Every 67 seconds someone in the United States develops Alzheimer’s. Alzheimer’s is a disease that many people develop, as they get older. This disease leaves you feeling lost and confused, just like if you have ever woken up from an afternoon nap. It is a form of dementia, making people slowly forget about all the normal everyday things of life and also their loved ones. Everyday life for a person suffering this disease can be frustrating at times. Most people that have it don’t even realize that they do. The people around them start to notice the differences in their personality and behavior. Alzheimer’s affects people from age 65 and up. This means that it’s a disease that happens to develop from old age. Up to five percent of people with …show more content…
There are many things to set off the fact that your loved one has this disease. They have a tendency to not be able to understand and remember new information that was just told to them. Also another big symptom of Alzheimer’s is not being able to speak, read and write properly. A lot of times someone with early Alzheimer’s, they cannot recognize faces or common objects. Eventually everyday life becomes so hard for them to be able to do things they should usually be able to do by him or her self. These people need to have a loved one or someone close to take care of them. They could also be put into a retirement home if things start to get to bed for even the person taking care of them. Due to the physical and emotional toll of caregiving, Alzheimer’s caregivers had $9.7 billion in additional health care costs of their own in 2004 (Alzheimer’s Disease). Many times people they get Alzheimer’s won’t be able to feed themselves, clothe themselves, or even go to the bathroom by themselves. They have to quit their jobs because of how incapable they are of doing things. They also begin to have personality and behavior changes, they become less interested in things they used to have a passion for. Also they could have severe mood swings, and with mood swings comes aggressiveness and
In the United States there are approximately 5.4 million people living with Alzheimer’s. Every sixty-nine seconds a person is diagnosed. This is an ongoing issue, and unless something is done, sixteen million people will be affected by 2050 (Latest).
The beginning and symptoms of Alzheimer's are usually very slow and gradual. Alzheimer’s hardly ever occurs before the age of 65. It occurs (according to the AHAF) in the following seven stages: In stage 1 There are no impairment- Unimpaired individuals experience no memory problems and none are evident to a health care professional during a medical interview. Stage 2 Is a very mild decline- Individuals at this stage feel as if they have memory lapses, especially in forgetting familiar words or names or the location of keys, eyeglasses, or other everyday objects. But these problems are not evident during a
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.
Alzheimer’s Disease is a form of dementia affecting more than one third of those over ninety-five years old. Its effects vary per person and become systematically more extreme as time wears on. Alzheimer’s is currently incurable and impossible to slow, destroying neurons and brain tissue, resulting in loss of memory, judgment, awareness, communication, behavior and capacity for emotion. Changes in personality and loss of initiative are also common symptoms of Alzheimer’s.
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.
Alzheimer’s and other dementias are impacting our communities on every level—that is why it is important to work together. Our Chapter’s quest to reach individuals living with the disease, family caregivers, members of the community and health care professionals continues to grow each year as we expand our reach through the hard work of our staff, volunteers and community partners. As we highlight the work of our programs and services throughout Massachusetts and New Hampshire this year, we also encourage you to learn more by visiting us at alz.org/MANH.
There are so many signs and symptoms that correlate to the Alzheimer's disease, which include but are not limited to: having a worsened ability to take in and remember new information, impairments to reasoning and changes in personal behavior. Usually those who have Alzheimer's will have a hard time taking in and remembering new information, meaning they will ask repetitive questions or start conversations that were previously mentioned. A lot of times they will also misplace their personal belongings and may even forget important appointments or their grand-children's baseball game. When you have the Alzheimer's disease you may also find out that you get lost very easily on a commonly traveled route.
Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive degenerative disease that attacks the brain and results in impaired memory, thinking and behavior. Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia. Dementia is the lost of thinking, remembering and reasoning so bad it screws up ability to do daily functions and eventually resolves in death. Dr. Alois Alzheimer’s first discovered the disease in 1906. Since then research has developed a deeper understanding of the changes in the brain. Warning sign’s of Alzheimer's are memory loss that affects home and job skills, problem in speaking, poor judgment, and difficulty in learning. The last stage of Alzheimer's disease is when you’re unable to take care of
Alzheimer's information of age. According to scientificamerican.com, Approximately one in 9 americans ages 65 and up have the alzheimer’s disease. Therapy could come in the form of new drugs, but unfortunately some drugs have been suspected to fail because the drug was tested too late in the disease. Alzheimer’s affected my family when my great grandmother turned 87 she started to experience symptoms of dementia. Dementia is the early type of alzheimer’s but it is not as nearly as bad. According to Texas Department of State Health Services the average person with alzheimer’s should live up to 8 (average) to 20 years.
These changes seen, one would never be able to relate to. The whole human being is lost, their mind, body and soul. Normally, when age related change occurs, things are forgotten but often remembered later. (“Is it Alzheimer’s Disease?” 2012) some people may experience changes in their ability to develop and follow a plan or work with numbers. They may have trouble following a familiar recipe or keeping track of monthly bills. They may have difficulty concentrating and take much longer to do things than they did before. Normal age related change may be having trouble balancing a check book or something equally complex (“Is it Alzheimer’s Disease?,” 2012). People with Alzheimer's often find it hard to complete daily tasks. Sometimes, people may have trouble driving to a familiar location, managing a budget at work or remembering the rules of a favorite game. Typical age related change may be the occasional need to help to use the settings on a microwave or to record a television show (“Is it Alzheimer’s Disease?,” 2012). People with Alzheimer's can lose track of dates, seasons and the passage of time. They may have trouble understanding something if it is not happening immediately. Sometimes they may forget where they are or how they got there. Typical age related change may be forgetting the day of the week but eventually remembering (“Is it Alzheimer’s Disease?”, 2012). For some people, having vision problems is a sign of Alzheimer's. They may have difficulty reading, judging distance and determining color or contrast, which may cause problems with driving. Typical age related change may be vision related problems due to cataracts (“Is it Alzheimer’s Disease?”, 2012). People with Alzheimer's may have trouble following or joining a conversation. They may stop in the middle of a conversation and have no idea
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.
They may still be able to drive, work, and engage in social activities. However, they will notice that they are forgetting things such as doctor’s appointments. They may not be able to find the correct word to describe something simple such as a banana being yellow. They may also become reckless with their money, perhaps donating thousands to any charity that calls them. Moderate Alzheimer’s is typically the longest stage and one may notice more significant changes with the client such as not bathing, “sundowning” which is being more awake and pacing during the evening hours when they should be sleeping. The damage inside their brain makes it difficult to perform daily tasks such as cooking or cleaning. As time progresses, more memory is lost and the thought of them driving can lead to accidents or them becoming lost and unfamiliar with their surroundings even though they have lived in an area all their life. In the final stage, Alzheimer’s disease, will take away their ability to speak, control movement, and eventually the brain will stop the life sustaining body systems and they will die. In the final stage, they will need caregiving around the clock, which takes a tremendous toll on their family.
As I stated before Alzheimer’s diseases have different stages, early stages are memory loss. Just like our bodies, our brains age also, we tend to think at a slower pace and occasionally become forgetful about certain things. When it comes to Alzheimer’s the brain cells are failing, chronic memory loss, confusion, and other serious mental issues that become more noticeable. Patients tend to lose memory of new information because Alzheimer’s start to stop the brain from learning anything. As the diseases move through the brain it also causes disorientation, mood and behavior changes, confusion about events, time and place, becomes suspicious of family and friends. Some cases have been found of serious memory loss, behavior changes, unable of speaking, swallowing and walking. The brain has over 100 million nerve cells or how scientists refer as neurons, each nerve cells connects to one another to create a form of communication, and each of the nerve cells have a special job. These groups of nerve cells have the job of thinking, learning, or
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.
Because mood and behavioral changes are part of the disease the effects will vary with each person. The four types of Alzheimer’s patients are: good natured, apathetic, depressed, and then paranoid and frightened. The good natured patients tend to be aware that they have the disease but try to keep a positive attitude and an open mind. The apathetic patients tend to start to lose the desire to put up a fight against the disease, they start to struggle with everyday tasks, and the struggle with complexing thoughts and sentences. Depressed patients tend to become aware that their condition is worsening and feel defenseless. The paranoid and frightened patients begin to lose their sense of reality and experience personality