Dementia and Alzheimers Disease Essay examples - 638 Words

Dementia and Alzheimers During an average lifetime, one can expect to have at least occasional memory lapses from time to time. Usually its something as simple as forgetting what you just did a few minutes ago, forgetting if you turned the stove off, or if you left your keys on the table or in the bathroom counter. Such lapses are relatively normal, but when they become a recurring theme, its a more serious problem. As people age, it is natural for them to experience a mild degree of memory loss. However, some cases can be much more severe, and can have a variety of causes. When loss of memory and other mental functions becomes more severe, the condition is known as dementia. Dementia is caused by a variety of disorders, but†¦show more content†¦During the onset of the disease, symptoms are usually non-existant, and progress slowly over the course of many years, often going unnoticed until they become more severe. Alzheimers is somewhat difficult to diagnose, but there are some common symptoms to all patients. Memory loss occurs in all patients. The person may have trouble remembering small things such as phone numbers, or where he/she put the keys. Eventually, short term memory is lost, and only memories in the far past are able to be recalled. People with Alzheimers can become disoriented and can get lost easily when out on their own. Mood changes also occur, and the person can be eas ily irritated or agitated by seemingly insignificant things. Cognitive deterioration also occurs, with the person losing the ability to understand spoken language or recall the meanings of different words (Grayson, Recognizing Alzheimers 1). Despite these common symptoms, making a diagnosis is difficult since Alzheimers patientscan display the same symptoms as a head injury or depression. There are also people with various factors that increase the risk of a person becoming affected by the disease. Age plays a large role in acquiring the disease. Since the disease is largely found in elderly people, the general age for onset is around age 65. After that, the number of people affected continues to increase with age. Another risk factor isShow MoreRelatedAbout Alzheimers Disease And Dementia822 Words   |  4 Pages An Altered Life About Alzheimers Disease and Dementia. (2014, February). In Alzheimers Foundation of America . Retrieved September 25, 2017, from https://alzfdn.org/caregiving-resources/about-alzheimers-disease-and-dementia/ The Alzheimer’s Foundation of America, in layman terms, provides quick and easy information about what Alzheimer’s is, which I believe will be helpful for my readers. The accredited foundation simplifies the disease by describing it as a progressive brain disorder. TheRead MoreDementia: Alzheimers Disease and Care3637 Words   |  15 PagesDementia Writing a research paper is very difficult. Picking a topic is even harder. The topic I have chose to write about is dementia. Dementia is a chronic or persistent disorder of the mental processes cause by brain disease or injury and marked by memory disorders, or personalities. This is a very personal topic for me. Researching this topic made me understand something that happen to me recently. My great-grandmother passed away May 21st, 2011. After ninety four years of a wonderful life sheRead MorePathophysiology Of Dementia And Alzheimers Disease1570 Words   |  7 PagesPathophysiology: Dementia Dementia, also known as Alzheimer’s disease (AD), is a progressive, chronic, and degenerative. 60% of dementia occurs in people over the age of 65. Dementia causes loss of judgment, memory, change in personality, and visuospatial perception. Severe cognitive impairment can occur over time, as well as physical deterioration and death. The brain changes in size and weight as a person ages. There is also a narrowing of the gyri, enlargement of the ventricles, and wideningRead MoreEssay on Dementia: Alzheimers Disease and Person1027 Words   |  5 Pagesvisiting them as often as you can, and every time having to remind them who you are, and how you affected their life. This is known as a disease call dementia. Dementia disease is very hard for the patient themselves, but often times harder for the family. Alzheimer disease is a form of dementia, and makes daily living very difficult. Alzheimer’s disease is a brain disease. Brain cells that control intellectual and social functions are damaged. Memory, thinking, reasoning, judgment, language, behaviorRead MorePrevalence of Dementia and Alzheimers Disease in Elders1633 Words   |  7 Pagesï » ¿Introduction: Background to the topic Dementia Dementia is one of the most common diseases that affects the elderly and requires substantial healthcare structures to be placed thereof. Another disease that is commonly found amongst the elderly is Ð lzhÐ µimÐ µrs disease. Both these are found to be significantly common amongst the aged people in the world. The treatment and medication of this disease is Ð ° costly affair and can keep on increasing if the disease continues to grow (Alvarado-Esquivel etRead MoreAn Overview of Alzheimers Disease and Dementia Essay1938 Words   |  8 PagesAlzheimer’s Disease Dementia Intro/Overview Section of Disease Paper â€Å"Horribly tragic, scary, slow, sad, maddening, etc.† These are words some would use when asked what Alzheimer’s/dementia is. This answer is common to those who have watched loved ones suffer from this disease that ultimately lead to their passing. As defined in McGraw Hill Medical Dictionary, Alzheimer’s Disease is a ‘progressive neurologic disease of the brain that causes irreversible loss of neurons and eventualRead MoreThe Leading Cause For Dementia, Alzheimers Disease1343 Words   |  6 PagesAs the leading cause for dementia, Alzheimer’s disease –AD-, effects more than 25 million people in the world (Perrone Grant, 2015, p. 1).The neurodegenerative disorder, results in behavioral changes, as well as cognitive including, loss of memory and language skills ( Mayo Clinic Staff, 2014). Researchers have tracked two leading abnormalities resulting in Alzheimer’s. These two are, amyloid plaques-clumps of protein which form in and around the neurons- and neurofibrillary tangles- insolubleRead MoreA Comparative Study of Parkinson’s Disease with Dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease1200 Words   |  5 Pagesjournal of Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinsonism on August 26th 2013, volume 3, issue 2. Dr.Perea et al. conducted the study at department of neurology, Alzheimer’s Research Disease Center, department of Psychology, Bioengineering program-department of engineering, at University of Kansas School of Medicine, Kansas City, KS, USA. The big question of this study is to investigate white matter differences to give better understanding of neurodegenerative disease such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’sRead MoreAlzheimer’s Disease is the Most Common form of Dementia3129 Words   |  12 PagesAlzheimer’s Disease â€Å"What is Alzheimer’s disease (AD)?† Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia that affects an individual’s memory, cognition, and behavior disturbances that ultimately diminishes their quality of life.1-2 Dementia is not a specific disease it is a general term for a variety of symptoms that affect memory and intellectual thinking that causes difficulty in our tasks of daily living.(5) The confusion between these two terms is extraordinary. It’s helpful to thinkRead MoreThe Disease Of Alzheimer s Disease Essay1482 Words   |  6 PagesAlzheimer’s disease is a degenerative brain disease that is seen in the elderly. It is the most common form of dementia, which is a general term for memory loss and other intellectual abilities serious enough to interfere with daily life (Alzheimer’s Disease Dementia). Alzheimer’s is one of the leading causes of death in America. Dementia and Alzheimer’s have been aroun d for centuries, but Alzheimer’s disease wasn’t first described until 1906 by Dr. Aloysius Alzheimer. In the past, there was a