Understanding the Basics of Alzheimer

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.

The theme of the seminar that I attended was entitled “Alzheimer’s Disease: The Basics”. The purpose of the talk by Carolyn Scales was to bring public awareness and better understanding of this progressive, irreversible brain disorder that affects five million people nationwide. The speaker explained that the term Alzheimer’s disease dates back to 1906 when Dr. Alois Alzheimer, a German physician, presented the first case history of this kind, a 51-year-old woman, who suffered from a rare brain disorder. Later autopsy of her brain identified the plaques and tangles of what we call today Alzheimer’s.

A major devastating and debilitating disease, Alzheimer 's is a public health issue that affects not only the United States but also countries all around the world. In 2010, there were 35.6 million people living with Alzheimer’s. Researchers and medical personnel expect this number to triple by the year 2050. The disease is costing America an exorbitant amount of money and has become a burden on families, caregivers, medical personnel, the healthcare system, and the nation’s economy. If attention is not focused on this major problem, “nursing homes will be overloaded, caregivers will be burned out, healthcare system will be overwhelmed, and federal and state budgets will be overtaxed” (Alzheimer’s Association, 2011).

I never imagined a loved one of my own diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. This disease effects a person brain cells causing impaired memory, thinking and performances. Not only does Alzheimer affects a person’s daily activities, this affects everyone involved. For many who are facing a severe condition of Alzheimer’s have life-threatening situations that involves more than just a physician. Alzheimer’s disease consists of three different stages, which requires major support, care, and resources for a patient.

Did you know “every 66 seconds an individual develops Alzheimer’s disease,” according to Bright Focus (Bright Focus). When divided out, that is about 1,309 people each day. Unfortunately, Alzheimer’s disease is only one of many dementia illnesses. Even still, Alzheimer’s is still the most common form. To truly understand Alzheimer’s disease one must comprehend what the disease is, the effects it has, and who is affected.

Alzheimer’s Disease, a disease that affects over 5 million americans nationwide. Causing them to lose their memory and motor skills. These 5 million people taken victim by this disease also have a scary fact to face, there are no ways to completely prevent this disease. There are medicines and mental exercise one can do/take to try to slow the progression of this neuro deterioration, but unfortunately there is no cure for Alzheimer’s. Alzheimer’s can affect anyone from any background, however, you are more likely to get Alzheimer’s if someone in your family also suffers from it.1 Families of victims taken by Alzheimer’s have begun to prepare themselves for the disease, because while there is no cure, you might as well prepare for what might

Alzheimer’s disease is a very hard disease to handle, not only for the patient who has to go through their daily life forgetting who people are around them and how to take care of themselves, but also for the caregivers and families who help these patients have the best possible care for there remaining years. Not everyone thinks about how the disease can effect people around the patient and not just the patient itself. Some questions I will be looking at in this paper are:

Alzheimer’s is the currently the sixth leading cause of death in the United States, affecting one in nine Americans over the age of sixty-five. As of 2016, that means approximately five hundred million Americans living with Alzheimer’s, but medical professionals expect those numbers to climb as high as sixteen million by 2050. In 1999 my mother’s mother died, at the age of eighty-two, about ten years after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. She had spent ten years in a progressive decline, until she could no longer feed herself or take care of her own basic needs, did not recognize her children, grandchildren, or great-grandchildren, nor even who she was, could no longer walk, and could not even sit up without complete support. She’d

“Alzheimer’s disease is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States”(“2015 Alzheimer’s…”). Today, more and more individuals are diagnosed with the symptoms of Alzheimer’s. This disease is not curable and the symptoms get worse over a period of time. After a closer investigation on the causes, symptoms, effects, diagnosis, and treatments, one discovers the severity of this dreaded disease and how it is managed.

In this essay I will be writing about the research I’ve done on the brain disorder Alzheimer’s. I will discuss all aspects of the disease, from how it first gets diagnosed to how it affects your body and how it may end with your eventual demise. I will also discuss my first-hand experience with my grandma and her battle with Alzheimer’s. I will explain the happenings inside of the brain in an Alzheimer’s brain vs the regular healthy human brain.

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.

Despite many researches of past eras and present years; it is still a proven challenge to the discovery of the cause of Alzheimer disease that is now the most common diagnosis in dementia. As of 2017, reports conducted by the Alzheimer's Association stated that; 5.5 million Americans are estimated to be affected with Alzheimer's dementia. With an estimate of 5.3 million having AD beginning at age 65 and oldeR and, two hundred thousands younger population,now referred to as the “younger-onset Alzheimer's”,(Alzheimer’s Association, 2017). The causes of dementia, who it affects and at what ages, the treatment plans and support from family and friends are the most important factors in dealing with this disease. The effect of Dementia destroys an

The evidence has shown that the knowledge on the subject of Alzheimer's disease has progressed far from thinking that it is just a loss of memory. This disease produces a big dementia in patients, affecting millions of people and their families. These people and their families care for special needs.

First, I will describe Alzheimer's disease it is a progressive condition that damages areas of the brain involved in memory, intelligence, judgment, language and behavior. According to Alzheimer’s Association, Alzheimer's disease is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States and more than five million Americans the ages of sixty and older are living with this disease. In two-thousand and twelve, 15.4 million

For every $31,000 that is spent on Alzheimer’s care, only $100 is spent on researching it. While researching this disease is a costly process, caring for these patients could prove to be even more expensive. In 2012, two hundred billion dollars were spent directly on health care for all these individuals. Furthermore, dementia and Alzheimer’s patients spend three times more on Medicare than those without. Patients with Alzheimer’s also tend to have more expensive bills with the addition of any other disease or condition because the combination of treatments may create certain restrictions that are costly to work around. (Johns) Alzheimer’s needs more funding in order to find ways to prevent this disease in the future because the number of patients and medical costs will increase rapidly.