alzheimers disease
Alzheimer’s Disease
Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia. The disease can be treated but there is no cure for it. As it progresses it gets worse and will eventually lead to death. It develops differently for everyone but the symptoms are similar. In the early stages, short term memory loss is the most common symptom. As it progresses the symptoms include irritability, confusion, aggression and long term memory loss. Following that the persons bodily functions deteriorate and they tend to withdraw from family and society. The life expectancy following diagnosis is approximately seven years. Less than 3% of people live more than fourteen years after diagnosis. The sufferer loses independence and is forced to rely on someone else to look after them. This can place a great burden on the care giver and in many cases the best option is a nursing home where the sufferer can receive 24 hour care and assistance.
The characteristics of the disease can be divided into four stages:
1. Pre-dementia–This stage includes short term memory loss, depression, irritability and confusion.
2. Early – In this stage symptoms include difficulty in carrying out basic tasks such as writing, dressing themselves and coordination but they are not always noticed at this stage.
3. Moderate – During this stage the individual loses independence and can find it difficult to perform everyday tasks. Speech, reading and writing abilities deteriorate. Risks of falling and injuring themselves increase as their coordination becomes impaired. Changes in their behaviour and personality become more obvious and they begin to forget close relatives.
4. Advanced – During this stage the person becomes completely dependent on others. Their communication continues to deteriorate until they lose their speech completely. They can become abusive and paranoid. Their mobility eventually deteriorates to such a stage that they cannot even feed themselves.
There is no known
Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia. The disease can be treated but there is no cure for it. As it progresses it gets worse and will eventually lead to death. It develops differently for everyone but the symptoms are similar. In the early stages, short term memory loss is the most common symptom. As it progresses the symptoms include irritability, confusion, aggression and long term memory loss. Following that the persons bodily functions deteriorate and they tend to withdraw from family and society. The life expectancy following diagnosis is approximately seven years. Less than 3% of people live more than fourteen years after diagnosis. The sufferer loses independence and is forced to rely on someone else to look after them. This can place a great burden on the care giver and in many cases the best option is a nursing home where the sufferer can receive 24 hour care and assistance.
The characteristics of the disease can be divided into four stages:
1. Pre-dementia–This stage includes short term memory loss, depression, irritability and confusion.
2. Early – In this stage symptoms include difficulty in carrying out basic tasks such as writing, dressing themselves and coordination but they are not always noticed at this stage.
3. Moderate – During this stage the individual loses independence and can find it difficult to perform everyday tasks. Speech, reading and writing abilities deteriorate. Risks of falling and injuring themselves increase as their coordination becomes impaired. Changes in their behaviour and personality become more obvious and they begin to forget close relatives.
4. Advanced – During this stage the person becomes completely dependent on others. Their communication continues to deteriorate until they lose their speech completely. They can become abusive and paranoid. Their mobility eventually deteriorates to such a stage that they cannot even feed themselves.
There is no known