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Alzheimer's Disease
Alzheimer's Disease
[AD]
What is Alzheimers
Alzheimers is the most common form of dementia. A
Causes of AD
Age factor.
Family history.
Neurological factors.
History of head
trauma.
Long standing high
blood pressure.
Female gender.
Types of AD
Early onset.
Late onset.
EARLY ONSET AD
Symptoms first appear before age 60.
It tends to progress rapidly and usually run in
families.
Cases of early onset AD are rarely
encountered.
Presently accounts for 5% of total AD patients
worldwide.
LATE ONSET AD
It is the most
commonly
encountered form of
AD.
Symptoms appears
after the age of 60
years.
It may run in families
but the role of genes
is still unclear.
SYMPTOMS OF AD
Language problem.
Misplacing items.
Getting lost on familiar routes.
Personality changes and loss of social skill.
Difficulty in performing task that takes some
thought.
Forgetting details.
Change in sleep pattern.
danger.
Withdrawing from social contacts.
Having hallucination and violent behavior.
Intricacies in communicating with other
people.
Difficulty in doing basic task.
3 STAGES OF AD
Mid/Early.
Moderate/Middle.
Severe/Late.
MID/EARLY
Duration-2 years
Characteristics Frequent recent memory loss, particularly of
MODERATE/MIDDLE
Duration-2 to 10 years.
Characteristics Pervasive and persistent memory loss.
Sleep disturbances.
Mobility and coordination is affected.
SEVERE/LATE
Duration-1 to 3+ years.
Characteristics Unable to care for self.
Immobility.
Problems with swallowing, incontinence, and
illness.
Extreme problem with moods and behaviour.
Round the clock intensive support and care.
DIAGNOSIS OF AD
Neuropsychological testing.
Medical history
Physical Examination
Brain-imaging scan
TREATMENT OF AD
There is no definite cure for AD.
The goals of treating AD are
Slowing the progression of disease.
Manage behavioral problem, confusion, sleep
PROGNOSIS
How quickly AD gets worse for each person?
Patient with AD dies earlier than normal.
Although a patient might live anywhere
COMPLICATIONS
Loss of ability to function or care for self.
Loss of ability to interact.
Failure of body system.
Malnutrition or dehydration.
Violent behavior towards self or others.
Abuse by over-stressed caregiver.
PREVENTION
Well there is no proven way to prevent AD but
NOTABLE
CASES
Ronald Reagan.
George Fernandes.
Charles Kao.
Iris Murdoch.
Nanabhoy Palkhivala