Alzheimer’s disease is marked by slow development, and its characteristic decline in cognitive and behavioral function typically takes place gradually over a period of several years. It is because of this slow onset that many cases go undiagnosed until more severe symptoms become apparent. Over time, the disease affects a person’s memory, language skills, decision making abilities and reasoning. Though the disease may be classified in individuals as mild, moderate or severe based on the extent of the symptoms, it is important to remember that each case is unique and progression will vary from one person to the next.

Although the stages of Alzheimer’s are not concrete time periods, knowing generally what to expect over time can be helpful in future care planning for anyone who has a loved one with Alzheimer’s disease. Here we examine some of the characteristic behaviors observed in the mild, moderate and severe stages of Alzheimer’s disease:

Mild/Early: In the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease, symptoms such as forgetfulness, a limited attention span and forgetting where things belong are often disregarded as typical signs of aging. Though some of the symptoms of early Alzheimer’s disease are similar to those experienced by a healthy person with age, a person with Alzheimer’s disease will exhibit such behaviors with more frequency and severity over time. A person in the mild stage of the disease may become less motivated, resist change and confuse one word with another when speaking. Often, the patient does not realize that he or she is experiencing these changes, and a close family member is the first to notice symptoms. People in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease can usually remain at home, particularly when there is a spouse or other loved one there to help out.

Moderate/Middle: As the disease progresses into the moderate stage, symptoms become more severe, more recurrent and more apparent to other people as well as the patient. The middle stage of Alzheimer’s disease is marked by a decline in memory function, particularly short term memory, though a patient may retain his or her long term memory. Personality changes and an inability to make judgments are also extremely common in this stage. It is in the moderate stage that a person with Alzheimer’s may begin to have difficulty recognizing people they know, or confusing the identity of one person with another. People in this stage of Alzheimer’s do best having a caregiver available full time to help with daily needs and ensure their safety.

Severe/Advanced: Severe Alzheimer’s disease calls for fulltime care from a loved one or a professional caregiver. Patients at this stage have difficulty communicating and frequently do not recognize loved ones. Advanced Alzheimer’s disease causes patients to feel disoriented with their surroundings and exhibit severe mood swings.

Alzheimer’s disease affects every person differently, and all people with Alzheimer’s disease will not experience every described symptom. Though the disease is divided into stages to make understanding its progression easier, there is no set timeline for any one patient’s progression. Today, the progression of the Alzheimer’s symptoms can sometimes be delayed with medications and lifestyle changes.

By: J. Trevey

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Both Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease affect nearly half a million people each year with their debilitating and eventually life-robbing symptoms. While Alzheimer’s steals memories and personality and eventually leads to decreased motor function, Parkinson’s disease robs the person of basic motor function causing a shaking or palsy to run throughout the body. Scientists have wondered for years whether or not there was a connection for the two diseases, either in the genes or some environmental factor that triggered the onset of both Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease.

A Discussion of the Two Players:

Parkinson’s disease is an incurable disease of the nervous system where the neuro-transmitters in the brain begin to malfunction, causing a trembling in the body and limbs that gets progressively worse over time. Symptoms of rigidity and trouble walking at a normal gait also appear over time. Eventually this disease will rob the person of the ability to control their balance leading to more falls and slips, which is a concern for their well being.

Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease are different in that while Parkinson’s disease appears to focus more on physical ailments, Alzheimer’s appears to affect the mental capacities before the motor skills and physical ones deteriorate. Common everyday forgetfulness turns into confusion and forgetfulness that becomes a problem for every day activity. The location of homes or remembering the faces of children or friends becomes more and more difficult with time. Eventually, the personality can change as a result of the disease.

Is There a Connection?:

In April of 2003, a scientific study indicated that there may be a connection between Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. In that study, it was concluded that older adults who develop the tremors and other classical symptoms of Parkinson’s disease may be up to eight times as likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease as well. In addition, it has been shown that the symptoms of both Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease can be very similar and perhaps follow the same lines, although the root cause may be somewhat different.

Research also suggests that Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease may have a connection in how the two diseases progress over time. The same study published in the April 2003 issue of The Archives of Neurology tracked the progression of symptoms associated with Parkinson’s disease among 824 Catholic clergy members with an average age of 75, and who had no signs of Alzheimer’s disease at the beginning of the study. After approximately four and half years, 79% of the study’s participants experienced a more rapid progression of the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. Of those who experienced the most rapid progression, it was found that they were eight times as likely to have symptoms of both Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease.

Is there a connection between Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease? So far the medical profession is still debating that idea, but more and more studies indicate that they’re might be a link between these two debilitating diseases. Only more time, and more research will be able to explain the connection, if any, between Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease.

By: Jonty Smith

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Alzheimer’s disease is a neurodegenerative disease that causes the patient to suffer from progressive intellectual deterioration. Currently, there is still no known cure, so several institutions organized Alzheimer’s associations to primarily spearhead researches on the disorder.

Alzheimer’s associations are usually non-profit organizations that focus on matters related to Alzheimer’s disease; the primary concern is to develop a treatment for this disorder. Doctors have developed medications that are capable of slowing down the degenerative process, but there are no cures that can completely eliminate the disease. Alzheimer’s associations are also responsible for spreading information campaigns to educate the public on the disorder. Professional caregivers are trained by the associations to provide proper care to patients.

Researches

Through the funding of Alzheimer’s associations, researches have yielded discoveries on nutrition that can prevent a person from acquiring Alzheimer’s disease. It was discovered that non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs could delay or lower the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. It was also discovered that increasing the consumption of a combination of vitamins C and E significantly lowers the risk of the disease. Evidence shows that inclusion of fish in the weekly diet is beneficial because of the Omega 3 fatty acid contents.

Researches have also yielded the development of inhibitors that can slow down the progression of the disease. There are also ongoing studies on vaccines for Alzheimer’s disease. Intake of medical nicotine is also believed to have delaying effects on intellectual deterioration.

Information Campaigns

Alzheimer’s associations give away pamphlets, brochures, videos and other forms of media to help educate the public of this disorder. It is believed that if family and friends or those closest to the patient know what signs to look for, the deterioration process could be slowed down.

Caregivers

Professional caregivers are trained by Alzheimer’s associations and they can be employed by family members to take care of the patient. Doctors believe that it is very important that the patient be treated in a familiar setting to delay the effects of the disease and eventually eliminate the need for more costly professional treatments.

By: Marcus Peterson

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A daughter’s perspective upon learning that her mother has Alzheimer’s Disease.

John Q. Trojanowski, MD, phd, and Virginia MY. Lee, phd, MBA, lead efforts to understand Alzheimer’s disease, other dementias, Parkinsons, ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease), and related neurological disorders at the University of Pennsylvania Center for Neurodegenerative Disease Research (CNDR).

Early onset alzheimer’s disease is a progressive condition that attacks brain function, slowly taking away a person’s ability to recognize those around them and impacting their ability to perform daily living skills. This can be especially difficult for family members or friends to deal with as they watch their loved one struggle to remember simple things.

Age is a major factor in early onset alzheimer’s disease. Most people who have been diagnosed with this disease are 65 or older. Your risk for developing Alzheimer’s doubles every five years after the age of 65. By the age of 85, the risk of having Alzheimer’s disease is 50%. Alzheimer’s is a brain disorder; it is not a normal part of aging. Other biological risk factors include a family history of Alzheimer’s disease and genetic links. Those people who have had a family member who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s are significantly more likely to develop the disease themselves.

There are some steps that you can take to reduce your risk of developing early onset alzheimer’s disease:

o Make sure that you protect your head by using precautions such as a helmet when you are doing activities like riding a bike. This reduces risk for brain damage if you have an accident.

o Make an effort to lead a healthy life. Give your brain the power it needs to stay healthy and strong.

o Eat right, get rest, drink plenty of water and get regular exercise. By giving your body and brain a solid foundation, you help reduce the risk of brain damage.

o Keep sharp by exercising your mind as well as your body.

o Use memory techniques like puzzles, memorizing lists or doing math problems to give your mind a good workout.

Early onset alzheimer’s disease the leading cause of dementia in the United States. It can be a frightening diagnosis to hear, but there is hope with current medications and ongoing research.

By: Thomas A. Klein

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When you have an older person you are taking care of that starts to have an incontinence problem you should immediately discuss the problem with the person’s doctor. Don’t wait until it’s so bad it cannot be controlled. Incontinence, especially urinary incontinence, is a common condition that often occurs among older people. It is so common that it may have nothing to do directly with dementia or Alzheimer’s disease.

There are many older people that have overactive bladders. This condition may lead to an urgent need to urinate. It often comes about very suddenly. This can cause frequent bladder leaking and consequent embarrassment. Some people have trouble getting every last bit from the bladder. As a result the bladder may overfill and produce a constant dribble of urine. Sometimes older women have weak pelvic muscles causing them to lose urine when they laugh, sneeze, or exert themselves.

A person with bowel incontinence may be suffering from an infection, diarrhea, constipation, or an accumulation of waste lodged in the intestine. We noticed that it came about so suddenly that Mr. Q had a problem with bowel incontinency, that the caretaker suspected there may be a problem with an infection. We took him to the doctor and sure enough that was the case. But now, some time after the infection has cleared, he has seemed to forget almost entirely that he needs to have, or how to do a bowel movement.

Mr. Q definitely has an incontinence problem and it is compounded by his inability to know how to do a bowel movement. Because he goes a long time without a normal bowl movement he needs to push to get it out and he doesn’t seem to know how to do that. It’s a big problem. There is the wetting problem also, but that can be somewhat controlled by regularly getting him to the bathroom before he wets himself.

Back to the problem of doing number two. Mr. Q doesn’t drink enough fluids to make it easy for him to do poo poo. He has been refusing to drink juices and we have been unsuccessful in getting him to drink water. Originally he thought not drinking water would keep him from going to the bathroom to take a leak, but he has since forgotten that and incontinency has taken over. We can get him to drink Ensure or similar products, but in very small amounts.

Many of these incontinence problems are reversible. In some cases a doctor can prescribe medications to improve bladder and bowel control. This is not always the case, however. Sometimes trying doctor prescribed medications does not do the job.

Brain damage done by Alzheimer’s will progress (usually slowly), and you may need to take some extra measures to prevent accidents. When a person is confused they can forget to go to the bathroom, forget where the bathroom is, or forget what to do once they get there.

If there is an incontinence problem make it a habit to take your loved one to the bathroom every few hours. If they are confused they might forget where the toilet is or what to do so you need to guide them if this is the case. There may be some overt clues of a potential bathroom problem that you may notice. Watch for restlessness, tugging or constantly adjusting or fiddling with clothes, or other out of place movements that might indicate they need to relieve themselves.

Sometimes when a loved one starts wetting or doing bowel movements in their clothes or other places, the most dedicated caregivers can sometimes feel defeated. It’s hard to imagine yourself constantly cleaning urine stains from clothes, rugs and other places or changing the sheets and blankets several times a night. These types of problems and accidents connected with incontinence drive some very dedicated caregivers to look for nursing homes or a Residential Care Facility for the Elderly (RCFE in California).

So if incontinency is, or becomes a problem for your loved one who has dementia or Alzheimer’s be sure to see a doctor and have him at least try to control the situation by medicines, if possible. Try not to scold or reprimand a person for accidents. Your loved one isn’t trying to make your life difficult. I’m sure they dearly wish they could take care of themselves. It takes lots of patience and understanding to deal with these situations. You now know what to possibly expect and can better prepare yourself for this common dementia and Alzheimer’s problem.

By: Charles L Harmon

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What is Alzheimer’s disease?

This is a preview of New Research on Molecular Mechanisms and Prevention of Alzheimer ‘s Disease by Stanislaw R. Burzynski, MD at the 2009A4M Orlando Conference. Visit www.instatapes.com to purchase this lecture and many others on DiGiVision, video and slides syned. Also, visit www.worldhealth.net for the conference sponsor. Item #A4M-091WSS311

Learn about dementias, including Alzheimer’s disease and the brain problems involved.