Case Study: Alzheimer’s Disease Mary Wipf PHGY 220- Gerald McGraw April 2, 2017 In the world, there are new cases of dementia for somewhere between 10 and 15 people per 1000. Five to eight per 1000 are cases of Alzheimer’s. Dementia is a term that simply defines a mentally deteriorated condition. Alzheimer’s is a type of dementia. Alzheimer’s disease is a chronic, progressive neurodegenerative disease and is the most common cause of dementia in older people. Alzheimer’s is a disease of the brain and it has little impact on the body beyond what happens as an indirect result of behavior associated with the disease. Because it is often secondary results of Alzheimer’s Disease that cause death, such as pneumonia and …show more content…
Genetics are believed to play a part in being susceptible to getting Alzheimer’s disease. As Elaine Marieb and Katja Hoehn write, “One form of Alzheimer’s disease is caused by an inherited mutation in the gene for APP, which suggests that too much beta-amyloid may be toxic” (416). Other factors believed to be contributing to getting Alzheimer’s disease are high blood pressure, head injuries, and depression. Alzheimer’s disease is not contagious and therefore is not communicable disease. Initial signs and symptoms are rather mild during the early stages. It might not be noticeable at first. They are not exactly the same for everyone, but most people have difficulty learning new things and recalling pieces of new information. As it progresses, victims of the disease forget more and more information. They struggle to communicate and travel as they’re increasingly unable to remember important information needed for these functions. In the latest stages, Alzheimer’s patients lose even more of their memory, which makes it hard for them to perform even the most basic functions, such as walking and eating. They have difficulty sleeping, they get agitated, they hallucinate, and they have to be helped in almost any and all endeavors, even to the most basic of functions. (this paragraph all from https://www.alzheimers.org.uk/info/20007/types_of_dementia/2/alzheimers_disease/2) Currently, treatment of the disease consists of maintaining mental functions and managing behavioral
During the onset of the disease, symptoms are usually non-existant, and progress slowly over the course of many years, often going unnoticed until they become more severe. Alzheimer's is somewhat difficult to diagnose, but there are some common symptoms to all patients. Memory loss occurs in all patients. The person may have trouble remembering small things such as phone numbers, or where he/she put the keys. Eventually, short term memory is lost, and only memories in the far past are able to be recalled. People with Alzheimer's can become disoriented and can get lost easily when out on their own. Mood changes also occur, and the person can be easily irritated or agitated by seemingly insignificant things. Cognitive deterioration also occurs, with the person losing the ability to understand spoken language or recall the meanings of different words (Grayson, "Recognizing Alzheimer's" 1). Despite these common symptoms, making a diagnosis is difficult since Alzheimer's patientscan display the same symptoms as a head injury or depression.
Symptoms of Alzheimer’s are hardly ever the same for any one patient. Although the side effects of Alzheimer’s can result in the similar symptoms, such as memory loss, cognitive impairment, difficulty focusing, and taking care of ones self can be an outcome for most patients. Many will have a different personality, loss of sight, sense of smell, as well as no longer being able to taste (Medicine).
Alzheimer dementia affect around 500,000 in UK, and the most common cause of Dementia. Alzheimer disease is Physical Disease that affect old people Brain. the first Described by German neurologist, Alois Alzheimer. during the course of disease, Protein Plaque and Tangles develop in the Brain structure that leading to the death of Brain cells. the people with Alzheimer also have a shortage of Chemicals that be much important to their Brain which are involved to with the transmission messages.
Dementia has many forms and it is a decline in memory, language and reasoning. Alzheimer’s is a form of dementia. Alzheimer’s disease is a neurodegenerative disorder, meaning the loss of function and stability. This is a disease that affects cognitive and physical abilities in the patient. Many people in the world have Alzheimer’s and it is in elders over the age of 65. There are lots of treatments available, but there is no cure for it.
Dementia is a neurodegenerative, progressively deteriorating and terminal clinical syndrome characterized by a loss or decline in memory and other cognitive abilities. Most recent scientific thinking is that dementia may be caused by various diseases and conditions affecting over 5 million Americans and 27.7 million worldwide. It is projected that the number of Americans with dementia will exceed 7.7 million by the year 2030 and from 11 to 16 million by the year 2050. There is presently not a cure for dementia.
Dementias are neurodegenerative disorders and Alzheimer’s disease is just one type. Although the most frequent cause of dementia is Alzheimer’s disease, there are many causes of dementia. Saying someone has dementia is actually not a diagnosis it’s more of a clinical syndrome. Like saying someone has heartburn or a headache, the underlying cause of the dementia must be uncovered in order to classify it. Dementia impairs cognitive function in many different ways. It can involve memory, language, thinking, reasoning, and perception (Radin, 2003, p. 29). Some classifications of dementia include: frontotemporal dementia, dementia with Lewy bodies, Alzheimer’s disease, and vascular dementia, but other degenerative diseases such as Huntington’s
This paper reviews the use of cognitive rehabilitation treatment of early stage of dementia Alzheimer’s type. The case study examines a 72 year old male patient diagnosed with early stage dementia of Alzheimer’s Type. This study used visual imagery, as well as cues and expanding rehearsal during the cognitive rehabilitation. The evaluation of cognitive rehabilitation treatment included the psychological, physiological, neurological assessments and self-reports. Results
In the mild stage of Alzheimer’s the symptoms could include: difficulty coming up with the right name, problems remembering names when meeting new people, difficulty performing tasks, forgetting material you’ve just read, losing and misplacing objects, and trouble planning and organizing things. The second stage is moderate Alzheimer’s disease which is the middle stage. It is known to be the longest stage and can carry over for many years. As the disease continues, the person affected with the Alzheimer 's disease will require more care. Symptoms include: forgetting about their own history, feeling moody, not being able to remember phone numbers or their name, confusion on what day it is, problems controlling their bladder, changes in their sleep patterns, and becoming lost. The last stage is severe Alzheimer’s. People lose the ability to respond to their environment, to hold a conversation and, to control movement. Symptoms include: require assistance full time daily, having difficulty communicating, become vulnerable to infections like pneumonia, and changes in physical abilities like walking, talking, and swallowing. There is no cure for Alzheimer 's but drug and non-drug medicines may help with all the symptoms.
Alzheimer 's is a degenerative disease of the brain that causes dementia, which is a gradual loss of memory, judgment, and ability to function. It is the most common form of dementia, and may hinder an individual 's performance of daily function. Sixty to eighty percent of dementia cases are caused by Alzheimer 's.
Alzheimer’s disease effects many families throughout the world and many of it causes and effects are unknown. Alzheimer’s disease is defined as a progressive mental deterioration disease that can occur in middle to old age, due to generalized degeneration of the brain. Alzheimer’s disease is generally known for its slow decrease in overall cognitive function but there are many different factors that go into the formation and spreading of any disease. Just like other diseases Alzheimer’s disease can have many potential causes and recent studies have shown that there may be more to uncover about this relatively mysterious disease.
Alzheimer’s disease is a brain disorder characterized by a progressive dementia that occurs in middle or late life (Mckhann et al. 1984). Dementia is a term used to describe the decline in mental ability enough to interfere with daily life (Alzheimer’s association, 2016). Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia, negatively impacting memory, thinking, and behavior.
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most prevalent neurodegenerative disorder and the leading cause of dementia worldwide, accounting for approximately 60-70 % of all cases.1-3 AD is a highly debilitating disorder, progressing from minor memory problems to a complete loss of cognitive functions and eventually death. Prevalence increases exponentially with
Two of the most common myths that are widely known are memory loss, and family history. As I explained above memory loss does take a key role in the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease but it also takes a role in other illnesses also. The association with memory loss is what it pertains to on a day to day basis. If the individual is unable to do daily tasks that one was capable to do only weeks prior one must look at all other aspects issues at hand. Other symptoms along with memory loss are compiled to result in the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease. In addition, family history does increase the risk of an individual having Alzheimer’s disease but it does not intentionally mean one has the disease (Sounders). There are still many myths out there that scientists are debunking every day. So just because you forgot to start the washing machine before going to bed, or left an ink pen in your shirt pocket doesn’t mean you have early onset Alzheimer’s disease. However, if your maternal grandmother had Alzheimer’s disease and your mother is experiencing early onset symptoms of this particular disease, it would not hurt to keep an eye on the risks factors on the early warning signs. Eat healthy, exercise daily, and enjoy life to the
Alzheimer’s disease is a neurodegenerative of the brain that causes dementia, which is a loss in memory. Besides it being a neurodegenerative disease, many other conditions can cause dementia. Another kind of dementia is nutritional dementia, also called Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome, or another which is alcohol syndrome, and it is caused by a lack of vitamin B1. Alzheimer’s disease usually appears in people over sixty-five years old. However, some cases of Alzheimer’s disease can happen at an early age of forty to fifty years old. This is called early-onset Alzheimer’s disease. It is caused by gene mutations that can be passed from parent to child. The most common form of late-onset Alzheimer’s disease is caused by the inability to clear amyloid-beta protein from the brain. Cerebrospinal is what help clear out the bad things in the brain, like amyloid-beta.
At some point in our lives we have probably all known someone that had or has dementia. Dementia is a generalized term that refers to the progressive, irreversible decline in mental function. Dementia is a disease that not only affects the patient but also affects the patient’s loved ones. Caring for a loved one with dementia can be very difficult and heart breaking but there are lots of resources to help.