Does Anyone Have a Relative Who Passed Away From Alzheimers?
Friday, February 19th, 2010 at
8:24 am
daisy asked:
My grandma is 94 with alzheimers and has lost alot of memory but otherwise is in pretty good health for her age. I don’t understand how alzheimers by itself kills people.
Tagged with: Alzheimers • Good Health • Memory
Filed under: Alzheimers
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It isn’t the disease itself that kills people, it’s what the disease destroys in the brain. As the dementia progresses, more and more functions of daily life will cease. Towards the patient’s final days, they are bedbound and unable to function. I speak from personal experience and through my education as a nurse. My grandfather died July 6, 2007 from this very same condition. Patients will forget how to eat and more importantly, how to swallow. The dysphagia (difficulty swallowing) will lead to aspiration of food or liquid. This will result in pneumonia. Patients will be in and out of the hospital many times for antibiotics. Eventually, it will get so bad, they may die from the infection. In the case of my grandpap, we had to make the decision whether or not put a feeding tube in since he no longer could or would eat. Following his wishes, we chose not to put one in. He went 8 weeks without eating before he passed away. Also, patients who are unhealthy with various medical problems will see a worsening of these conditions as the dementia reaches end stage. It may be something related to those conditions that cause their demise. This is a very hard disease to watch a loved one go through. It is not the patient who suffers, but the family. I wish you the best of luck. Try looking into support groups to help deal with the many complicated issues. My prayers are with you and your family.