Symptoms of Alzheimer's

When word Alzheimer's is mentioned, the first thing that comes to mind is memory loss. This assumption is correct given that the doctor's have determined this to be a disorder that usually happens to old folk. There are many symptoms of Alzheimer's and doctors often associate it with the seven stages. There is no cause of alarm yet in the first two stages since even the smartest people tend to forget things every so often. The first two stages may last for four years. However, when this happens more frequently, the patient could already be in the third or fourth stage and this is just going to get worse. A simple example could be if the individual is unable to complete a simple task that was easily done in the past like doing some basic arithmetic. People will definitely notice the changes. This is the reason some family members take shifts watching over the loved one or get a nurse to watch over the person. The fifth stage is better known as moderate Alzheimer's because aside from not being able to recall names or do things without assistance, the individual will become disoriented and may at times get lost. One precaution often being taken is for the patient to wear an ID card in the neck or placed in the pocket. This contains the name, address and contact person of who should be called when this happens. The sixth stage of Alzheimer's is when the person also begins to have mood swings. The patient may be jolly to talking to other people when suddenly everything changes and the attitude is now hostile to whoever is there. The worse part about the disorder during this stage is that the person will act like a baby. Tantrums may be thrown but the worse part is seeing the patient defecate on his or herself. The caretaker will have to clean up the mess as though the person was an infant and are advised to use adult diapers, which is more convenient when cleaning up the mess. The seventh stage of Alzheimer's is not that bad anymore. This is because the body's systems will slowly shut down. The patient won't speak or do anything and will usually just stare into space. It is like the person gave up the will to live. The body may be there but the mind or the soul has gone off to another place. Anyone who is diagnosed with Alzheimer's will have less than 10 years left to live. Doctors only catch on in the third and fourth stages since the symptoms of short-term memory loss are hardly noticeable and often attributed to aging. What can people do for those who have Alzheimer's? Unfortunately, there is not that much anyone can do because there is no cure yet for this disorder. There are drugs available that can only slow down the process before it gets worse but those who care are just delaying the inevitable. Research shows that there are more than four million people in the country that are suffering from this disease. The figure will go higher as the baby boom generation also reaches the same age. As long as there are drugs that can delay the process, doctors may be able to buy a little more time so that the person may live to see the day that a cure has been made.

Alzheimer's Disease and Its Symptoms

Alzheimer's disease, also known as the most common form of dementia, is named after the German neurologist Dr. Alois Alzheimer who first identified the disease in 1907. The main concern with Alzheimer's disease is that it allows the rapid degeneration of healthy brain tissue associated with cognitive abilities such as judgment, comprehension and memory. The root cause of this phenomenon in Alzheimer's disease remains unclear and is still under study. This degeneration of the brain tissues causes a steady decline in memory as well as a steady loss of essential mental abilities responsible for thought, memory, and language. More than four million of the older population in the US is known to be stricken with Alzheimer's disease. The number of people suffering from this debilitating condition is expected to triple within the next 20 years. The most common symptoms of Alzheimer's are loss of memory, the decline of intellectual functions and sudden changes in personality. At the first stages of the disease, symptoms exhibited are patients becoming easily tired, upset and anxious. With Alzheimer's disease the changes that happen may be gradual over time and not so sudden. But as the disease progresses, so does the Alzheimer's symptoms as they accelerate and become more serious and noticeable enough for the people involved to seek help. The usual course of the disease can take anything from five to ten years, from how the Alzheimer's symptoms develop from simple forgetfulness to showing up as severe dementia. On the part of the patient, the initial Alzheimer's symptom that can be very frightening is the realization that something is happening to their memory. Although simple forgetfulness is not the only Alzheimer's symptom to look for, but it reaches the degree as even forgetting the names of people that the patient sees often, then the condition is a possible Alzheimer's symptom. The Alzheimer's symptom starts off with slight memory loss and confusion. It then ultimately leads to severe and irreversible mental impairment if left to develop without any form of initial treatment. The Alzheimer's symptom will further lead to degeneration of a person's ability to remember, reason, learn and even imagine. The Alzheimer's symptom of forgetfulness can include the names of family members being forgotten as well as familiar everyday objects such as a comb and mirror. Another possible symptom of the disease include difficulty experienced with abstract thinking. This symptom initially begins with typically mundane everyday things like not balancing a check book and may further develop into not understanding and recognizing numbers. Difficulty finding the right word can also be an Alzheimer's symptom that challenges the patient with finding the correct words for expression. It will eventually lead to a diminished ability to follow conversations and further progress to affect one's reading and writing skills. Disorientation with time and dates is also an evident symptom of Alzheimer's, even further deteriorating to the degree as to frequently losing themselves in even very familiar surroundings. Loss of judgment is an Alzheimer's symptom that prevents the patient from solving everyday problems and doing simple tasks like cooking on the stove. This Alzheimer's symptom in its extreme form will lead to difficulty with anything that requires planning, decision-making and judgment. Personality change is an Alzheimer's symptom that presents itself as the gradual development of mood swings, distrust, stubbornness and eventual withdrawal from the patient's usual social circle. Depression is also a coexistent Alzheimer's symptom alongside with growing restlessness. In its severe form, the Alzheimer's symptom further develops into anxiety, aggressiveness and inappropriate behavior.