overview
Alzheimer’s disease is a kind of brain disorder that causes troubles with memory, reasoning, and behavior. It is said that individuals having Alzheimer’s might have difficulty performing the most basic tasks that we do every day.
What happens in the brain?
A person with Alzheimer’s disease supports brain cells (neurons) injury. The two principal mechanisms acting in the brain are plaques and tangles.
A protein named beta-amyloid is present in small clusters. It builds up between the nerve cells, resulting in delayed communication and inflammation that harms the nervous system. Moreover, tau a protein builds twisted tangles within the neurons which makes it hard to access required proteins or messages. With the eventual death of brain cells, the brain shrinks, and one loses more of his/her identifying capacities.
Some signs and symptoms:
These include forgetting recent dialogues, appointments, or events and repetitive questions. One may lose the way in familiar areas, gaffe in the hour or day, or even not recognize kin. Even simple tasks such as cooking, house chores, or managing finances increasingly become confounding. That being said, finding the right words or following conversations may turn out to be issues. Besides that, a person can impulsively behave in such a way making poor decisions on money or dressing. Similarly, the person may become perturbed, anxious, annoyed, or withdrawn without any cause.
stages:
- There are initially early and mild stages when the person experiences the forgetfulness of things but he/she can live alone.
- In the middle stage, the person who is moderately confused will also need help with some of the daily routines. Those who are in complete cognitive decline, need help with activities such as bathing, dressing, and toileting.
- the last stage is where the patient is only able to talk. They can recognize family members if they bring in a photo of the family. They are completely full-time patients and need help with the basic functions.
Causes & Risk Factors:
Most people with proper Alzheimer’s are aged more than 65. In the case of a family history of Alzheimer’s, the risks are higher for the individual than for others.
- Head Injuries: Severe head trauma is invoked as the reason for the brain structure damage. As a result, the risk of the disease becomes higher.
- Heart and Blood Vessel Health: high blood pressure and diabetes are the reasons for having this disease. It causes harm to the blood vessels like the brain.
- Lifestyle: a lack of mental stimulation has a powerful influence on dementia including Alzheimer’s disease.
Diagnosis Memory and Thinking Tests
in some cases, based on the patient’s power to recognize items and perform tasks through which doctor form their opinions. They also might ask questions like, “What is the capital of Spain?”
- Brain Imaging: CT scans or MRIs are chosen as they can identify the area where the problem exists. It can even change what is actually with the disease.
- Blood Tests: no single test has been able to definitively determine Alzheimer’s. Tests can be performed on blood samples to ban alternative sources of memory loss.
- Genetic Testing: especially when a family spends a long time suffering from this disease genetic testing is used. The risk of developing the condition can be evaluated through a test for genes like APOE.
Treatment
- Medications: Donepezil (Aricept…) and memantine (Namenda) are the drugs that are used for memory and thinking problems. In the early and middle stages of the disease. These drugs do not cure Alzheimer’s disease properly. They slow down some of the symptoms and worsen the disease, which can be controlled.
- Behavioral Therapy: with the help of experts like psychologists Alzheimer’s can be treated.