Alzheimer's Disease

Contrary to popular belief, Alzheimer's disease is not merely a problem with memory. Instead, Alzheimer's disease is a type of dementia, or a loss of mental functioning. Specifically, it is a disorder involving the progressive degeneration of brain tissue. For an unknown reason, Alzheimer's causes neurons, or brain cells, to break down and decompose. In addition, two types of cellular abnormalities form in the brains of Alzheimer's victims: amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles.

Amyloid plaques are spheres of protein that are surrounded by cellular fragments. As the neurons break down and degenerate, pieces of neurons and other waste products attach themselves to protein, forming plaques. Neurofibrillary tangles refer to a twisting and tangling of nerve fibers.

Prevalence and Diagnosis

Alzheimer's disease occurs in 2 to 4 percent of the population over the age of 65. Its prevalence increases with age so that at least one-third of adults over the age of 80 are thought to have Alzheimer's disease. Part of the difficulty in determining the prevalence of Alzheimer's is that it can only truly be diagnosed after death. A definitive diagnosis of Alzheimer's occurs after observing the amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles during autopsy.

Generally Alzheimer's is diagnosed by exclusion. Many other diseases, disorders, and conditions can produce symptoms that are similar to those of Alzheimer's. In order to diagnosis Alzheimer's disease, physicians must rule out other possible causes of dementia including cancer, health problems, depression, psychosis, and many other disorders.

Symptoms of Alzheimer's Disease

• Memory impairment, involving the impaired ability to learn new information or to recall previously learned information. The memory loss is severe enough to affect job performance and everyday functioning. While it is normal to forget someone's name, it is not normal to forget names on a regular basis or names of persons close to you.
• Language disturbance. Persons with Alzheimer's often experience difficulty communicating because they forget simple words and substitute inappropriate ones.
• Agnosia Alzheimer's victims may fail to recognize or identity objects. For example, an individual may not recognize or understand how to use everyday objects like silverware.
• Disturbance in executive functions. Abstract thinking, planning,organization are compromised. Alzheimer's patients often demonstrate poor judgment. For example, someone may forget to wear a jacket on a cold winter day.
• Disorientation to time and place. It's normal to lose track of time, but persons with Alzheimer's may forget what year it is or get lost in a familiar neighborhood.
• Changes in mood, behavior, or personality. Persons with Alzheimer's experience rapid changes in mood, from laughter to anger. they may also show dramatic changes in personality, from being outgoing to suspicious or childlike. A loss of initiative and motivation is also common.
The copyright of the article Alzheimer's Disease in Developmental Psychology is owned by Tara Kuther. Permission to republish Alzheimer's Disease in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Go To Page: 1 2

Articles in this Topic    Discussions in this Topic