.
Memory and task-related tests used to diagnose AD measure the level of impairment or stage of the disease. Alzheimers disease is usually characterized as mild, moderate, or severe, depending upon the severity of symptoms. (Medina 50) It is difficult to place a patient with Alzheimers disease in a specific stage. However, symptoms seem to progress in a recognizable pattern and these stages provide a framework for understanding the disease. It is important to remember that they are not uniform in every patient and the stages often overlap. (Cutler and Sramek 75) The First Stage, or mild dementia, lasts approximately 2 to 4 years, leading up to and including diagnosis.
Symptoms of mild dementia including: recent memory loss which affects job performance, confusion about places (gets lost on way to work), loses spontaneity (the spark or zest for life), loses initiative (can not start anything), mood / personality changes (anxious about symptom...
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Research essay sample on Alzheimers Disease Nerve Cells
