Alzheimer’s Disease

Alzheimer’s Disease. Some of us may have heard of it, may have read about it, may have seen it in movies, or may even have encountered someone with it. I, for one, have seen people with Alzheimer’s disease and most of them are the older adults(60 years old and above). There were quite a few of them in the nursing home where I used to work at as a CNA. As far as I know and as far as I have observed, Alzheimer patients tend to have their memories lost, may even forget who they are and their total being. All along I thought that only the older adults could have it. Not until I’ve seen a Korean movie with the leading lady having the disease in her 20’s. I totally had no idea that it can hit us at such a young age! Because to me, the image of Alzheimer’s disease is only for old people. So what is Alzheimer’s Disease? Where does it come from? How do we get it? What are the treatments? And how do we handle people with it? Is it really possible that it could hit us at a younger age?

Alzheimer’s Disease is a chronic, progressive , irreversible, and degenerative disease of the brain. It is the most common form of dementia(brain disorder that seriously affects the cognitive function of the brain which includes a person's ability to carry out daily activities) amongst the older people. One of its earliest symptoms is loss of memory, along with the ability to learn, reason, make judgements, and communicate. There may even be some personality and behavioral changes as well, such as agitation, suspiciousness, anxiety, isolation, as well as hallucinations or delusions. Alzheimer’s disease begins slowly. It starts with the part of the brain that controls thought, language , and memory. People with the disease may forget or not remember things that happened recently or the names of people they know. As it eventually gets worse, they may not even be able to recognize family members and may have trouble in reading, writing , and even speaking. They may also forget how to clean themselves, brush their teeth or hair. Then, later on they may become aggressive and anxious and wander away from home. And eventually, they need total care. There is no known cause and cure for Alzheimer’s Disease. However, there are some hypotheses that are continually being tested as of the generation the disease. Others are being supported by research. Aging is one factor for developing AD, but it is not a normal part of aging. It usually occurs at age 60 and above. Two percent to four percent in ages 60- 85, and more than twenty percent in ages 85 and above. Although in most occasions it occurs at age 60 onwards, it can occur in ages younger than 60 but is very rare. When Alzheimer’s Disease develops in someone less than 60 years old, it is referred to as the early onset AD, and late onset AD when it occurs at age 60 and above. So that explains how the leading lady in the Korean movie got the disease at a very young age. Another hypothesis is that AD can be hereditary, which has been termed as Familial Alzheimer’s Disease. Other risks include viral infections and severe head injuries, aluminum intake, poor cardiovascular health including smoking, hypertension, high cholesterol, and diabetes.

How was Alzheimer’s Disease discovered? Alzheimer’s Disease was named after a German psychiatrist, Dr. Alois Alzheimer, in 1991. He described the changes in the brain tissue of a 51-year-old woman, Mrs. Aguste D., who died of an unusual mental illness. What he did was he interviewed her. Dr. Alzheimer showed her several objects and asked her after of what he had showed her. Unfortunately, she then could not recall. Mrs. Aguste D was the first patient to be diagnosed with the Alzheimer’s Disease. She was brought in by her husband, Karl Deter, who was already having a hard time and could no longer take care of her because of her declining mental health.

There are three stages of Alzheimer’s disease-----the early stage, middle stage, and late stage. At the early stage, patients have a tendency to have forgetfulness, loss of short-term memory, difficulty in learning. They can’t remember facts, faces, and names. They also tend to become less energetic or spontaneous due to gradual lack of interest in life. They also become isolative, indecisive, and uncomfortable in new situations. As the disease progresses to the middle stage, the patient may still be able to perform tasks by himself, but may need assistance with more complicated tasks. And as the disease progresses from middle stage to the late stage, the patient becomes incapable of self-care even the simplest of tasks, and therefore needs constant supervision. They may even be unable to walk(Ataxia) or eat without assistance, and unable to recognize family and friends. They also become incontinent in both bladder and bowel. This is also the stage where they have extreme physical decline until which