Alzheimer’s Disease
Brenda Silva
Waubonsee Community College
PSY 205
Research Paper
Mr. Scott Hollenback
October 27, 2011
Alzheimer Disease As Kevin Arnold quotes, “Memory is a way of holding on to things you love, the things you are, and the things you never want to lose.” Memories are the things we uphold. Whether it’s bad or good, those memories are engraved in us and can’t be stolen from us. But what if as time goes by, those memories are losing? Worst, you’re even losing your language skills, ability to recognize familiar things and you feel sense of depression. This means, as a person grows old he/she experiences deterioration in one’s self. Now, we are currently living in the age of technology. Our advancements in the past few decades overshadow everything learned in the last 2000 years. This increase has bought with it a large increase in disease afflicting the elderly community. AD once thought to be a natural part of aging, is a severely debilitating form of mental dementia. Although some other types of dementia are curable or effectively treatable, there is currently no cure for Alzheimer. A general overview of AD including the clinical description, diagnosis, and progression of symptoms, helps one to further understand the treatment and care of patients. Alzheimer’s is a type of dementia that causes problems with memory, thinking, and behavior. Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia, a general term for memory loss and other intellectual abilities serious enough to interfere with daily life. Alzheimer’s disease accounts for 50 to 80 percent of dementia cases. The primary risk factors of Alzheimer’s are age, family history, and genetics. However, there are other risk factors that you can influence. Alzheimer’s is not a normal part of aging, although the greatest know risk factor is increasing age, and the majority of people with Alzheimer’s are 65 and older. But Alzheimer’s is not just a disease
Cited: (The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, Inc, 2008) “Namenda” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov (Alzheimer 's Association National Offi) “What is Alzheimers” http://www.alz.org (Richard A Hansen, 2006) “HelpGuide Alzheimer’s Disease & Dementia” http://www.helpguide.org